CHAMPAIGN, Il. — This week’s poll places the Illinois football team, ranked #24, in the AP Top 25. For the first time since 2011, the Fighting Illini are ranked.

Thanks to the nation’s best scoring defense and top rusher, Illinois (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) is tied for first place in the Big Ten West standings. With 100-yard rushing efforts in every game this season, Chase Brown has amassed the greatest amount of rushing yards in the nation, at 879 yards.

In terms of scoring defense (ranked first in the country, 8.0), touchdowns allowed (ranked first, 3), passing efficiency defense (ranked first, 80.7), red zone defense (ranked second, 55.6%), total defense (ranked third, 227.8), rushing defense (ranked third, 67.2), fourth down defense (ranked fourth, 12.5%),