Illinois has resided in the AP Top 25 for the past few weeks, is coming off a bye week and surely is looking forward to playing on its home field for the first time in a month.

Purdue has lost in each of the last four weeks by a combined 140 points, fired offensive coordinator Graham Harrell after a 10-point showing vs. Nebraska at home on Sept. 28 and has lost commitments from some top high school recruits.

This all sounds promising for No. 23 Illinois (4-1, 1-1 Big Ten), which enters Saturday afternoon's conference game vs. Purdue (1-4, 0-2) in Champaign, Ill., as a double-digit favorite. However, recognize that everyone on both sides understands Purdue has beaten Illinois each of the last four years to maintain possession of the Purdue Cannon that goes to the yearly victor.

Now, throw in the fact that Purdue head coach Ryan Walters served as Bielema's defensive coordinator for two seasons before getting the top job for the Boilermakers in in December 2022 -- and there will be no taking anybody lightly on Saturday.

Purdue's issues are all over the tape. Last week at Wisconsin, the Boilermakers surrendered 52 points and 589 yards. The Badgers outscored Purdue 31-0 in the second half.

For Illinois, Luke Altmyer has starred at quarterback this season, completing 70 percent of his passes for 1,047 yards, with 11 touchdowns against just one interception. His passing efficiency rating (164) ranks sixth in the Big Ten.

His counterpart, Hudson Card, is 71-for-112 (63.4 percent) for 738 yards, seven TDs and four picks.

Game time is 3:30 pm on Saturday.