What Lovie Smith said following comeback win, first victory of 2020 for Illinois

Illinois found the win column on Saturday, but it took until the very end to decide the game.

Entering the game against Rutgers, the Illini were still looking for a victory after a rough start to the season. Illinois also received a boost after getting a number of players back in action from contact tracing.

Among the players to return in Week 4 was quarterback Isaiah Williams. Traditionally the backup, Williams was cleared from contact tracing and received the nod as the starter. He went on to set an Illini record for rushing yards by a QB in his first career start.

Here’s what head coach Lovie Smith had to say about the performance, potential QB battles, and what he sees from the Illini moving forward:

Lovie Smith gives #Illini offensive line credit, including Doug Kramer @DHSVikings118 product Julian Pearl. Called Chase Brown "outstanding." On Isaiah Williams: "It’s tough duty for a defense when you have a quarterback that can run like that."

— Colin Likas (@clikasNG) November 14, 2020

Lovie on Williams: "He needed to make some plays, and he did that all day."

— Colin Likas (@clikasNG) November 14, 2020

Lovie on the future of the QB position, with Peters due back next week: "We have a big victory on the road is what we have today. Can’t talk much more than that."

— Colin Likas (@clikasNG) November 14, 2020

#Illini coach Lovie Smith: "We're headed in the right direction."

Smith says he saw a lot of signs of improvement today in the 23-20 win at Rutgers.

— Matthew Stevens (@matthewcstevens) November 14, 2020

#Illini coach Lovie Smith said QB Brandon Peters and LB Milo Eifler acted like assistant coaches today on the sideline.

— Matthew Stevens (@matthewcstevens) November 14, 2020

#Illini coach Lovie Smith: "We were down by 10 on the road today, lot of things kept going against us but the guys just kept on fighting."

Smith says he hopes this win gives his 1-3 team confidence.

— Matthew Stevens (@matthewcstevens) November 14, 2020

#illini Lovie Smith: I like what the offense was able to do, stay in there. Defensively, we gave up some big plays. We'll continue to work on that. Those takeaways late allowed us to win the footbal game.

— Joey Wagner (@mrwagner25) November 14, 2020