Illinois defensive coordinator Hardy Nickerson will take a temporary leave of absence from the program after his mother died “unexpectedly” on Sunday evening.

Head coach Lovie Smith announced the news during his weekly press conference on Monday. Smith also said he is unsure if Nickerson will return before Saturday’s game against Indiana.

“He won’t be here today,” Smith said. “We’ll kind of work around the schedule this week.

“Again, this all happened unexpectedly yesterday evening. We’re still working through that. I’d like to give you more information, but we don’t know much more than that. When anything happens family-wise, my policy and what I insist on is them to take care of the family. The rest of us will pick up the slack with what needs to be done here.”

Smith, who is know for his defensive mind and has spent plenty of time as a defensive coordinator throughout his coaching career, didn’t say whether or not he’d be calling the defense if Nickerson didn’t return before the game.

Illinois hosts Indiana in Champaign on Saturday.