Illinois coaching staff lauds over Iowa's A.J. Epenesa: 'One of the best defensive players in the country'

Illinois is one of the feel-good stories in the Big Ten this season. The Fighting Illini are 6-4 overall and have won their last four games.

Ahead for Illinois is a game at Iowa scheduled for a noon ET start on Saturday, Nov. 23. Iowa just pulled off a notable upset, handing Minnesota its first loss of the season.

RELATED: Lovie Smith using last year’s blowout to Iowa as motivation

On Monday, ahead of the Fighting Illini-Hawkeyes game, the Illinois’ head coach and offensive coordinator both talked about Hawkeye defensive end A.J. Epenesa — a former 5-star recruit:

#illini Lovie: Epenesa one of the best defensive players in the country. Stanley feels like he's been there forever. They establish the run.

— Jeremy Werner (@JWerner247) November 18, 2019

#illini Lovie: Epenesa is an Illinois guy. We got to keep those guys in Illinois. Know the family. AJ is an oustanding player. One of the best DL in the country. He can do it all.

— Jeremy Werner (@JWerner247) November 18, 2019

#illini Rod Smith: Epenesa "a world of a football." He caused havoc last year. He caused havoc this past weekend.

— Jeremy Werner (@JWerner247) November 18, 2019

Again, Epenesa is quite the talent. He could be a first round NFL Draft pick this coming year. He’s a force and Illinois has to deal with him in just a few days.

It knows exactly what it is dealing with.