The Fighting Illini are set to kick off their 2022 campaign at home in Week Zero for the second straight season, this time against Mountain West foe Wyoming. Head coach Bret Bielema and a majority of the staff heads into their second year in Champaign, though the team features new offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. and special teams coordinator Sean Snyder.

Illinois enters the season with several returning starters on both sides of the ball, though the graduation of several super seniors from last year's roster has called for role players to step into the starting rotation.

The Cowboys are coming off a season in which they won a bowl game, something Bielema and the Illini are looking to do for the first time since 2011. 

Here are a few storylines to watch ahead of the Illini's season opener.

Offense

Bielema announced Syracuse transfer Tommy DeVito will be the team's starting quarterback on Saturday, ending speculation over who QB1 would be. With a new man under center, the offensive line will have a different look after three regular starters graduated from last year's roster.

Tight end-turned-offensive lineman senior Alex Pihlstrom will start at center, while junior college pickups junior Isaiah Adams and sophomore Zy Crisler are set to make their Illinois debuts at left guard and right guard, respectively. Senior Alex Palczewski will get the starting nod at right tackle, while junior Julian Pearl will start at left tackle.

With Lunney's system relying heavily on the ground game, the returns of All-Big Ten junior Chase Brown and sophomore Josh McCray are massive, and it will be interesting to see how that new-look offensive line meshes this early in the season. 

Bielema expects to rotate a few other guys in, including junior Jordyn Slaughter and redshirt freshmen Josh Gesky and Josh Kruetz. With the forecast showing temperatures in the mid- to upper 80s on Saturday, that squad rotation is something to keep an eye on.

"I think those five are unique in that they always have talked and communicate with each other, so those five that are gonna start for us on Saturday," Bielema said. "I would say the last two and a half, three weeks they've known they're the starting five and kind of sprinkled other guys in, but Saturday's supposed to be a hotter day, so we'll kind of play it as it comes."

The new-look offense will also feature an uptempo scheme that Lunney and the coaching staff have worked on throughout the spring and summer. With Wyoming being the first test under this new system, the Illini have put all the pieces in place throughout the summer to be prepared for the season opener.

Defense

Defensive coordinator Ryan Walters is back for his second year working with this Illini defense, and he made tremendous strides with this unit last season. Illinois allowed just under 22 points per game in 2021, which ranked sixth-best in the Big Ten, though the Illini gave up 20 points or fewer in seven of the final nine games of the season.

While the defense lost big contributors in Owen Carney Jr., Jake Hansen, and Kerby Joseph, the returns of several starters has this group in a good spot heading into Saturday.

One of the biggest challenges for this defense will be handling the quarterback, as Wyoming has yet to announce who will start under center on Saturday. 

The Cowboys' quarterback room is relatively young and includes a junior and four underclassmen, and Bielema says the starting quarterback "kind of drives the whole thing and their biggest challenge that I don't know as of right now is who the quarterback is."

With a big, aggressive defensive line, linebackers who will anchor the unit, and an experienced secondary, the Illinois defense should be ready for whatever is thrown at them.

Wyoming

With the Illini offensive line featuring a few new guys, the size of the Cowboy defensive line could potentially cause some problems, though every Illinois offensive lineman is six-foot-five or taller and weighs in at over 300 pounds.

The quarterback position will be something to watch, but do not count out the Cowboy running backs. Wyoming lost its leading rusher, though the return of junior Titus Swen will be huge for this Cowboy offense. Swen led Wyoming in rushing touchdowns and registered nearly 800 yards on the ground.

The Cowboys have had lots of turnover on both sides of the ball, which poses an extra challenge for Bielema and the Illini, and he recognizes the challenges that come with that.

"They've had transfer and turnover, so there's a lot out but a lot in," Bielema said. "I've had to evaluate players that are playing in other schemes to see how they'll fit into what they (Wyoming) are doing."