Gameday Central Illinois at Maryland, 11 a.m. (FS1)

Oct. 31—Good morning from College Park, Md., where Illinois is looking to turn its midseason bounce back into a three-game winning streak. Standing in the Illini’s way? A Maryland team that fired coach Mike Locksley during its bye week.

Could that change create just enough chaos the Terrapins snap their 12-game Big Ten losing streak?

That we’ll find out this afternoon at SECU Stadium where vestiges of Maryland’s past — a list of nine ACC championships, the most recent in 2001 — far outnumber anything from the Terps’ current conference affiliation.

Illinois, meanwhile, is in the midst of a two-game winning streak after freshman quarterback Michael Clayton II led the Illini to an overtime victory at Michigan State and the run game and defense paved the way for a home win against Oregon.

Can Illinois make it three wins in a row?

It’s kind of a pivotal question with games against Nebraska, UCLA, Iowa and Northwestern remaining. A win today at Maryland gets Illinois to 5-3 overall and means the Illini only have to win one more game to secure a third straight bowl berth — something that hasn’t happened since John Mackovic prowled the sideline at Memorial Stadium.

So, yeah, today’s game in the DMV is kind of important.