3:54 p.m.

It’s hard to believe what happened in the first half. Not surprising that Illinois is losing but that the Illini could give such an uninspired performance with so much on the line. I feel sorry for the Illinois fans who are braving the 20-something degree wind chill to watch this. And who forgot to tell Jeff Cumberland to get out of bounds on that last possession?

The halftime stats are just arriving:

Illinois has 86 total yards and seven first downs to 213 and 14 for Northwestern. The Wildcats had the ball for 18 minutes and 9 seconds and Illinois for 11:51. Northwestern is 5 for 9 on third down. The Illini have run the ball 14 times for 15 yards.

You would have to go back to at least 2006 to find a game where Illinois was shut out in the first half. It hasn’t happened this year and didn’t in 2007. This is a Northwestern defense that ranks sixth in the Big Ten in total defense, allowing 358 yards per game.

3:26 p.m.

Illinois has run 17 offensive plays and had negative yardage on five. So far, this is the most abysmal offensive showing for the Illini in the last two years. They can’t even handle a four-man rush. Another sack on that last possession makes three for the game for the Wildcats.

3:06 p.m.

Right now Illinois has nothing going on. The offensive line, a disappointment all year, is not able to handle the Northwestern pass rush and Juice is having a nightmare. On that last possession he was sacked  twice for a loss of 12 yards and scrambled once for 7 yards.

The defense seems willing to give up as many short passes as Northwestern wants to complete. This has been a problem all year and right now C.J. Bacher is shredding the Illini defense. Illinois might have been better off if Mike Kafka had been able to start.

2:45 p.m.

The Sweet Sioux Tomahawk is being retired today, in case you haven’t heard. Northwestern will become the permanent home, regardless of who wins today’s game. But Illinois will still be the final winner of the trophy and have a winning score inscribed if the Illini can pull this off. They’ll just never have the tomahawk on campus again.

2:18 p.m.

Illinois has recognized Juice Williams’ 451 total yards against Missouri on Aug. 30 as a stadium record at the Edward Jones Dome in St Louis. Williams has set three stadium total offense marks as a junior. The Illinois game notes today reference the St. Louis record, which was first documented in this blog several weeks ago.

Entering today’s game Williams leads the Big Ten in total offense with an average of 326 yards per game. He is eighth in the country. But is he going to be the conference’s first-team quarterback? That doesn’t appear to be a lock despite the statistics.

Look for Penn State’s Daryll Clark to make a run. The announcement for the all-conference teams will be made Monday night on the Big Ten Network.

2:03 p.m.

Here are some records and achievements to watch for as the game progresses:

Juice Williams needs 86 total yards to break the Illinois season total offense record; He needs 102 yards to move into the top 13 among all-time rushers at the school; and 44 rushing yards would put him at 2,000 for his career.

Arrelious Benn is within reach of the school’s all-time records for receiving yards in a season. He needs 266 yards to set the record, so he obviously will need a bowl game to have any chance.

Running back Daniel Dufrene will go over 1,000 yards for his career with 52 yards today.

1:56 p.m.

As near as we can tell from the press box, safety Donsay Hardeman is not in uniform. At least he is not on the field right now and the entire team is warming up as I write. It had been reported that he might miss the game with a neck injury. That isn’t a good sign for a team with problems in the secondary against a team that might throw it around.

1:32 p.m.

As first reported by the Champaign News-Gazette’s Bob Asmussen, linebacker Martez Wilson is not with the team, as confirmed by his absence on the travel list. Another violation of team rules. Which makes one wonder what’s going on internally with this team.

Fullback Rahkeem Smith and linebacker Ian Thomas were suspended for the game against Western Michigan. And before that running back Daniel Dufrene missed a game for “personal reasons.” And way before that, Josh Brent missed a game because of an “illness.” These suspensions are always shrouded in mystery for some reason.

The most publicized incidents of the season were Jeff Cumberland breaking Mikel Leshoure’s jaw and Eddie McGee being arrested for a pushing incident at a dance. But both avoided a suspension.

1:13 p.m.

Much is on the line today for Illinois and Northwestern but I’m not holding out much hope for a great atmosphere here at Ryan Field. For one, it’s darn cold and the wind is blowing. And from where I’m sitting, I can see Lake Michigan, which makes it feel even colder.

The other thing is that fans have not exactly been flocking to games despite the success of the Wildcats. Capacity is 47,130, and the stadium was filled only when Ohio State came to town. Other home games have drawn 20,015, 19,062, 22,069, 32,527 and 27,163.

So, there is absolutely no reason for Illinois fans not to at least turn this into a neutral site if not a home-field advantage.