Chamapaign - Well as the saying goes, “two heads are better than one.”

And having two playmaking tailbacks in Mike Epstein and Reggie Corbin has benefitted an Illinois offense that’s struggled to air the ball out so far this year.

Through three games, opposing defenses have struggled to contain either of the Illini running backs. Epstein and Corbin have racked up a combined 491-yards and five touchdowns on the ground (Epstein with 251-yards and two touchdowns; Corbin with 240-yards and three touchdowns).

“It’s really tough for defenses to stop the running backs out there, whether it’s in the slot or coming out from the backfield,” Epstein said. “When the ball is in our hands, we can make some good things happen.”

The combination of Epstein and Corbin have aided Illinois in the Big Ten rush offense rankings. After last Saturday’s 19-25 loss to the Southern Florida Bulls, the Illini are now the No.4 ranked Big Ten team in rushing-yards.

So far so good for a team that ranked last in the category a season ago, averaging only 105.6-yards per game on the ground.

With the offense returning a majority of its players, some may be asking what’s changed about the ground game so far this season. A healthy Epstein and rejuvenated Corbin have helped in that regard, but offensive coordinator Rod Smith’s spread offense has made it difficult for opposing defenses to contain the two.

“When you have two running backs sometimes, it’s like (for opposing defenses) ‘which one’s going to get the ball, which one’s going to be the lead back?’,” offensive coordinator Rod Smith said. “It’s just more people to account for.”

Epstein and Corbin bring different playstyles to the running back position, with Smith saying that Corbin is more of a “make you miss guy” while Epstein is more of a pure “downhill” runner. The different playstyles don’t matter to Smith as long as both tailbacks continue to produce.

Improved play from their offensive line has been essential to Corbin and Epstein’s production this season. The offensive line returned all it’s starters this year, but showed inconsistency run-blocking in training camp.

But the group pieced it together at the start of the season and the Illini have rushed for over 200-yards in all three contests this year. Right guard Kendrick Green said the line is still growing heading into its Week Four matchup with Penn State.

“For me personally, I see the defense better, I know where I’m supposed to be now. I feel like we’re all just really getting into it now,” Green said.

Smith has liked what he’s seen out of the offensive line in the run game, but obviously still wants to see improvement heading into Friday’s matchup against the Nittany Lions.

“There’s more confidence. We’ve been able to run the ball a little bit with some efficiency,” Smith said. “We still need to be better, there’s a whole another level we need to be able to get to and hopefully we’ll get there. But I think their confidence is starting to grow a little bit.”

An improving offensive line along with the emergence of his fellow tailbacks is “nice”, Epstein said, knowing that he can come back into the game and know the offense hasn’t missed a beat.

The running back depth is still growing as Dre Brown is once again healthy. With getting guys back, Epstein said there’s still more to come out of the group as the season progresses.

“We got a lot of great running backs in our room and a bunch of us have been playing and playing pretty well,” Epstein said. “We definitely got to get better and each game I feel we’re taking steps in the right direction. Progression is big for us, but no matter who’s in the game, we’re going to execute very well. We have great running backs and I think it’s a blessing for us.”