CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – No. 23 Illinois defeated No. 21 USC, 34-32, on a Homecoming Saturday in front of a sold-out crowd at Gies Memorial Stadium.
Illinois (4-1, 1-1 Big Ten) ran its two-minute drill to perfection, ending the game on David Olano’s 41-yard game-winning field goal as time expired. USC (4-1, 2-1 Big Ten) had erased a two-touchdown deficit in the fourth quarter and took a 1-point lead with 1:55 to go before Luke Altmyer and the Illinois offense stormed the Illini back to victory, Altmyer’s national-leading sixth game-winning drive in the final minute or overtime over the last three seasons.
Altmyer did it all against the Trojans, recording 359 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns: one rushing, one receiving, and two passing. He is the first player to record a rushing, receiving, and passing touchdown in a Big Ten game since 2011 (Vincent Smith, Michigan vs. Minnesota).
Altmyer finished with 328 passing yards and completed 20 of his 26 passes, while adding 28 yards on the ground. His receiving touchdown, the first of his career, came off a pass from Hank Beatty on a third-down trick play in the second quarter.
Behind a strong performance from the Illinois offensive line, Kaden Feagin totaled 127 all-purpose yards. He highlighted the day with a 64-yard touchdown catch, his career-long reception and the Illini’s longest passing play of the season.
Dylan Rosiek notched his first career interception in the third quarter and finished the game with six total tackles.
Illinois came out strong right out of the gate when Leon Lowery Jr. forced a fumble that bounced right to Jaheim Clarke to end USC’s first drive of the game. Altmyer continued this momentum in the backfield, leading a 70-yard scoring drive capped off by a 12-yard Altmyer rushing touchdown to put the Illini on the board, 7-0.
After the Trojans responded with a touchdown of their own, the Illini fought back with a 75-yard drive highlighted by an 18-yard toe-tapping catch from Beatty. The drive was crowned by a double-reverse trick play, as Altmyer scored on a three-yard pass from Beatty. Not only was this the Altmyer’s first-career receiving touchdown, but it was also Beatty’s first passing touchdown.
The Trojans narrowed the deficit to 14-10 with a 21-yard field goal with just two seconds remaining in the first half. Olano responded with a 45-yard field goal just three minutes into the third quarter to make it 17-10 Illinois.
Rosiek snagged his first career interception on USC’s next drive. Feagin caught a screen pass and took it to the house for a 64-yard touchdown, advancing the Illini lead to 24-10.
USC surged back at the end of the third quarter, as Waymond Jordan rushed for his second touchdown of the day, 24-17.
The Illinois offense kept fighting. After a 32-yard reception from Beatty, Altmyer connected with Bowick for a 25-yard touchdown to crack the 30 point threshold, 31-17. USC then took its first lead of the day with two consecutive touchdowns and a two point conversion from Makai Lemon, making the score 32-31 with just under two minutes remaining.
On the final drive of the game, Altmyer marched the Illini 51 yards down the field to put Olano 41 yards away from a game winning field goal. As time expired, Olano split the sticks giving Illinois its fourth win of the season, 34-32.
Illinois is back in action next weekend at Purdue. The game is scheduled to kick off at 11 a.m. CT on Big Ten Network.
