They were outnumbered by 104,307 Buckeyes fans, but the 100-strong Illinois rooting section in the south end zone of Ohio Stadium would not be denied.
“BCS! BCS! BCS!” they chanted as their heroes ran past them and up the concrete tunnel toward their locker room. The bigger the hero–Kurt Kittner, Walter Young, Aaron Moorehead, Steve Fitts and, of course, Ty Myers–the louder they cheered. And, finally, there came Illinois coach Ron Turner, saluting the delirious crowd by punching his fist into the air.
A Bowl Championship Series bowl? Could be. At least a share of their first Big Ten crown since 1990? After Saturday’s 34-22 thumping of No. 25 Ohio State, the Illini are only one victory away from achieving exactly that. A win over struggling Northwestern (4-6, 2-6 Big Ten) on Thanksgiving at Memorial Stadium is all that stands between 12th-ranked Illinois (9-1, 6-1) and a once-improbable dream.
Did the Illini fall behind twice–10-7 and 22-21–Saturday? Of course they did.
Did Kittner get sacked three times and throw an interception, his 12th of the season? Of course he did.
Did Kittner rally Illinois with two touchdown passes in the last 2 minutes 35 seconds of the first half, and did the Illini score two more TDs in the last 10:48 of the game, including the clinching 5-yard interception return by Myers? Yep.
And was this Illinois’ fifth come-from-behind win of the season and its fourth in a row?
You bet your Citrus or BCS bowl reservations it was. Steve Bellisari or no Steve Bellisari.
“We said this game wasn’t Steve Bellisari against Illinois; we said this was Illinois against Ohio State,” said Turner, referring to the Buckeyes’ senior quarterback who was suspended indefinitely after being charged with drunken driving.
“The theme we had all week was to focus strictly on Illinois. No disrespect to Ohio State, but it was all about us.”
Cornerback Eugene Wilson and safety Bobby Jackson were so focused they didn’t even know Ohio State used both its backup quarterbacks–sophomores Scott McMullen and Craig Krenzel–in the game.
Illinois again needed only one quarterback. After a shaky first half, Kittner came back to complete 18-of-28 passes for 274 yards and touchdown passes to Young and Moorehead.
“They obviously wanted to take away Brandon [Lloyd],” said Turner of Ohio State’s strategy on the speedy flanker. “We put him strong side, weak side. They were doubling up on him, but if they want to do that, that’s fine. I thought Kurt did a good job of reading what they were doing.”
Young was Kittner’s main target, catching seven passes for a career-high 133 yards, including the big sideline pass for the TD. “They were leaving the middle open all day,” said Young. “On the touchdown pass Kurt just threw it up and I outjumped the guy. It does help to be 6-5.”
The Buckeyes missed Bellisari’s leadership, but Krenzel did a good job as OSU coach Jim Tressel’s third choice. Krenzel replaced McMullen (4-of-13 for 42 yards) just before halftime and brought the Buckeyes back from a 21-10 deficit by throwing for 164 yards.
Tailback Jonathon Wells rushed for a career-high 192 yards and the 1-yard TD that put OSU ahead 22-21 and set up another Illini rally. Fullback Carey Davis’ 10-yard run put Illinois ahead again 27-22.
That left it to Myers, a Springfield, Ohio, native, to break the Buckeyes’ hearts.
Myers’ interception return put Illinois in front 34-22 with 5:19 to go. Backed up against his own goal line, Krenzel fired a pass right at Myers in the flat. Myers ran a few feet and flopped across the goal line.
“It turned out exactly the way we drew it on the chalkboard,” defensive coordinator Mike Cassity said.
Nobody’s chalkboard projected Illinois to be 9-1. Nobody envisioned a Big Ten crown or BCS berth. Now both are within their grasp.
“I knew we’d be good,” said Young. “But I didn’t think we’d be this good.”
Offensive tackle Tony Pashos did.
“You’ve got to earn your respect,” said Pashos. “We’ve had our skeptics, but that’s OK. Did I think we’d be this good? Definitely. I’m an optimist.
“And I don’t think we’ve played our best game yet.”
