So as I watched Juice pull up lame at the 15 and stumble to the one yard line, my first thought was “Again? How many times can one guy get stopped one yard short of the goal line?”

So I decided to do a little investigation.  In the last 10 games, Juice Williams has been tackled at the one yard line six times.  I couldn’t find another Illini player anywhere close to that number.  Mikel LeShoure was the closest – I think he was stuffed at the one three times.  But none of them were the “breaks in to the clear, one man to beat, and… stopped inches short of the goal line” variety.

A look at all six plays:

Illinois/Michigan 10/04/08
3rd and 2 at ILL 49 – Juice Williams rush for 50 yards to the Mich 1 for a 1ST down.

You remember this play.  Third and two at midfield and looking to put the game away, Juice breaks clear straight up the middle… and gets dragged down inside the one.  Mikel LeShoure gets the clincher a few plays later.

Illinois/Minnesota 10/11/08
2nd and Goal at MINN 5 – Juice Williams rush for 4 yards to the Minn 1.
3rd and Goal at MINN 1 – Juice Williams rush for no gain to the Minn 1.
4th and Goal at MINN 1 – Juice Williams rush for no gain to the Minn 1.

Not a chance you don’t remember this.  AJ Jenkins makes a great catch to set us up with first and goal at the five, looking to tie the score.  On second down, Juice gets stopped oh-so-close inside the one.  And again on third down.  And even though the officials signal touchdown on fourth down, a replay reveals his knee was down just as the ball was oh-so-close to breaking the plane.

Illinois/Northwestern 11/22/08
2nd and 7 at NW 8 – Juice Williams rush for 7 yards to the Nwest 1

Trying to get back in the game at the start of the second half, Juice breaks free and reaches for the it… and is stopped by Brad Phillips just short of the goal line.  Jason Ford gets the touchdown on the next play.

Illinois/Illinois State 9/12/09
1st and 10 at ILL 50 – Juice Williams rush left for 49 yards to the IllSt 1 for a 1ST down.

We just watched this one happen.  Juice is in the clear, with a blocker, with full clearance from the tower… and pulls up lame with a quad injury, stumbling down at, you guessed it, the one yard line.  Once again, Jason Ford gets the TD on the next play.

What’s my point?  Don’t really have one.  Except to say that I’m starting to get the (sickening) feeling that Juice might be that player that just never seems to get there.  Right on the cusp, knocking on the door, but stopped just short.

Everything sets up for the possibility of a fantastic senior year… and then a couple dropped balls, a tipped interception, a receiver fumble, plus inopportune incompletions, and we lose to Missouri.  A chance to get back on track against a weak opponent the next week, and a great decision on the option pitch leading to a clear path to the endzone on his first play… and he pulls up lame at the one.

I don’t want this to be the case.  I love Juice.  He deserves to go out on top.  It’s not his fault that he learned more about running than throwing in high school.  He didn’t deserve three years with a QB coach who had never coached, played, or studied quarterbacking.  It was awful of us to throw an 18 year-old raw freshman out there at his own 10 yard line at Rutgers and say “good luck, kid”.  As I said before, at a major program, he’s a seasoned redshirt junior getting his first snaps with the first string.  Here, he’s a 21 year-old senior with the bruises to prove it.

Everything in me wants him to get his moment in the sun.  To chase down Drew Brees’ record.  To lead us to our first bowl victory in a decade.  To make 7-to-9.com mean something.  To leave the field on December 5th atop his team’s shoulders with a rose in his mouth.

And yet I can’t shake the feeling he’ll be stopped just short.