Illinois running backs were in search of a way to improve their mid-season woes. As it turned out, all they needed was a compass.

“We were going too much side-to-side, east-west, and we knew that we had to stop,” said junior tailback Antoineo Harris. “We had to kick it up a notch.”

After four games, it was obvious traveling “east-west” along the line of scrimmage wasn’t going to work, with the Illini barely breaking 100 yards per game. Instead the Illini have taken the approach of going “north-south”–getting straight to the line and through it as fast as possible. Solid back-to-back performances from the running backs have made the offensive unit believers in this theory.

“You do just maybe one move and that’s it–you go straight to the line,” said senior tailback Rocky Harvey of the new running attack. “It’s made us better.”

In head coach Ron Turner’s pro-style offense, the running game is critical to achieving the necessary balance of running and passing. Turner has seen this balance return the past few weeks, simply because of this changed running style.

“That’s made a big difference for us,” Turner said of the running game. “They are hitting the line early, and that’s leading to more positive yards, whereas when they ran side-to-side they were getting tackled.”

It was this “east and west” running that was hurting the Illini through most of their first four games, and effectively took the running game out of the Illini arsenal.

Defenses would put pressure on the front five, forcing Illinois running backs to the outside. The running backs would scoot toward the sidelines looking for more running room, where they were often stopped for losses.

“It gave the defense more of a chance to bring us down, because instead of trying to get one or two yards, we were stretching it and losing yardage,” Harvey said.

Through the first three games, the passing of senior quarterback Kurt Kittner was able to keep the Illini afloat and win the first three games of the season.

Against Michigan, however, there was no hiding the problems. The Wolverines’ front seven demolished the Illinois runners as they went to the outside and effectively killed the running game. Illinois had only 25 yards rushing on 27 carries, amounting to an abysmal 0.93 yards-per-carry average. End result: Illinois’ offense stalled, and the Illini were romped 45-20 in Ann Arbor.

Illinois “thunder and lightning” combination of power back Antoineo Harris and the speedy Harvey were unable to produce even a shower, averaging just 2.9 yards per carry. Running backs coach Jim Helms believed things weren’t as bad as the stats seemed, but a few changes were needed.

“We were running the ball, but we weren’t consistent,” Helms said. ” We needed [to] be able to count on it all the time.”

His players were quick to receive the message, and when looking at film, they realized success was a matter of direction.

“We got into the meetings and that’s all they talked about, was running north-south,” Harris said. “We knew that’s what we had to do–pound the ball.”

The advice was heeded early in the Minnesota game, as the Illini used their running game to control the early tempo. Against an eight-to-nine man Gopher front, Illinois had success early on running the football. The Illini rushed for 67 yards in the first quarter, jumping out to a 16-0 lead, on the way to a 25-14 victory.

Harvey, Harris and sophomore fullback Carey Davis each had 65 yards rushing–a first in Illinois history–on a day where successes were credited to vertical movement.

“We weren’t getting hit behind the line anymore; that was critical,” Harvey said. “When we saw a hole, we hit it immediately.”

Though the rushing game wasn’t dominant (198 yards, averaging four yards per carry), it did give the defense something to think about. In turn, the passing game opened up, as the Illini were able to complete passes against a Minnesota secondary that was weary of the run.

“I was teasing Antoineo, saying that ‘if you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours,'” said Lloyd, who caught a career-high nine passes against Minnesota.

“That’s what makes our offense so dangerous.”

Against Indiana, the running game took center stage, and it was the rushers that were helping to carry the Illinois offense. Running backs were breaking bigger gains by simply running between the tackles, and as was seen in the Minnesota game, they began to establish momentum early. The Illini ran on 69 percent of the plays, rushing for a season-high 276 yards while scoring three touchdowns in a 35-14 romp of the Hoosiers.

Harris had 108 yards of rushing, Harvey gained 76 yards, and Davis netted 83 yards. Answers about the running success after the game were nearly verbatim of the week before.

“Running north-south, that’s what helped us last week, and that’s what helped us win again,” Harris said. “We’re hitting holes hard, and that’s helping us get positive yardage.”

And that’s something Helms hopes will keep going.

“We just have to try and win football games,” Helms said. “Every game we have to try to find the ways we can be successful with.”