CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Fighting Illini held tough for three quarters before Penn State used a 35-point fourth quarter to pull away from Illinois, 63-24, Friday night at Memorial Stadium.Â
It's Tricky to Ricky
On the opening drive of the second half, the Illini pulled off a trick play to fool the Penn State defense. Rivers II tossed the ball to receiver Trenard Davis on a reverse before Davis connected with Ricky Smalling for a 17-yard touchdown. The score capped off a nine play, 75-yard drive and gave Illinois a 24-21 lead. Â
The touchdown grab was the second on the night for Smalling and the third of his career. Friday also marked Smalling's first-career multi-score game.
Defensive lineman Bobby Roundtree was all over the field on Friday, as the Largo, Florida, native came away with a career-high 12 tackles (10 solo). Roundtree also added two TFL's, a sack and a pass breakup.
The sophomore has now recorded five PBU's on the season, the most in the nation among defensive lineman.Â
Two-Headed Rushing Attack
The Illini offense continued to get a strong contribution on the ground from running backs Reggie Corbin and Mike Epstein. Corbin rushed the ball 11 times for 87 yards (7.9 yards per carry) and a touchdown, while Epstein totaled 73 yards on 13 carries.
Team Notes
- Illinois led 24-21 with 10:36 left in the third quarter after a Trenard Davis touchdown pass to Ricky Smalling.
- Illinois has forced a turnover in 18 straight games.
- Illinois threw its first interception of the season with 14:18 left in the fourth quarter.
- Illinois' 24 points tied last year's season-high against a Big Ten opponent (24 vs. Rutgers 10/14/17).
- Illinois' 24 points were its most against a ranked team since a 60-35 loss vs. No. 3 Ohio State 11/16/13, a span of 13 games.
- Illinois started four true freshmen (NB Sydney Brown, CB Jartavius Martin, QB M.J. Rivers II, WR Carlos Sandy).
- Illinois is 27-6 in August/September home games dating back to the start of 2007.
- The 8:05 p.m. CT kickoff was the latest start for a home game in Illinois history.
- Illinois captains: OL Nick Allegretti, LB Dele Harding, DL Tymir Oliver, LB Del'Shawn Phillips
Individual Notes
- Sophomore DE Bobby Roundtree had a career-high 12 tackles (10 solo), 2.0 TFLs, 1.0 sack and one PBU. Roundtree has five PBUs this season, the most in the nation among defensive linemen.
- Freshman QB M.J. Rivers II started for the second straight game. He was 17-for-28 passing for 149 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Rivers rushed 10 times for 24 yards.
- Junior WR Trenard Davis threw his first career touchdown pass in the third quarter, a 17-yard completion to Ricky Smalling that gave Illinois a 24-21 lead.
- Sophomore WR Ricky Smalling caught two touchdowns, his first two this season. Smalling had two touchdowns all of last season.
- Sophomore RB Mike Epstein rushed 13 times for 73 yards.
- Sophomore WR Carmoni Green had career highs in receptions (4, tied) and receiving yards (49).Â
- Junior RB Reggie Corbin rushed 11 times for 87 yards and a touchdown. He had a 51-yard run, two yards short of his career long (53 at Rutgers 11/15/16).
- Junior FS Stanley Green forced a fumble in the first quarter, his seventh career forced fumble. He is tied for fourth in Illinois history in forced fumbles.
- Freshman S Delano Ware had his first career interception.
- Senior K Chase McLaughlin was 1-for-3 kicking field goals. He made a 42-yarder and missed from 52 and 55 yards. McLaughlin is 8-for-11 this season, including seven makes of 40+ yards.
- Freshman WR Carlos Sandy started for the first time in his career.
- Senior OL Nick Allegretti started for the 28th straight game.
- Sophomore OL Alex Palczewski started for the 15th straight game.
- Senior QB AJ Bush Jr. missed the game with an injury. Bush started the first two games of the season before leaving the game against Western Illinois in the second quarter.
