The operative word for Illinois on Saturday was “oops.” Opportunity was pounding on the front door, but the Illini kept tripping over their feet trying to answer.
“I thought all of our mistakes were aggressive mistakes,” junior tailback Rocky Harvey said. “They were just trying to make plays. You can’t fault them for that.”
Illinois coach Ron Turner didn’t fault his players either–for their effort.
Execution was another story.
In a game as entertaining as it was frustrating, the Nittany Lions prevailed 39-25 at Beaver Stadium because they had fewer breakdowns than Illinois–and made the most of the chances the Illini gave them. For its final act of charity, Illinois presented Penn State coach Joe Paterno with the 320th win of his career, moving him past Pop Warner into second place on the NCAA’s career list behind Bear Bryant.
“If our guys come to play and fight, we can live with that,” Turner said. “We tell our guys to be aggressive. We’d rather our guys make mistakes being aggressive instead of tentative.” Illinois (4-3, 1-3 Big Ten) didn’t just hand the game to Penn State (2-5, 2-2), it handed it over again and again thanks to costly turnovers, poor execution and untimely breakdowns. Kicker Steve Fitts: Fitts made only one of three field-goal attempts. Fitts converted from 39 yards in the first quarter but failed on his next two tries, both coming in the last four minutes of the first half. Penn State’s Derek Wake blocked a 35-yarder, and a 29-yarder was wide left with 33 seconds to go, leaving the Lions with a 14-10 lead at the half.
“It has been a rough year,” Fitts said. “I’ve been up and down. I’ve got to start putting it together.”
Quarterback Kurt Kittner: Kittner completed 29-of-49 passes for 326 yards and hooked up with Greg Lewis (8 and 55 yards) and Josh Whitman (4 yards) on touchdown passes, but he also threw two backbreaking interceptions. Shamir Finney returned the first theft 49 yards for a TD and a 21-10 lead. Bhawoh Jue’s 31-yard interception return set up what proved to be Penn State’s clinching TD–a 15-yard pass from quarterback Rashard Casey to Kenny Watson that gave the Lions a 32-18 lead with 11:38 to go.
“On the first one, I saw [Finney],” Kittner said. “I just tried to get it in there. On the second one I was hoping the receiver could get inside and he didn’t. Two picks. I haven’t done that since freshman year.”
Cornerback Eugene Wilson: A pass-interference call on Wilson set up Penn State’s first score, a 6-yard run by Eric McCoo. The Lions were trying to convert a third-and-14 at the Illini 22, and Wilson gave them new life. Wilson also was responsible for perhaps Illinois’ biggest mistake when he fumbled a 28-yard punt by David Royer. The Lions were ahead 24-18, but with Royer kicking from his own end zone, Illinois figured to get great field position. Instead of letting the ball bounce and roll dead, Wilson tried to make a diving catch and coughed it up.
“It dropped real short,” Wilson said, “and I barely got my hands on it. I thought I was going to get there but I lost it when I hit the ground and they ripped it away before I could pull it back in.”
And so it went for Illinois, which lost for the third time in the Big Ten and the third time in four games.
The difference Saturday was that Penn State, which has been struggling more than the Illini, pounced when it got a chance. With four games left in the regular season, Illinois remains disturbingly inconsistent. The Illini will have to do some pouncing of their own soon or their bowl hopes will vanish.
“We went up against a good football team, despite what their record is,” Turner said. “When they don’t make mistakes and you do make mistakes it is never enough. You can’t make mistakes at critical times–and we did.”
