Illinois vs. UCLA: What You Need to Know About the 2011 Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl

It's the second official Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, but the 10th installment of a game played in San Francisco's AT&T Park. Last season, the Nevada Wolfpack defeated the Boston College Eagles.

This year pits two interesting squads against each other in UCLA and Illinois. While it may be deemed Rose Bowl North, the two teams have a combined losing record. Additionally, each will be without the service of their head coaches.

What else is there to know about the Fight Hunger Bowl? Read on!

General Information

Date and Time

Dec. 31, 2011 at 3:30 p.m. EST

TV Network

ESPN

Stadium/Location

AT&T Park, San Francisco, CA

Performance Versus Ranked Teams

UCLA's Record Against Ranked Teams

1-3

Ranked Teams Faced

Loss vs No. 23 Texas, 49-20

Loss @ No. 6 Stanford, 45-19

Win vs. No. 19 Arizona State, 29-28

Loss @ No. 9 Oregon, 49-31

Illinois' Record Against Ranked Teams

1-3

Ranked Teams Faced

Win vs. No. 22 Arizona State, 17-14

Loss @ No. 19 Penn State, 10-7

Loss vs. No. 24 Michigan 31-17

Loss vs. No. 17 Wisconsin, 28-17

Something Has Got to "Get"

UCLA has allowed 99 points in their last two games (34 per game in their final four).

Meanwhile, Illinois has averaged 11 points per game over their final six games.

Normally, we say something has to "give" when the unstoppable meets the impenetrable. In this case, someone stands to improve greatly.

New Coaches

Each coach will be coaching their first game ever with no guarantee to ever coach again.

Defensive coordinator Vic Koenning will be filling in for Ron Zook, who was fired on Nov. 27.

Offensive coordinator Mike Johnson will coach the Bruins, filling in for Rick Neuheisel, who was fired just a couple of days after Zook. Neuheisel actually coached the Pac-12 title game that same week, but has since been relieved.

Tim Beckman and Jim Mora Jr. will take over for Illinois and UCLA, respectively, starting next season.

Strong Rushing Games

While neither team is known for lighting up the scoreboard, both teams excel when they can get the running game going.

UCLA finished 29th in the nation in rushing and is led by both Johnathan Franklin and Derrick Coleman. The two combined to tally 1,673 yards on the season.

Illinois finished 42nd in the nation in rushing this season, a disappointment for them. Additionally, they will be without their leading rusher, Jason Ford, who was ruled ineligible. This makes QB Nathan Scheelhaase the leading rusher for the Illini, followed by Troy Pollard and freshman Donovonn Young.

Pursuit of Records

Illinois defensive end Whitney Mercilus came out of nowhere this season to become one of the strongest defensive ends in the nation.

His 14.5 sacks leads the nation, and his nine forced fumbles is one shy of the NCAA record for a single season.

For his efforts, he has been rewarded with the Ted Hendricks Award for the nation's top defensive end.

He is 1.5 sacks away from tying Simeon Rice for first place all-time for sacks in a single season.

Disappointing Seasons

Illinois started 6-0—their best start in 60 years—and had many thinking about the BCS. Instead, they finished 0-6, fired head coach Ron Zook and finished 2-6 in the Big Ten.

UCLA had as disappointing of a season as one could have for "winning" their division. At 6-7, they had to petition to get into a bowl game and also fired their head coach. They are back in a bowl for the first time since 2009, but huge losses to Arizona and rival USC were too much for Neuheisel to stay on the sidelines.

Momentum for 2012

Many coaches believe bowl games are actually an introduction to the next season. If that is the case, each team has a golden opportunity to right some wrongs made this year.

Both teams will have plenty of talent back next year, and both will have a new head coach. Despite disappointing seasons, one of these teams will end with a win—something only 35 teams in the nation can say. This is a great opportunity for both teams to get momentum headed into 2012.