Oct 26, 2002

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By JASON STRAIT
AP Sports Writer

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) - Antoineo Harris ran for a career-high four touchdowns and 176 yards as Illinois defeated Indiana 45-14 Saturday.

Harris scored on runs of 1, 8, 28 and 5 yards, and he was taken out of the game after playing just one series in the second half for the Fighting Illini (3-5, 2-2 Big Ten).

Indiana (3-5, 1-3) scored two touchdowns late in the game to avoid being shut out. The Hoosiers have lost nine straight in Champaign dating to 1979.

Illinois quarterback Dustin Ward threw two TD passes and was 16-of-23 for 197 yards.

Indiana looked nothing like the team that beat Wisconsin two weeks ago. The Hoosiers dropped passes, overthrew receivers, were penalized at key times and turned the ball over twice.

Most of all, they couldn't stop Harris, whose four rushing TDs were the most for an Illinois player since Howard Griffith ran for eight in 1990.

Harris had three TDs on 22 carries in the first half to give Illinois a 35-0 lead. He scored again on Illinois' first possession of the second half.

Two weeks ago, Illinois blew a 24-point lead to Purdue and had to come back from a touchdown deficit to win, but this time they took no chances with a big lead.

Leading 35-0, Illinois went for it on fourth down with 4 yards to go in the second half. The Illini got the first down on a short pass to Brandon Lloyd and later scored on Harris' fourth TD run.

Lloyd, who was second in the Big Ten with 114 receiving yards per game, had three catches for 52 yards and a touchdown.

Illinois scored on its first three possessions of the game, the first coming on two runs by Harris and a long pass from Ward to Lloyd, who beat single-coverage down the sideline for a 31-yard touchdown. It was a balanced strategy that worked all game.

Illinois rushed 49 times for 248 yards and passed for 211.

While nearly everything went Illinois' way for the first time this season, nothing seem to work for the Hoosiers. They were penalized five times for 61 yards in the first half, two of those coming on late hits that kept an Illinois scoring drive alive. Indiana quarterback Gibran Hamdan fumbled a handoff to set up another Illinois touchdown.

Indiana switched quarterbacks in the third quarter, but it made little difference. Backup Tommy Jones was 12-of-24 for 172 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Gibran Hamdan was 14-of-26 for 148 yards.

Illinois pulled most of its starters after the lead reached 42-0.