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Illini escape YSU scare
Penguins punt into backside triggers rally
By Joe Scalzo
CHAMPAIGN, ILL.
Saturday’s game didn’t feature many butts in the seats, but Illinois survived a scare from Youngstown State thanks to one on the field.
Capitalizing on YSU’s “butt punt” late in the third quarter and a fortunate fumble recovery in the fourth, the Illini rallied for a 28-17 victory over the Penguins inside a half-filled Memorial Stadium.
“It’s a W,” Illinois coach Tim Beckman said, “[but it] wasn’t a pretty W.”
The Penguins used a typically strong run game with a surprisingly strong defense to open up a 9-7 lead in the second half thanks to three Joey Cejudo field goals.
But Cejudo, in his first game at punter after Nick Liste’s graduation, committed one of the game’s biggest blunders with less than 30 seconds remaining in the third quarter. With YSU facing a fourth-and-1 at midfield, Wolford sent in the punt team, giving Cejudo the option to punt or run.
Cejudo initially looked to run, rolling to the right before pulling up to kick. Problem was, he’d run behind protector Jacob Wood, who was struggling to hold his ground against Illinois’ 285-pound defensive lineman, Joe Fotu. Cejudo’s punt hit Wood’s backside and caromed backward 15 yards before landing out of bounds.
“I probably should have gone for it on fourth-and-one,” said YSU coach Eric Wolford, who felt Cejudo could have gotten for the first down if he kept running. “That was a mistake on my part. I didn’t go with my intuition, so that’s a lesson learned.
“I’ll second-guess myself on that play call for the rest of my life.”
Six plays later, Illinois quarterback Wes Lunt hit Mike Dudek for an 8-yard TD that gave the Illini a 14-9 lead with 14 minutes to go.
YSU answered with a seven-play, 75-yard drive that featured a 61-yard catch-and-run by wideout Andrew Williams and a 2-yard TD plunge by Martin Ruiz. Quarterback Dante Nania added the two-point conversion on a delayed draw.
But YSU’s defense, which held Illinois to 172 yards through the first three quarters, began to wear down against the Illini’s high-tempo offense in the fourth. Illinois drove 79 yards in just over two minutes, taking a 21-17 lead on a 15-yard TD pass from Lunt to Josh Ferguson.
The Illini then forced a three-and-out and had the ball past midfield with five minutes left when the game’s second-biggest play unfolded.
On a second-and-17, YSU defensive end Derek Rivers strip-sacked Lunt from his blind side. The ball skittered forward, where Illinois guard Ted Karras fell on it for a one-yard loss.
“We was on it, then we lost it,” Penguins defensive tackle Emmanuel Kromah said of the fumble. “That one turnover, if we had got it, who knows?”
Lunt hit Malik Turner for a 20-yard gain to convert a third-and-18. Three plays later, against a YSU blitz, Lunt found a wide open Martize Barr down the left sideline for a 29-yard TD that put the game away.
The Penguins finished with an edge in first downs (19-14), rushing yards (228-83), total yards (380-363) and time of possession (40:01-19:59) but were outscored 21-8 in the fourth.
But unlike Wolford’s first two years, when many in the program felt satisfied with being competitive against Penn State and Michigan State, Saturday’s loss felt like a missed opportunity, albeit one that came with a $560,000 check.
“We’ve changed our mentality and that’s a compliment to our kids,” Wolford said. “We’re not here to collect a check. We want to try to win these games.”