Ron Zook was hoping his team would come back rested, inspired and ready to play football when it returned from its bye week against Penn State.

The Illini did just that -- on its first series of the game. Illinois drove 57 yards and went up 3-0 when PK Jason Reda drilled a 41-yard field goal.

After that, the Illini had little to offer in response to a Penn State squad that is rapidly becoming a juggernaut. The Nittany Lions sliced up the Illini as if the primetime at Memorial Stadium was a Mike Tyson mid-1980s knockout. By the time it was over, Penn State battered the Illini 63-10.

The defeat was the third-worst ever at home for the Illini and sixth-worst all-time. But the sad truth of the matter is that it could have been worse -- much worse. Penn State scored 28 points in both the first and second quarters before Joe Paterno took sympathy and eased off the accelerator. The Nittany Lions had only one touchdown in the second half.

Zook tried to prepare the Illini players by easing off during their bye week and letting them get away from football to a degree. When they returned against the Nittany Lions, Illinois looked to be a totally disinterested in competing with a powerful and hungry team.

The coach was clearly upset about the performance but he remains committed to the direction of the program. "There's not a whole lot you can say," Zook said. "I'm about as low as I've been in a while. But you know what? No one cares, so there's no use worrying about it. Eventually we'll get over this. We just have to keep pounding away and it'll work."

The Illini seemed to be awed by Penn State QB Michael Robinson, who had amazing numbers in the first 30 minutes. Even with out superstar freshman WR Derrick Williams (broken arm), Robinson threw four TD passes in the first quarter and added two more TD runs in the second quarter.

Penn State dominated the statistics, but not to the extent one might think a team that builds a 63-3 lead would. The Nittany Lions outgained Illinois 438-244 and could have easily had 650 yards or more had they pressed their advantage in the second half. Penn State's only second-half touchdown came on the defensive end when a pass by backup QB Chris Pazan was intercepted and returned 76 yards for a TD.

More carnage is likely when the Illini hosts Wisconsin this week.

GAME BALL GOES TO: Not this week. The Illini got punched in the mouth early on by Penn State and offered no resistance. Think school-yard bully pouncing on the class geek with no adult around to break it up. That was the story of this game.

KEEP YOUR EYE ON: P Steve Weatherford -- As was the case quite a few times a year ago, Weatherford was the most productive player out there for Illinois. Weatherford averaged 50.2 yards on nine punts with a long of 61 yards.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "It was just bang, bang, bang. It was everything. Bad tackling. Missed assignments. But how many more off nights can we have? We can't blame it on an off night every game. We have to start playing." -- LB J Leman on the Illini's effort against Penn State.

LOOKING GOOD: The only difference between this year's team and last year's is that Ron Turner was on the clock and it was just a matter of when he was going to be fired. Ron Zook is in his first year and needs time for his recruiting to take hold and have an opportunity to get things turned around. Despite the lopsided nature of several Big ten defeats this year, Zook is not in danger.

RB Rashard Mendenhall -- The freshman running back may be starting to get more involved in the game plan. He had nine carries for 34 yards and four receptions for 30 yards. Zook needs to give Mendenhall the opportunity to show his talent in the last four games of the season.

QB Chris Pazan -- Zook took Tim Brasic out and allowed his backup quarterback an opportunity to play. While he threw two picks -- one of which was returned 78 yards for a touchdown -- he completed 10-of-15 passes for 84 yards and a score.

STILL NEEDS SOME WORK: Everything. But the defense is just not getting the job done. That was clear after Penn State sliced them for four passing TDs in the first quarter and four rushing TDs in the second.

CB Alan Ball -- He had six tackles and two passes defensed, but Ball was a step and half behind on coverage.

DT Ryan Matha -- It's hard to blame a tackle when the whole defense gets overrun, but Zook is counting on Matha to get push up the middle and he is simply not forcing the action. Matha had just two assists vs. Penn State.

ROSTER REPORT: DE Derek Walker suffered a serious knee injury and will be out the rest of the season.