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The only thing surprising about Chris Beatty being fired was the timing of the announcement. While it's obvious the school hadn't planned on it considering when it issued the official release, Howard Griffith caught us all off-guard by breaking the story early in our win against Ohio State on Saturday.
I think we all expected changes would be coming to the coaching staff at some point this offseason, and Chris Beatty is no different than any of us. He wasn't surprised by the decision either.
"Not really," Beatty told IlliniHQ.com. "After the year we had, you know there are going to be some changes. Having said that, it's disappointing. It is what it is. Accept it and move on.
"You never know in this business what's going to happen day to day, much less week to week or year to year. Hopefully, my resume prior to this stop kind of speaks for itself because we've been successful wherever we've been. Everything will work out. Everything happens for a reason."
The Illini finished dead last in the Big Ten in the following offensive categories this season: points per game, total points, touchdowns, yards per game, yards per play, yards per passing attempt, total passing yards, rushing touchdowns, yards per carry, sacks allowed, tackles for loss allowed, third down conversion rate, red zone scoring and plays of 10 yards or more.
So, no, Chris Beatty shouldn't have been surprised.
And the rest of us should be applauded for making it through to the other side alive. Holy shit go and read that paragraph again.