ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Juice Williams has been through it all at Illinois. He helped the program reach the Rose Bowl in 2007, set total offense records in three separate stadiums last fall and lost his job midway through this season before regaining it. It has been a truly unique career for the Chicago native, but Williams has always handled himself with class. He earned a well-deserved win last week as Illinois crushed Michigan for its first win against an FBS opponent. Williams spent some time this week discussing the big win, his struggles this fall and the legacy he'd like to leave in Champaign.

	Jerry Lai/US PRESSWIRE
	Juice Williams and the Fighting Illini have had a roller-coaster season so far.

Does it feel a little different around there this week?

Juice Williams: A lot better than the previous weeks. First of all, we did something that hasn't been done in a long time by the Illinois program, beating Michigan in two consecutive years and beating them at home. It was the first time we beat them at home in 25 years, 26 years. That was just huge. The players and the coaching staff really felt the accomplishment.

I know it's been tough with the fans around there this season, but they also love beating Michigan. Was that the perfect team to end the losing streak against?

JW: Absolutely. Illini fans aren't too fond about the Michigan guys, but that's a great team out there. Even last year, I said that, and we were able to dominate that game as well. If you've got to wait [for a win], it's great to do your best against Michigan.

How tough have things been for you this year? How have you kept your confidence up?

JW: You've got to step back, take a deep breath and remember the things that got you to your current position. Me sitting back, not forcing plays and letting plays happen has really propelled my game to another level. I kind of got away from that, tried to go out there and force throws. I was too anxious and tried to do too much, instead of sitting back and letting things occur. I was able to sit back and do that, relax and have fun with the game. That produced better results.

Coach [Ron] Zook has gone into a lot of games saying he'll play two quarterbacks. Has that been frustrating for you? Does it change your approach at all? And going forward, do you expect to be the guy?

JW: Being a team player, you've got to accept that. Obviously, it's a little different any time you're told two quarterbacks are going to play. But if you're a team player, it's an easier adjustment. Knowing Jacob [Charest] was going to get in and get some reps, I made it my responsibility to get in there and watch film with him, make sure he understood what was going on, knew where to go with the football in certain situations. That's how I prepared myself and I'll continue to do that for the rest of the season.

This season obviously won't end with a league championship. What would you like your legacy to be at Illinois in these last few games?

JW: Myself and the rest of the seniors, we're going to make it our business to put this program in the best situation possible, putting guys in a situation where they can still go out there and be successful in recruiting, provide a boost in order to get those guys going into next season, just doing everything in our power to finish on a good note. That's most important. Anyone who's a team player, they won't be selfish. They won't think for themselves, 'OK, we're not going to a bowl or we're not going for a championship, so we don't have to put in as much effort.' Myself and the other seniors, we've really dedicated ourselves to finishing strong and just playing hard all the way until the very end.