Sep. 23 -- CHAMPAIGN -- Two months ago, Christian Abney couldn't have told you where the visitor's locker room was at Gies Memorial Stadium.
That's not some indictment about the Illinois tight end's knowledge of his team's home stadium. Abney and his teammates would have zero reason to seek out the visiting team's home away from home on game day in Champaign.
How Abney came to experience all the Illinois' visiting locker room has to offer came as part of a unique choice by coach Bret Bielema to turn his team's first training camp scrimmage last month into an away game.
Every detail was flipped on its head.
The Illini stayed at a different hotel in town the night before the game. The team meal that night was different. So were the meeting spaces.
Bielema kept up the premise by having his team dress in the visiting locker room, and then he put his offensive players on the east sideline for the scrimmage.
"It didn't surprise me because Coach B. is super intentional about preparing us," Abney said about flipping one camp scrimmage into a simulated away game. "Something like that is something he would do. It was a great thing for us. It's awesome to get in those scenarios....
Source: https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/unique-preseason-prep-help-illinois-144700510.html
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