Illinois Football: How Upset Loss Will Hurt Fighting Illini's BCS Hopes

No. 16 Illinois (6-1, 2-1) turned the ball over three times en route to a 17-7 loss against Big Ten rival Ohio State (4-3, 1-2) on Saturday. The loss puts an end to the Fighting Illini's undefeated season and proves the Buckeyes are still a threat despite the massive offseason turmoil in Columbus.

Biggest Winners: Penn State and Wisconsin

A Fighting Illini loss leaves just two undefeated teams in the Big Ten Leaders division, Penn State and Wisconsin. Since those two teams play each other in the regular season finale, they now control their own destiny in hopes of playing in the Big Ten Championship Game.

Does Illinois still have a BCS chance?

With so many undefeated teams left, the loss probably ends the slight National Championship Game hopes Illinois had. However, the Illini still have a chance at the Rose Bowl thanks to the Big Ten's automatic bid. They'll probably have to win out to make that happen, though.

What It Means

Illinois now has five games to prove its early season hot streak wasn't a fluke. The Fighting Illini only beat one ranked team during their 6-0 start, so now they'll have to hear how they were never worthy of being ranked No. 16.

They have two ranked teams left on the schedule (Michigan, Wisconsin) and a road trip to Happy Valley to face off with Penn State, so they'll have plenty of chances to illustrate their abilities. Illinois has already secured a bowl bid but are now playing for marquee placement.

Biggest Thing to Fix

It's not often a team (other than Georgia Tech) wins a game when they complete just one pass for 17 yards, but that was the case for Ohio State on Saturday. Illinois couldn't stop the duo of Dan Herron and Jordan Hall, who averaged nearly five yards per carry.

It's hard to pin a loss where the offense scored only seven points on the defense, though. So the biggest thing that needs fixing is the Illini's own rushing attack. Quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase and the running backs struggled to gain any traction, and it cost them the game.

Pivotal Turnaround Game: Nov. 12 vs. Michigan

Even though they play on different sides of the conference, this will be a de facto elimination game in the Big Ten. A second loss will likely eliminate the losing team from a chance at the Big Ten Championship Game and, therefore, a BCS bid.

Both teams had glaring weaknesses exposed in Week 7, so it will be up to them to fix them before this game, which will probably be the next real test for each side. Illinois will have home field advantage, but the Fighting Illini had it against Ohio State, too.

Illinois' Next Game: Oct. 22 at Purdue (3-3, 1-1)