Sept. 22, 2003
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GAME 5
ILLINOIS (1-3) vs. WISCONSIN (3-1)
September 27, 2003
5 p.m. CT (espn2)
Memorial Stadium (69,249)
Champaign, Ill.
FOR OPENERS
As charter members of the Big Ten, Illinois and Wisconsin will be opening
its 108th season of conference play on Saturday. The last time these two
teams met in a conference opener was in 1952 in Madison with the Badgers
winning 20-6. Illinois opened Big Ten play with Wisconsin five straight
years from 1948-52.
Despite a 1-3 record, Illinois' three losses have come by a total of 17
points. In each of the losses, the Illinois offense has had the ball in the
final drive with a chance to either tie or win.
With 430 yards passing against California, Illinois quarterback Jon
Beutjer broke the Memorial Stadium record for passing yardage and earned Big
Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors. He completed 61 percent of his
passes and threw three touchdown passes to top his own record of 426 yards,
set against San Jose State in 2002. He also set the school record for most
passing yards in a half with 375, topping the 344 yards by Dave Wilson at
Ohio State in 1980. Wilson set the school record for passing in a
single-game with 621 in that contest.
Beutjer is moving up the Illinois passing charts as well, ranking seventh
with 29 career touchdown passes. He needs two more to move to sixth tying
Jeff George's 31. His 430-passing performance against California was the
second 400-yard game of his career, following a 426-yard output vs. San Jose
State in 2001. Beutjer could tie an Illinois record set by Dave Wilson and
Tony Eason for most 400-yard games with one more in his career.
True-freshman running back E.B. Halsey is making a charge at the
59-year-old Illinois freshman rushing record held by Hall-of-Famer Buddy
Young, 842 yards in 1944. With four games under his belt, Halsey has rushed
for 339 yards (84.8 per game). Halsey is fifth in the Big Ten in rushing and
first in all-purpose yards.
Senior placekicker John Gockman ranks 10th in the nation with seven field
goals made (7-of-9), while sophomore punter Steve Weatherford is first in
the conference with a 47.1 yard average, which is also fourth in the NCAA.
Of junior wide receiver Mark Kornfeld's 18 catches this season, 15 have
converted first downs (83 percent).
Illinois' third-down conversion percentage vs. California was 57 percent
(13-of-23), marking the third time this season the Illini have converted at
least 50 percent of third downs (ranks second in the Big Ten). The defense
held the Golden Bears to 38 percent, making 5-of-13, also the third time an
opponent has been below 40 percent.
Twice this season, the Illinois defense has held its opponent to fewer
than 225 yards of total offense (223 vs. Missouri and 204 vs. UCLA). The
last time an Illini defense kept two teams under the 225-yard mark in the
same season was the 1994 season when Washington State was held to 157 yards,
Missouri to 46 yards and Northern Illinois to 165 in the first three games
of the season.
THE COACHES' CORNER
Ron Turner, Illinois ? (32-41 in his seventh year at Illinois, 39-45
overall, 19-29 in the Big Ten). Turner is 2-2 against the Badgers with wins
coming in each of the last two seasons and losses in his first two seasons
(1997-98).
Turner earned Big Ten Coach of the Year honors in 2001 after leading
Illinois to the Big Ten championship and a trip to the Nokia Sugar Bowl and
its first 10-win season since 1989. The league title was the Illini's first
since 1990.
Turner has served as quarterbacks coach, offensive coordinator or head
coach since 1981. During that time he coached quarterbacks such as Jeff
Garcia, Erik Kramer, Jim Harbaugh, Sean Salisbury, Rodney Peete and Kurt
Kittner.
Turner led the Illini to an 8-4 record and a 63-21 thumping of Virginia in
the Micronpc.com Bowl in 1999. For his efforts, Turner finished fourth in
the Associated Press Coach of the Year voting.
Turner came to Illinois after a four-year stint as the offensive
coordinator for the Chicago Bears (1993-96). In 1992, he was the head coach
for San Jose State where he turned in a 7-4 record and a second-place finish
in the Big West Conference. Turner served as an assistant at Stanford, Texas
A&M, Southern California, Pittsburgh, Northwestern and Arizona working
mainly with quarterbacks and receivers during his 20+ years in college
coaching.
BARRY ALVAREZ, WIS. - (94-62-4 in his 14th season at Wisconsin and as a
head coach at the collegiate level) Alvarez is in his 14th season at
Wisconsin and has led the Badgers to three Big Ten Championships and eight
bowl appearances. He has coached the four winningest teams in the modern era
of Wisconsin football. Alvarez is 5-5-1 against Illinois during his tenure
at Wisconsin.
Series History
Illinois is 45-56-6 in Big Ten season openers all-time and 30-27-2 in
conference openers in Champaign.
Illinois leads the all-time series 35-29-7 entering the Sept. 27 contest
at Memorial Stadium. The Illini also hold a 19-12-3 advantage in games
played in Champaign. Illinois has won each of the last two meetings, 42-35
at Memorial Stadium in 2001 and 37-20 at Madison last season. After the
Illini won 11 of 12 meetings from 1981-1992, the Badgers went 5-0-1 in the
series up to 2001.
Illinois defensive coordinator Mike Cassity was the Wisconsin secondary
coach for two seasons in 1995-96. Long-time Alvarez aide Kevin Cosgrove, the
Badger's defensive coordinator, was an assistant at Illinois under Mike
White from 1980-87.
ILLINOIS/WISCONSIN - THE LAST TIME OUT
11/9/02 --Jon Beutjer returned to the lineup and threw four touchdown
passes and Illinois overcame five turnovers to beat the staggering Wisconsin
Badgers 37-20. Antoineo Harris rushed 40 times for 158 yards, becoming the
first Illini back to gain 1,000-yards in a season since 1997. Beutjer
connected with Greg Lewis for TD throws of 36 and seven yards as the Illini
took an early 17-3 lead. He then found Young in the left corner of the end
zone from 22 yards out for a 24-13 halftime lead. Young had nine catches for
114 yards. He threw his fourth TD pass, a 12-yarder to Jason Davis, and
Peter Christofilakos and John Gockman each kicked field goals as the Illini
beat Wisconsin for just the second time since 1993. Beutjer completed
22-of-34 passes for 319 yards with no interceptions. True-freshman Travis
Williams had his first career interception, picking off a pass in the
endzone and stopping the Badgers on their final offensive drive. Defensive
end Derrick Strong earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors with his nine
tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble.
Scoring Summary
First Quarter - ILL: Gockman 46 yd FG, 12:01; WIS: Allen 20 yd FG, 5:13;
ILL: Lewis 36 yard pass from Beutjer, (Christofilakos kick) 2:59;
Second Quarter - ILL: Lewis 7 yard pass from Beutjer, (Christofilakos kick)
14:11; WIS: Smith 6 yd run, (Allen kick), 11:07; WIS: Allen 44 yd FG, 7:31;
ILL: Young 22 yard pass from Beutjer, (Christofilakos kick) 0:28; Third
Quarter - WIS: Smith 1 yd run, (Allen kick), 9:26; Fourth Quarter - ILL:
Davis 12 yard pass from Beutjer, (Christofilakos kick) 11:34; ILL: Gockman
46 yd FG, 6:37
TEAM STATISTICS
First Downs: ILL-26, WIS-13; Rushes-Yards: ILL-43-185, WIS-39-135; Passing
Yards: ILL-319, WIS-162; Comp-Att-Int: ILL-22-34-3, WIS-13-24-1; Total
Yards: ILL-504, WIS-297; Punts-Avg: ILL-1-50.0, WIS-5-37.2; Kickoff Returns:
ILL-1-25; WIS-4-44; Penalties-Yards: ILL-4-30, WIS-6-36; Fumbles-Lost:
ILL-2-2, WIS-1-1; Sacks: ILL-3-17, WIS-0-0; Third-down Conv.: ILL-7-of-15,
WIS-2-of-13; Time of Possession: ILL-32:56, WIS-27:04
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: ILL - Harris 40-158-4; J. Davis 2-9; Beutjer 1-18. WIS - Smith
28-122-2; Bernstein 2-11; Pettus 1-5; Sorgi 7-(-2). PASSING: ILL - Beutjer
22-34-3-4-319. WIS - Sorgi 13-23-1-0-162. RECEIVING: ILL - Young 9-114-1;
Lewis 4-86-2; Harris 3-55; Moorehead 3-40; J. Davis 2-21; Lloyd 1-3. WIS -
Williams 7-83; Orr 3-50; Charles 1-16; Pettus 1-10; Kuhns 1-3.
Interceptions: ILL - Williams 1-30. WIS - Leonhard 2-55; Tucker 1-0.
Tackles: ILL - Schumacher 10, 1-1; Strong 9, 3-11; Jackson 7; Hall 5; Mason
5, 1-2; Taylor 4; Bevis 4. WIS - Williams 9; Lewis 9; Tucker 8; Starks 7
Watkins 6; Leonhard 6; Aiello 6.
HALSEY MAKING A CASE FOR ROOKIE HONORS
Through four games this season, true-freshman running back E.B. Halsey has
earned the respect of his teammates and coaches, which was evident by being
named a captain for the Illini contest at UCLA. He is also earning respect
of his opponents as the rookie continues to rack up the yardage in his
opening campaign. He is averaging 84.8 yards rushing per game and 165.5
all-purpose yards each contest. He is the only freshman to be listed among
the conference's offensive leaders, ranking fifth in rushing (40th
nationally) and first in all-purpose (9th). Halsey also appears in the
conference's special teams rankings with the third-best kickoff return
average with 22.4 yards per return.
In the season opener, Halsey scampered for 139 yards, becoming the first
true-freshman in school history to top the 100-yard mark in his first
collegiate game. He has carried the ball 20 or more times in each of the
first three games, rushing a career-high 29 times against UCLA.
Twice this season, Halsey has tallied over 200 all-purpose yards. He
racked up 222 in the season opener against Missouri and another 239 against
Calfornia. He has been heavily involved in the rushing game (339 yards),
passing game (159) and kickoff returns (157).
Halsey will be chasing Illinois' 59-year-old freshman rushing record of
842 yards held since 1944 by Hall-of-Famer Buddy Young, something no member
of the Top-10 all-time rushing list was able to do. That season, Young
averaged 84.2 yards playing in 10 games. Robert Holcombe, the school's
all-time rushing leader, only hit 520 yards in his freshman season, while
Rocky Harvey came the closest with 634 yards. With 339 yards this season,
Halsey needs 503 to set the record.
LONGEST PLAYS OF THE YEAR
Pass: 72, Jon Beutjer to Kelvin Hayden vs. California (9/20/03)
Rush: 35 (twice), Morris Virgil and Pierre Thomas vs. Illinois State
(9/6/03)
TD Pass: 72, Jon Beutjer to Kelvin Hayden vs. California (9/20/03)
TD Rush: 35, Morris Virgil vs. Illinois State (9/6/03)
Kickoff Return: 43, E.B. Halsey vs. California (9/20/03)
Punt Return: 16, Christian Morton vs. Missouri (8/30/03)
Punt: 55, Steve Weatherford at UCLA (9/13/03)
Field Goal: 48, John Gockman vs. Missouri (8/30/03)
GENERAL TEAM NOTES
Despite a 1-3 record, Illinois' three losses have come by a total of 17
points. The Illini outgained their opponents 1190-795 in all three games. In
each of the losses, the Illinois offense has had the ball in the final drive
with a chance to either tie or score. The following are the last drive
scenarios for Illinois' losses to Missouri, UCLA and California. Against
Missouri, Illinois obtained the ball with 2:03 on their own 10 yardline and
went 67 yards before missing on two incomplete passes on third and fourth
downs. Down three points to UCLA, the Illini got the ball back with 3:02 to
go and put together an 11-play, 59-yard drive which resulted in a missed
43-yard field goal. Illinois had 1:44 to score a touchdown after recovering
an on-sides kick at the 50 yardline against California. Illinois got off
nine plays to advance 34 yards, but Beutjer was sacked as time expired.
Due to the loss of Illinois' top four receivers from a year ago to
graduation and the professional ranks, two newcomers started the 2003 opener
against Missouri. Those rookies were junior college transfer Kelvin Hayden
and true-freshman Lonnie Hurst. Hurst became the first Illini true-freshman
receiver to ever start in the first game of his career. He is the first
true-freshman position player to start in the season opener since 1980 when
four brand new players were in the Game 1 starting line up (DE Terry Cole,
DT Mark Butkus, OG Bob Stowe, DB Dave Edwards). Punter Steve Fitts took over
duties in his first collegiate game in 1998.
True-freshman wide receiver Lonnie Hurst became the first Illinois
position player to start his very first collegiate game since four players
accomplished this feat in 1980. True-freshman E.B. Halsey has made starts in
each of the last three games. The two are among six first-year freshmen to
play this season. The others include CB Alan Ball, DL Arthur Boyd, RB Pierre
Thomas and DL Adam Wilk.
Senior quarterback Jon Beutjer (Davey O'Brien) and senior defensive end
Derrick Strong (Ted Hendricks) were named to preseason award watch lists.
Head Coach Ron Turner moved into sole possession of fourth place on the
Illini all-time coaching victory list with the 49-22 win over Illinois
State. Turner's 32 wins are 15 behind Mike White (47 from 1980-87).
The Illini had its best showing in the NFL Draft in 2003 as five Illini
were selected on April 26-27, the most since the league went to the
seven-round format. Among the draftees were CB Eugene Wilson (2nd, New
England); WR Brandon Lloyd (4th, San Francisco); OL Dave Diehl (5th, NY
Giants); OL Tony Pashos (5th, Baltimore) and WR Walter Young (7th,
Carolina). All five made rosters as well as free agents RB Antoineo Harris
(San Diego), WR Greg Lewis (Philadelphia) and WR Aaron Moorehead
(Indianapolis).
Offensive Team Notes
Since the 1999 season, the Illini have taken full advantage of head coach
Ron Turner's pro-style offense, putting up gaudy numbers that always have
the squad ranked among the best in the nation. Consistently over the past
four-plus seasons, Illinois has averaged 414 yards per game of total offense
and just under 30 points per contest.
Senior quarterback Jon Beutjer is leading the conference in passing with
284.2 yards per game. He is also No. 1 in the Big Ten in total offense
(279.8) touchdown passes (8), attempts (166), completions (108) and his 65
percent passing is second only to Khaliq of Minnesota who has only attempted
58 passes. Beutjer finished the 2002 season as the conference's top passer,
following his predecessor, Kurt Kittner, who led the Big Ten in 2001.
Beutjer broke his own Memorial Stadium passing yardage record when he had
430 yards vs. California on Sept. 20, bringing his career total to the
3,648-yard mark. In two seasons, he has averaged 243.2 yards per game (15
games) and 298.0 yards in his 11 starts. He currently ranks seventh on the
Illinois all-time passing list.
Beutjer has now thrown for over 200-yards in seven straight games, dating
back to his start against Wisconsin last season.
The Illinois receivers are "spreading the wealth." In four games, 12
different players have caught passes and five have receiving touchdowns.
Junior receiver Kelvin Hayden is leading the way with 290 yards and 25
catches (third in the Big Ten/6.3 per game). Against Cal, Hayden put
together his first 100-yard game when he caught a career-high 11 passes for
158 yards. The performance is the most yards since Brandon Lloyd's 161
against Purdue in 2002.
Illinois receiver Mark Kornfeld (converted quarterback) currently ranks
eighth in the Big Ten in receptions, but is most valuable to his Illini team
as the "go-to" player. Of his 18 catches this season, 15 have converted
first downs (83 percent). Second on the team, Kornfeld has 18 receptions for
229 yards, an average of 57.2 per game.
Strong safety Eric McGoey made the most of his first appearance on the
offensive side of the ball this season, catching a 44-yard pass from
high-school teammate Jon Beutjer against California. A wide receiver in his
first three years at Illinois, McGoey moved to safety mid-season in 2002.
With the 49-point performance over Illinois State in Game 2, the Illinois
offense recorded its 13th 40-plus game under head coach Ron Turner. Illinois
has posted 40 or more points on 11 occassions, 50-plus once and had a high
of 63 points against Virginia in the 1999 Micronpc.com Bowl.
Defensive Team Notes
The Illini held UCLA to zero second-half points after allowing only six in
the first half. The last time Illinois had a shutout half was against Penn
State in 2002. UCLA's six points marked the lowest scoring output by an
opponent since Illinois shutout Iowa 31-0 in 2000.
Despite giving up seven turnovers in four games, the Illini defense has
buckled down and allowed only six points (29 percent) off those miscues. On
the other hand, Illinois has forced four turnovers and has taken advantage
with 10 points, scoring twice (50 percent).
The squad got its first interception of the season in the third quarter
vs. UCLA when safety Marc Jackson stopped a driving Bruin offense with his
second career pick.
Senior linebacker Ty Myers posted the second two-turnover performance of
his career when he forced two fumbles vs. Illinois State. Those Redbird
fumbles resulted in seven Illini points. The last time he had two turnovers
was against Ohio State in 2001 when he had two interceptions, one for a
touchdown.
Illinois stopped Mizzou quarterback Brad Smith with only 168 yards (66
rushing, 102 passing), which is an improvement from the 290 yards gained a
year ago, while also keeping him far below his 2002 average of 280 yards per
game.
For the second time this season, the Illinois defense held its opponent to
fewer than 225 yards of total offense (223 vs. Missouri and 204 vs. UCLA).
The last time an Illini defense kept two teams under the 225-yard mark was
the 1994 season when Washington State was held to 157 yards, Missouri to 46
yards and Northern Illinois to 165 in the first three games of the season.
Special Teams Notes
Sophomore Steve Weatherford took over punting duties against Illinois
State and now leads the Big Ten and is fourth in the nation with an average
of 47.1 yards on 16 kicks, including seven over 50-yards (long of 55
yards).
On its first attempt of the year, the Illinois special teams was
successful in converting an on-sides kick with two-minutes remaining vs.
California. Strong safety Eric McGoey made the hit and free safety Travis
Williams fell on the loose ball to give the Illini a final shot at the
Golden Bears.
The Illinois special teams units has blocked 12 kicks in 28 games dating
back to the 2001 season. The Illini got their 12th against Illinois State
with a blocked 49-yard field goal attempt by defensive end Derrick Strong,
the third blocked kick of his career. In 2001, the Big Ten Championship
season, the Illini set a school record with three blocked punts, two extra
points and two field goals. Last season, Christian Morton batted down a
16-yard field goal attempt and Strong got a hand on an extra point attempt
vs. Missouri. Brian Brosnan blocked a punt which was recovered by Kendrick
Jones in the endzone for the score vs. Arkansas State and Strong blocked his
second extra point of the season in the first quarter against Penn State.
The Illini got their first special teams touchdown of the year against
Illinois State when defensive end Derrick Strong blocked a 49-yard field
goal attempt and sophomore safety Travis Williams recovered the live ball
returning it 66 yards for the score. It was Williams' second special teams
touchdown of his career after taking a kickoff 90-yards into the endzone in
2002 vs. Purdue.
Senior placekicker John Gockman currently ranks 10th in the country and
2nd in the Big Ten after booting seven field goals through four games.
Gockman has connected on field goals of 48, 44 and 40 yards and only missed
a 51 and 43-yarder for a 7-for-9 performance. His three field goals vs.
Missouri tied a career-high previously set against Ohio State last season.
He is currently 16-of-21 for his three-year career (.762), but most
impressivly 13 of those 16 made are from 40-plus yardage.
RECEIVERS LOOK TO 1999 FOR INSPIRATION
The Illini lost their top-four receivers from a year ago, returning only
one catch among the active wideouts. The receiver situation mirrors the 1999
season when the team had only one receiver who had seen collegiate action.
In addition to senior Michael Dean, who had only caught 25 career passes for
412 yards, Illinois used true-freshman converted cornerback Brandon Lloyd,
converted quarterback Walter Young and walk-ons Greg Lewis and Aaron
Moorehead that season. The team went on to break the school's scoring record
and snap a four-year bowl-appearance drought. Additionally, Lloyd, Young,
Lewis and Moorehead are all listed in the career receiving lists and made
NFL rosters this season.
This year's starters, junior college transfer Kelvin Hayden and
true-freshman Lonnie Hurst, are new to the roster this season. However,
quarterback Jon Beutjer has connected with 12 different players for catches
and five different players have caught TD passes. In addition to receivers
Hayden, Hurst, juniors Mark Kornfeld and Ade Adeyemo, he has gotten the ball
to running backs Carey Davis, E.B. Halsey, Brad Haywood, Morris Virgil and
Jason Davis, safety Eric McGoey and tight ends Anthony McClellan and Melvin
Bryant.
BEATING THE ODDS
Starting middle linebacker Matt Sinclair shocked doctors when he reported
to 2003 training camp just one week after being in intensive care in a St.
Louis hospital. Sinclair was diagnosed with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, a
tick-borne disease, which had him in the hospital with a 107.5 fever. Less
than a month after the near-death experience, Sinclair was starting at
linebacker in St. Louis against Missouri in the season opener.
In 2002, defensive tackle Ryan Matha had just been named the starter for
the week's game vs. Indiana. During a mid-week practice, he got caught
underneath a pile tearing all three knee ligaments. His rehab included two
surgeries and nine months of therapy. Once diagnosed as potentially a
career-ending injury, Matha returned to the field for the season opener
against Missouri and played in two games.
Despite having his knee scoped on Monday, Aug. 25, senior fullback Carey
Davis made his way back to the lineup vs. Missouri that same week defying
doctor's odds. Not only did he play, beginning with the third offensive
series, but he led the team with 10 catches. Davis' procedure took place on
Monday and he returned to action in practice two days later. He then got a
staph infection in the open wound and has missed the last two games.
Two years ago, punter Matt Minnes contracted Lemierre's Syndrome after
bacteria got in his blood stream through a cut in his mouth. He was in the
hospital for two weeks with stints in ICU when 106-degree fevers were
sporadic. He lost a total of 25 pounds and experienced complications which
kept him away from the football team for the majority of the 2001 season. He
then returned to win the starting punting job in 2002.
