Illinois football: 3 Illini players who stood out in last night's win over UAB

Illinois football is 1-0 in 2026.

The Illini used big plays and consistent offense to go up early and stay ahead over UAB. They put the Blazers to bed with a defenisve score, too. 

Here are three Illini players who stood out in last night's 42-23 win over UAB.

Quarterback Katin Houser

In his first start with Illinois, Houser got off to a strong start.

His second pass of the game was a touchdown, his first of three on the day. He completed 13 of his 17 passes for 182 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for another in the red zone. He had a 76 percent completion percentage, and led the Illini offense to 35 points.

Houser displayed poise, and was accurate. He had four incomplete passes on the evening, and one of those was a drop. He made up for that with a 53-yard Hail Mary touchdown where he put a deep shot right in the end zone to give his receivers a chance at the ball.

What they're saying:

"I had some nerves going into the first game," Houser said. "I put in a ton of work since January to get to this point. I thought we had a good win. The start wasn't as clean as we'd like it to be. We have a good opponent in Duke coming in next week. I'm going to enjoy this one tonight, look at the film tomorrow to get it corrected and move on to next week. I thought it was a good win to start off the season."

Wide Receiver Collin Dixon

Last year, Hank Beatty was the Illini go-to target in the passing game. With Beatty off to the NFL, Illinois needs another go-to player.

With a two-touchdown night, Dixon is primed to be the next man up. He proved it on Thursday as Houser's No. 1 target.

Dixon caught the first Illini touchdown of the season on a play where Hosuer pump-faked a throw to the flat for a screen play. UAB's defenders bit hard, and drove down to the line of scrimmage. DIxon released past them and was wide open outside the hashes. 

He scored his second touchdown on a similar play, too. On a pump-faked screen, Dixon released on the inside of the hashes and Houser fit a perfect pass for a touchdown.

It wasn't just the touchdowns, either. Dixon led all Illinois receivers with six receptions on six targets for 70 yards. He's clearly Houser's No. 1 target, and that should emerge more as the season goes on.

What they're saying:

"Just showing up every day, showing them I can be the guy," Dixon said. "That I can get more targets and be someone they can depend on so that when moments like this happen, I am ready for it. But I think they trust me to come out here and be a guy like that."

Linebacker Ismael Kante

All game, the defense was leading up to a big play. It wasn't clear what that play would be until Ismael Kante made it.

It was a 4th and 7play at the Illinois 31-yard line with just six minutes to go. The Illini had a 35-16 lead. A UAB score would give the Blazers a chance to stay in the game. Kante snuffed out the remaining life.

Illinois defensive coordinator Bobby Hauck sent pressure at UAB quarterback Ryder Burton, and the pressure forced a throw right into Kante's hands. He raced 59 yards for the clinching touchdown. It's proof Illinois has a defense that can close games.

What they're saying:

"As soon as he dove, I knew I was scoring," Kante said. "They weren't stopping me."

University of Illinois