After leaving the Minnesota game in the second quarter with an apparent lower-leg injury, the status of Illinois defensive lineman Jamal Woods remains up in the air as Illinois prepares for Iowa on Nov. 20.

Speaking with members of the media on Tuesday, Illinois head coach Bret Bielema called Woods “questionable” for the upcoming game against the Hawkeyes but said there’s a go “chance he’ll be out there again this season.” 247Sports’ Jeremy Werner passed along the news.

After the Minnesota game, a 14-6 upset for the Illini, Bielema called the ankle injury significant. To miss any time this late in the year would no doubt be a disappointment for the senior from Alabama. Illinois (4-6) is fighting for bowl eligibility and Woods was enjoying his healthiest season since 2017.

An All-Freshman Team honorable mention from BTN as a first-year player in 2017, Woods missed a total of 16 games over his next 3 seasons. A season-ending injury 4 games into the 2018 year robbed him of his sophomore campaign. He played in 9 games as a junior (four starts at defensive tackle) but missed 4 more with injuries. He started 3 games in 2020 and appeared in one more, but missed the other 4 the Illini played because of injury.

Woods has 12 tackles this season and 2 TFLs. He has played in all 10 games to this point. For his career, he has 67 tackles and 15.5 TFLs.

Illinois is on a bye this week. It closes out its season with a trip to Iowa City to face the Hawkeyes on Nov. 20 and hosts Northwestern on Nov. 27.