Memory Lane: UI 21, Indiana 20 in '88

The Illini rallied past Anthony Thompson and the Hoosiers in a win that propelled them to the All-American Bowl in 1988. By John Dixon/The News-Gazette

Fourth-and-blog

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2008-2009 Illini Football Schedule

Date	Opponent	Time	Stations
Aug.30	vs. Missouri* L: 52-42	7:30 pm	ESPN, WDWS, WHMS
Sep.06	vs. Eastern Illinois W: 47-21	11 am	Big Ten Network, WDWS, WHMS
Sep.13	vs. Louisiana-Lafayette W: 20-17	11 am	Big Ten Network, WDWS, WHMS
Sep.27	at Penn State L: 38-24	7 pm	ABC, WDWS, WHMS
Oct.04	at Michigan W: 45-20	2:30 pm	ABC, WDWS, WHMS
Oct.11	vs. Minnesota L: 27-20	11 am	ESPN, WDWS, WHMS
Oct.18	vs. Indiana W: 55-13	7 pm	Big Ten Network, WDWS, WHMS
Oct.25	at Wisconsin L: 27-17	11 am	ESPN2, WDWS, WHMS
Nov.01	vs. Iowa W: 27-24	2:30 pm	ABC, WDWS, WHMS
Nov.08	vs. Western Michigan# L: 23-17	11 am	WDWS, WHMS
Nov.15	vs. Ohio State L: 30-20	11 a.m.	WDWS, WHMS, ESPN
Nov.22	at Northwestern	2:30 p.m.	WDWS, WHMS, BTN

* = at St. Louis; # = at Detroit

By Loren Tate

Monday, October 13, 2008 7:00 AM CDT

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EACH WEEK, WE'LL TAKE A LOOK BACK AT A MEMORABLE MOMENT IN ILLINI HISTORY, THANKS TO THE WORDS OF LOREN TATE AND THE MEMORIES OF JIM TURPIN.

HEADLINE: Illini came back to life after fans left the funeral

"This just proves that if you dig in and keep playing hard, something good will happen. This is one of the greatest comebacks I've ever been associated with." - John Mackovic, Illini coach

CHAMPAIGN — With 3 1/2 minutes remaining at chilly, wind-blown Memorial Stadium Saturday, the loyalists from the original crowd of 66,201 felt their chins drop. They wondered why they hadn't joined the thousands who departed early for the comfort of their television sets.

Indiana's Eric Coleman had just swiped a pass that had squirted through Keith Jones arms — Jones never really had control ot it — and Coleman's 47-yard dash put the game out of reach, 20-9.

Except that, even as their own fans heaped dirt on the grave, the Illini didn't know they were dead.

The next time you looked up Jone was dissecting the Indiana defense for 31 yards to the 27. And on fourth down from the 21, Shawn Wax made a tumbling reception, inches off the AstroTurf, to bring Illinois within 20-15.

"I WAS NERVOUS at first," said the 6-4, 172-pound Wax. "I wanted somebody to call it a TD. There was contact prior to the catch. I was hoping it wasn't on me. And it wasn't."

Check the clock. There's 2:06 showing, and a two-point conversion would bring the Illini within a field goal of their second straight tie. This is, you know, the year of the tie in the Big Ten. But, no, George's pass was batted down.

Nice try, Illini. A 20-15 score doesn't look bad. Now let's find someplace warm.

"I saw people leaving," said Wax. "They figured, Happy Dad's Day, the Illini at least got close.

"I'll tell you how I feel. I don't care if only 30,000 come to our Northwestern game, I just want them to stay until the end."

The pass interference penalty was assessed on the ensuing kickoff, changing Mackovic's strategy from an onside kickoff to a high cross-field lob. Hustling Illini didn't provide room for IU's fair catch, but this 5-yard infraction was overshadowed by a 15-yard dead ball infraction that forced the Hoosiers to start first-and-25 from their 21.

Back when the game was young, Indiana and a fresh Anthony Thompson had no difficulty marching 87 yards after beginning first-and-25. But Derrick Brownlow, Steve Wachter and the defense grew stronger in the bitter cold, and they let IU march past midfield just once after halftime.

And, to everyone's surprise, they were about to receive an unexpected smooch from Lady Luck.

Dave Schnell's first-down bootleg was a masterpeice. The Elkhart junior skipped around Julyon Brown and ran south along the west sideline, trying to stay in bounds to keep the clock moving. Then he met cornerback Chris Green, and the collision sent the ball flying backwards to Brown.

"I WANTED TO PIVOT and run, but the next thing I remember was all those blue jerseys (celebrating Illini teammates) on top of me," said East St. Louis' Brown.

Now George had the edge because, with 1:58 showing and two timeouts left, he didn't have to pass every down. And he didn't.

"We were able to mix it up, and that's important," said Mackovic.

Jones, who outrushed All-American Thompson 149 to 145, tore off 13 yards to the 18, and Indiana didn't know what was coming next. George inched the ball goalward, hitting two short passes, the second to Jones for a first down at the 8. Jones ran to the 5. Then George found Bellamy in a man-to-man situation and flipped the "fade" into the corner of the end zone.

The uproarious celebration cost the Illini 15 yards on the ensuing kickoff — there's a lesson there — but the last 21 seconds found Schnell smothered by the Illini pass rush. Miraculousley, Illinois had won 21-20. It was the school's first one-point victory since Mike Bass botted a field goal to nip Wisconsin 29-28 in 1982.

"I said we'd need four quarters of our best football to beat Indiana," said Mackovic, "and it went right down to the 60th minute. Keith Jones was our man. He made the tough yards for us. And Jeff George came through with passes when we needed them."

True, George fired three TD passes, and Jones caught five aerials, bringing his receptions to 40 and upping his rushing total to 885 yards.

But there was much more to the game than George and Jones. The Illini overcame frightful punting, an early ankle injury to all-star nose guard Mo Gardner (Mark Zitnik filled in well) and an offense that was scoreless for a half.

"Indiana had us backed up in the first half but only got 10 points." said Mackovic. "They tried to go downfield a couple of times and the interceptions by Henry Jones and Romero Brice helped to hold them off. They mis handled a field goal attempt. I told the players at half-time that 10-0 didn't mean a thing"

HE CHANGED the pass protection to put the fullback opposite a blitzing safety, and he elected to take the wind in the third quarter. The Illini needed an immediate surge to stay in the game, and George provided it when he lofted a 31-yard pass to Bellamy.

Sub safety Pat Donnelly gave the Illini their second vital punt block of the season, good for a safety and two points.

"I'm dissappointed so many people left," said Mackovic. "There were time when I think they doubted wheather we could win. This was a championship type game, and in the future I hope our fans show up in a championship mood.

"This team has the rare ability to overcome obstacles and play better than people expect. We're playing our best football in the stretch and we're proud of that. We beat a very good football team today."