Illinois travels to Penn State to open Big Ten conference play. I fly into Pittsburgh (insert Sienna Miller’s opinion of that town here) Saturday morning and then I drive three hours through Pennsylvania to meet other dreaded e-mail clan members in State College. Thankfully, kickoff is not until 8 p.m. so that gives us plenty of time to watch other games and drink Rolling Rock-brewed in Latrobe, PA!!! Let’s recall last year’s matchup, which propelled Illinois to its best season in years….
September 29, 2007: This was the biggest football game in the 217 in a long time. As I drank microbrews with the crew in the Blue Lot, I wondered how Illinois would play, 3-1 overall and after a good road win at Indiana. Penn State was 3-1 after a tough loss at Michigan. A beautiful day in Champaign County – 77 degrees with a stiff south wind at 11 MPH.
Penn State took the opening kickoff and drove to the Illinois nine yard-line before settling for a field goal. With 9:33 left in the first quarter, the Illini Nation was about to witness history. The kickoff came to highly-touted freshman Arrelious Benn at the ten yard-line. Admittedly, I am rather indifferent toward Brian Barnhart (I miss Dick Martin – THOSE WERE THE DAYS!!!) but his radio call of the kick return is an Illini Classic, in my opinion….
“This one is returnable. It will be Benn. At the 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, still going, midfield, HE MIGHT GO! 40, 30, 20, 10, HE’S GONE! TOUCHDOWN! ARRELIOUS BENN! TOUCHDOWN ILLINOIS! AND THE OLD MEMORIAL STADIUM IS ROCKIN’ NOW!!!!” From my seat in Section OO, East Balcony, I figured Benn had a shot once he got to the Illinois 30. When he got to midfield, Benn had only the poor kicker to beat. “The kickoff return team executed the blocks, and I just finished it,” said Benn.
The defense held Penn State to a three and out so Illinois took over at its 31 yard-line. Juice Williams led the team to a first down, and then facing 3rd and 12 at the Illinois 40, he hit Benn in traffic for a 12-yard gain. He later hit Benn again for 14 yards to set up first and goal at the Penn State nine yard-line. On second down, Juice Williams ran option right and pitched to Rashard Mendenhall who strolled into the end zone after Russ Weil absolutely waylaid a Nittany Lion with a great block at the knees. Illinois led 14-3. Penn State responded with a quick scoring drive with two long passes. The first quarter ended with Illinois leading 14-10.
Illinois drove to Penn State’s 24 yard-line before Juice threw a pick. Penn State took over at its six yard-line and got to its 41 yard-line before Sirod Williams forced a Rodney Kinlaw fumble. Kevin Mitchell recovered and Illinois was back in business. Juice ran for a first down to the Penn State 29. Again, it was time for Benn to make his mark.
Juice read a blitz and threw a slant pass to Benn. Benn caught it, broke two tackles, kept running, broke three more tackles, stiff-armed teammate Jacob Willis, and dashed to the end zone for another touchdown. Barnhart went nuts in the booth. “Arrelious Benn, welcome to the Big 10!” “I’m catching the ball and saying to myself, ‘I will not be denied,’” proclaimed Benn. Again, Penn State responded with another quick scoring drive featuring a long pass to make the score 21-17 Illinois. The teams traded punts until Penn State missed a 51-yard field goal before halftime.
Illinois started the second half at its 30. Juice ripped off two runs totaling 29 yards, but the drive stalled at the Penn State 30. Jason Reda nailed a 47-yard field goal into the wind for a 24-17 lead. After another three and out for Penn State, Juice threw an interception and Penn State took over at the Illinois 40. Penn State drove to the Illinois goal line. On third down from the one yard-line, Penn State ran left. Antonio Steele stoned Rodney Kinlaw for a two yard loss. This huge play forced Penn State to kick a field goal.
After the teams traded punts, Penn State took over at the Illinois 27 after a short punt and a kick catching interference penalty. Anthony Morelli threw to the Penn State tight end in the end zone and it appeared to be a sure touchdown. But J Leman read the eyes of the Penn State player, and when he raised his arms to catch the ball, Leman swatted the pass away with perfect timing. “I basically read his eyes, his eyes got big.” This play proved huge. Two plays later, Morelli threw over the middle and Leman intercepted with a massive leap into the air, killing the drive. “It was my first one since senior night in high school.”
The fourth quarter started and Illinois stalled, punting to the Penn State 36. Penn State efficiently moved the football and faced a third and ten at the Illinois 25. Morelli threw a sideline out pattern that Vontae Davis timed perfectly for the interception, keeping both feet inbounds, stopping Penn State yet again.
With 9:54 left, Illinois took over at its 18 yard-line and inserted Eddie McGee at quarterback. Rashard Mendenhall gained a first down on third and eight, moving the ball to the Illinois 30. McGee then decided to run option right on first down….“Eddie McGee from DC!” screamed Barnhart. McGee was untouched as he rumbled down the field. I thought he would score (and I hoped he would not fumble) but he was tackled at the Penn State 16 after a 53 yard run. Jason Reda kicked a field goal to make the score 27-20.
Penn State took over and responded yet again with another long pass. With a first down at the Illinois 19, the defense needed to step up. Penn State tried two short passes, both thrown for losses. Facing a fourth down and 13 at the Illinois 22, Morelli scrambled to the ten yard-line and fumbled the ball after a big hit by Justin Harrison. The football rolled backwards and was recovered at the 13, meaning it was Illinois ball!
However, the officiating crew, led by Bill LeMonnier (why does he still have a job?) called for a replay. The call was upheld. Illinois took over with 2:12 left and needing to kill the clock.
Unfortunately the offense sputtered. Illinois shanked a punt to the Penn State 42 with 47 seconds left. After a Justin Sanders sack on a safety blitz, Morelli threw a wounded duck down the sideline. Kevin Mitchell timed his leap perfectly to intercept and Illinois defeated a ranked opponent for the first time in eons. Benn finished with six catches for 84 yards and a touchdown, plus his 90 yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Illinois gained 216 rushing yards. The effort of the defense cannot be ignored: four sacks, a forced fumble recovery, three interceptions, and that big goal-line stand in the third quarter.
As Illinois took a knee, tears formed in my eyes. After several years of futility and being a complete embarrassment, Illinois football was fun again. The players ran into the new student section in the north end zone and sang “Illinois Loyalty” as the Marching Illini played. Ron Zook stated “we haven’t turned it around yet, but we’ve made progress.” Perhaps Brian Barnhart said it best: “This may be a turning point for this program…and they’ve sent a big, big message to the rest of the Big Ten that the Illini are back!” I dashed back to Blue Lot for a victory beer and screamed “Illinois Football – We’re Relevant Again!”
Sources: Fightingillini.com; Illini Productions. Credit to Mrs. Detlef for copy editing.