Bielema gave him 1 year, and he got the axe in favor of the UTSA Offensive Coordinator.
Illini ranked 121st in Passing Offense with 156.2 ypg tossing 13TD/6 INT. They ranked 55th in Rushing Offense with 173.6 ypg scoring 12 Rush TD. Overall, they were 115th in Scoring Offense at 20.2 ppg.
Spack surely liked that Rush Offense, but the Passing O clearly was inept and Peterson was also the QB coach there as well.
Here's hoping he figures out what went wrong in the land of orange and blue before he dons the red and white.
"After competing against Tony and his offensive style and game plan I have had tremendous respect for him as a coach," Bielema said. "Throughout his career he has blended the roster and skill sets of the players to maximize the results. Here at Illinois, we will build an offensive identity that will provide balance, use tempo, and play with a physicality that will make Illini Nation smile. No matter from playing on the road in a hostile environment or here at Memorial Stadium, we will execute and maximize our players' talents to build a sustained winning culture."
Petersen has directed some of the nation's most exciting and prolific offenses during his 30-year college coaching career, serving as an offensive coordinator in the Big Ten, MAC, Conference USA, American and Sun Belt prior to taking the reins of the Fighting Illini offense.
Interesting article, makes me feel even more upbeat about the new OC and QB combo (Petersen and Zack). I like Spack's "spin" on getting some "outside eyes" to look at the offense and take it to the next level. Hopefully Petersen can have a positive influence also on QB coach Belloumini and RB coach Ojuri especially and on TE coach Irvin - some experienced leadership with Coach Etheridge for the offense.In the updated OC Pantagraph story, Spack comments on the passing game needing to get better. He said that the Co-OCs were put in a situation to fail, but it was the best alternative at the time. Peterson fell into his lap. Apparently, Spack try to hire him previously.
Well, if they were put "in a situation to fail" it was Spack who put them there. Regardless, I am feeling more upbeat about this hire the more I read about him. I thought they needed to go outside to bring someone in to take the objective look at the offense and the players. ISU had issues at QB last season. Jefferson had developed about as much as he was going to I think. Waring was brand new with little field experience. Couple that with a lack of experience at the Offensive Coordinator position and there is no doubt that negatively impacted the passing game. Running the ball requires much less of the QB skill set. The Birds have a QB coming in with some Big 10 experience and the new OC's resume is far more impressive than the predecessors. I am glad they hired one guy to fill that position. He is a former QB himself and former QB coach. He should know the passing game and that is the missing link for the Birds. I am looking forward to see what he does with this group.In the updated OC Pantagraph story, Spack comments on the passing game needing to get better. He said that the Co-OCs were put in a situation to fail, but it was the best alternative at the time. Peterson fell into his lap. Apparently, Spack try to hire him previously.