For the last three falls as an Illinois student, Quinn Martin spent Saturday afternoons at the bars around campus instead of inside Memorial Stadium.
"They had the game on in the background, but sometimes they wouldn't even have the volume on," said Martin, a senior from Lake Forest, Ill. "Nobody was really paying attention. There would be music on.
"Sometimes there would be a touchdown and there would be a delayed response: 'Oh, we scored? Or we got scored on again? Oh, OK.' People had offered me football tickets for free, and I declined."
Not anymore.
Like many Illinois students, Martin is experiencing renewed enthusiasm about the Illini football team due to the hiring of coach Lovie Smith. When Illinois opens the season Saturday against Murray State in Champaign, he will attend his first game as a student.
"We call it the Lovie Effect," Martin said. "Things are turning around. I know a lot of people share my stance."
He's right.
The Illini expect a crowd of at least 45,000 for the opener, which would be about 9,000 more than last year's opener against Kent State. It would be the most for a nonconference home game since 2013.
Season tickets are up about 2,200 from last year to about 30,000, a team spokesman said. More than 10,000 tickets were distributed to students, including more than 7,000 free tickets given away through a sponsorship agreement.
For the North Carolina game Sept. 10, officials said Illinois is trending toward a crowd of about 50,000.
Adam Weisman, a senior from Boston, worked in the ticket office when Smith was hired in April.
"It was incredible," he said. "Everyone was calling for season tickets, saying, 'I'm finally excited to be an Illini fan.' Literally, I worked 9 to 11:30 (a.m.) and I didn't stop working. Every single time I put down the phone, it would ring again. I wasn't from around here _ I didn't have Lovie Smith Bears experience _ but I could just sense the excitement."
Even the even-keeled Smith has picked up on the energy.
Smith, who coached the Bears from 2004 to 2012, hadn't coached in college since he was Ohio State's defensive backs coach in 1995. He talked about "butterflies, excitement, anticipation" heading into his Illini debut.
"It's been a long time since I walked in the stadium and a band is playing, (there are) cheerleaders and just excitement of young people around," Smith said. "There's a lot of excitement, to put it mildly."
Fans are eager to witness a turnaround. The Illini have suffered through four straight losing seasons with only one bowl appearance, which resulted in a loss. Seeing a half-full _ if that _ student section or fans leaving early was common.
The famed "Block I" student seats are expected to be full Saturday. More students are eager to join. The school's Greek society has special events planned around the game, unlike previous years. Illinois reports a 125 percent increase in registered student groups that will set up in the Grange Grove tailgating area, which debuted last season.
"Before, it was kind of hard to find a lot of people who genuinely wanted to go to the games," said Lauren Mroz, a junior from Arlington Heights, Ill., who is president of Illini Pride, which oversees all of the student sections. "Now you don't need to search hard to find someone going to the game.
"That's how I wanted it to be, like at other schools where it's just implied on Saturday you're going to the football game. It's a hot commodity now more than it ever was. People want to be part of it. It's almost surreal how one person can change the entire perspective on the program, but (Smith) really has."
Mina Urbina, a sophomore from Gurnee, Ill., will tailgate with her family before Saturday's game. Her sister also attends Illinois and her parents met as students there. She regularly attends football games.
This atmosphere is what she has hoped for.
"I've always been cheering on the Illini," she said. "Part of me is like: 'Where were you? We could have used you in the stands.' But for incoming freshmen to come into a solid, prideful environment is something I wish I had. I'm definitely excited and a lot more hopeful."
As for recently converted Illini fan Martin, he said his return beyond the first game will depend on a few things.
"It honestly depends on the experience of the first game," he said. "I can't speak to what I'm going to do in the coming weeks. But I'm more excited than I've ever been. It would help if Illinois won or at least was respectable."
