Just Sayin’: After pounding Wisconsin 34-10, Illini — finally — are back in the Big Ten fight

Let’s skip straight to overexcitement about Illinois football, shall we?

Saturday’s 34-10 smack-around of Wisconsin in Madison was the Illini’s biggest victory since the Ron Zook years, the last of which was 2011.

And this is the best Illini team since the Zook years.

Look, I already admitted to possibly being a tad overexcited, didn’t I?

It really was an outstanding day for Bret Bielema’s team. Of course, it was mighty sweet for Bielema himself, who was greeted with boos in his homecoming at Camp Randall Stadium only to see the student section empty immediately after “Jump Around” played heading into the fourth quarter. But this was a lot bigger than a former Badgers coach getting to spike the football. Illinois, 4-1 for the first time since 2015, is a factor in the Big Ten West now — and if anybody had to see a game like this one to believe it, well, now they’ve seen it.

The third quarter, in which the Illini outscored the Badgers 17-0 to turn it into a rout, was one to remember. Zero completed passes for the dudes in red. Zero first downs. Ten yards in all. And when the Illini’s Chase Brown took a handoff up the middle and raced 49 yards, untouched, for a score, it marked a complete reversal of what Illini fans have seen in bouts against traditional Big Ten heavyweights for so long.

Illinois out-Badgered the Badgers. What a sight to behold.

“If you want to get to where you want to be,” Bielema told players when he took the job heading into last season, “we’re going to have to take care of these teams.”

He was referring to Wisconsin and Northwestern, which, between them, had won the West for five years running. Now the Illini have blown out both — Northwestern in last season’s finale — and can move on to even bigger business.

That means Iowa — last season’s West champ — next weekend in Champaign. The Hawkeyes laid yet another egg offensively in a 27-14 loss to Michigan on Saturday. The Illini defense has allowed a total of 42 points through five games.

Advantage, Illini?

Sure, why not?

“Bring a couple of friends with you, and let them bring a couple of friends,” Bielema said, “and let’s make Memorial Stadium what it should be.”

A packed house might be too much to hope for. It’ll take more winning, but the Illini are finally back in the fight.

THREE-DOT DASH

I don’t think I’m supposed to admit this, but I’ve had enough of the Aaron Judge cut-ins on ESPN every time the big fella steps to the plate. Does that make me a terrible person? Don’t answer that. …

Photo by Elsa/Getty Images

Three things in baseball that beat Judge’s chase for home run No. 62: (1) Cal Raleigh’s walk-off homer to send the Mariners to the playoffs for the first time in 20 years, (2) a monster series between the Braves and Mets this weekend as they fight for a division crown and 100 wins, and (3) this other incredible thing Judge himself is doing.

If he can outhit the Twins’ Luis Arraez over the final handful of games, Judge will win the American League’s Triple Crown. Only Miguel Cabrera, in 2012, has pulled off that feat since Carl Yastrzemski did it in 1967. A National Leaguer still hasn’t done it since Joe Medwick in 1937. …

If only the Braves or Mets were as good as the Cubs, right? The “30 for 30” documentary on the Cubs somehow going 21-10 against the NL East will be righteous. …

Everybody wants to see the Bears let Justin Fields throw the ball a lot more. What if they go the other way, bring in an offensive coordinator from one of the service academies and run the triple option? Hey, just spitballing here. …

If Fields doesn’t work out, the Bears can always pray they end up with his successor at Ohio State, C.J. Stroud.

And, please, don’t anybody start in with the tired, foolish trope about Ohio State QBs not succeeding in the NFL. Art Schlichter played for Earl Bruce, Troy Smith for Jim Tressel, Cardale Jones for Urban Meyer. What do their developments — or lack thereof — have to do with one another?

Current Buckeyes coach Ryan Day has worked with Dwayne Haskins, Fields and Stroud, but there’s no negative trend there yet. Especially if Fields comes around, which he sure might. …

One question related to Northwestern’s $800 million plan for a new football stadium to open in 2026: Will the Wildcats win another game before then?

THIS YOU GOTTA SEE

Vikings vs. Saints (Sunday, 8:30 a.m., NFLN): A game in London means early football for us. I’m setting the over-under on Kirk Cousins’ first fumble at 9:02 a.m. CDT.

Chiefs at Buccaneers (Sunday, 7:20 p.m., NBC, Peacock): Can you really afford to miss a Patrick Mahomes-Tom Brady matchup knowing there might be

Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images

only, like, half a dozen more of them over the next 10 years?

Pelicans at Bulls (Tuesday, 8:30 p.m., NBCSCH+, TNT): It’s the preseason opener, and the best part is Giannis Antetokounmpo won’t even be in the building.

ONLY BECAUSE YOU ASKED

From Twitter user David:

“It sounds to me that Northwestern may be heading out of the Big Ten to a more fitting conference. I can’t see the Big Ten allowing them to stay. Your thoughts?”

Why, because the proposed new stadium will seat only 35,000? That won’t desolidify Northwestern’s status. Nothing will, really, because the Chicago market — even if the Wildcats are minor players in a pro-sports town — is too important to the conference. Northwestern isn’t going anywhere. (Alas, that’s true on the field, too.)

THE BOTTOM FIVE

Kansas basketball: No offense to Bill Self and the national champions, but KU is a football school now. The Jayhawks are an impossible-but-true 5-0.

Paul Chryst: Born in Madison? A Wisconsin alum? A two-time Big Ten coach of the year? Badgers fans don’t want to hear any of it anymore.

The Jason Heyward era: Sometimes you swing and miss. That is, when you’re not grounding out to second or popping out to third.

The White Sox: Would it kill them to just stay in San Diego?

Andy Dalton: Guess who’s starting for the Saints on Sunday? Now you know why “Red Rocket” will be trending on Twitter all morning.