Illinois defensive back Matthew Bailey always remains calm in pressure situations.

According to Illinois defensive coordinator Aaron Henry, Bailey is one of the players on the team guys can go to if things get chaotic.

“Everybody has that one person that they can call when things get hectic,” Henry said. “For some people, it’s their mom. For some folks, it’s their dad. Maybe it’s your sister, your wife, your girlfriend. For me, Matt Bailey is all of that. He just has a calming presence about him.”

Bailey is entering the new season fresh and healthy. Last year he sat out 11 of 12 games due to a multitude of injuries.

First, he sustained an ankle injury prior to the season starting. Then he endured a shoulder injury against Penn State which sidelined him.

Now he is expected to hit the field in the season opener Thursday against Eastern Illinois University. After all he’s been through, he is maintaining a positive outlook.

Henry says Bailey doesn’t arise any real concerns when he takes the field because he always can be counted on to contribute.

“There’s a sense of security on the field when he’s out there,” Henry said. “I just think really good players I’ve been around, when you’ve got a cat like that out on the field, it obviously helps your defense.”

Zachary Draves is a contributor to Illinois Fighting Illini On SI. He can be reached at zdraves1013@gmail.com and on Instagram @zdraves0633.

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A mine collapse may have played a factor in a sink hole in a park in Alton this summer. It created a massive hole in a soccer field and grabbed the headlines.

The U.S. Geological Survey says there have been more than 7,400 coal mines in Illinois since the early 1800s. Nearly all mines are no longer in operation, but they can still cause the ground above them to sink.

The larger mines are in southern Illinois. Still, there is a chance old mines can collapse under houses and infrastructure in northern Illinois.

Mike Phillips is a geology professor at Illinois Valley Community College. He says there’s a long history of mining in Illinois.

“The older mines were probably a little bit less careful about where they mine and what they did afterwards,” said Phillips. “And so a lot of the mine subsidence that people have problems with are associated with those older mines. And just because a lot of time has passed doesn’t mean that the that the risk is gone.”

Phillips also says residents will have time to evacuate if their home starts to sink.

“But now, the one thing that we do have kind of going for us is it tends not to happen overnight. It’s happening over the course of of a few days. And so it does give people time to at least get out. I haven’t heard of anybody getting physically injured in Illinois by mine subsidence, just because it’s more of a slow motion thing.”

In Illinois, companies have to offer mine subsidence insurance. If you can prove that your home is not near a mine, you are exempt.

Check out the mine map.

What is Illinois’ state pie? It’s a question many people have asked in recent days, according to a review of recently-searched terms on Google.

While some states’ official pies aren’t particularly common – take Indiana’s sugar cream pie or Oregon’s Marionberry pie – Illinois’ is.

By some accounts, it actually is the most popular pie flavor – especially at a certain time of year.

You may have guessed it: Illinois’ official pie is pumpkin pie.

In 2015, then-Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a bill making pumpkin pie the official state pie of Illinois.

It makes sense given Illinois produces more pumpkins than any other state in the country. Ninety five percent of the pumpkin crop in the U.S. intended for processing is grown in Illinois, according to the Illinois Department of Agriculture.

If you buy canned pumpkin, chances are it was processed in Illinois too.

A company in Morton, a town outside Peoria, produces 85 percent of the processed pumpkin in the U.S., according to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.