Final
Defensive TD sparks Illinois past Minnesota 35-32
Nov 7, 2009 - 10:53 PM By JON KRAWCZYNSKI AP Sports WriterMINNEAPOLIS(AP) -- Terry Hawthorne returned an interception for a touchdown and Clay Nurse had four of Illinois' seven sacks to lead the Illini to a 35-32 victory over Minnesota on Saturday.
Jacob Charest threw for 185 yards and a touchdown after replacing Juice Williams, who left in the first quarter with an injured left ankle. Illinois (3-6, 2-5 Big Ten) led 28-7 at halftime.
Jon Hoese scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns for Minnesota (5-5, 3-4). Gophers linebacker Keanon Cooper blocked a punt that Ben Kuznia scooped up for a score to pull Minnesota within three points with 3 minutes to play.
The ensuing onside kick went out of bounds, and the Gophers couldn't overcome a dreadful first half from quarterback Adam Weber.
After throwing for 416 yards and five TDs in a breakout game against Michigan State last week, Weber completed 5 of 17 passes for 74 yards with a fumble and the interception returned for a score in the first half against Illinois. He finished 14 of 30 for 221 yards.
The blunders, and a furious pass rush, helped Illinois compensate for the loss of Williams.
It's been a long and difficult senior season for Williams, who has never been able to recapture the magic that helped him lead the Illini to the Rose Bowl during his sophomore year. He finally had a breakout game last week with 220 total yards in a 31-13 win over Michigan and looked sharp early against Minnesota.
He completed all five of his passes, including a 22-yard TD pass to Jeff Cumberland on the opening drive to get the Illini rolling. But he injured his left ankle and fumbled during a run later in the first quarter and watched the rest of the game on crutches from the sideline.
Weber probably wishes he could have joined him.
The Gophers quarterback also broke out of a season-long slump last week in a win over Michigan State.
He followed that with a brutal first half against Illinois, missing several wide-open receivers and taking too many sacks after not getting rid of the ball quickly enough, drawing boos from the home crowd.
Weber fumbled on a bad exchange with DeLeon Eskridge in Illinois territory and telegraphed a throw to Hoese near the sidelines in the first quarter.
Hawthorne, who chased down Michigan receiver Roy Roundtree and prevented a touchdown last week, read Weber's eyes and stepped in front of the pass. He returned the interception 44 yards for a score and a 14-0 lead going into the second quarter.
Minnesota cut the lead to 28-25 on Hoese's second score of the game. But Charest threw a 4-yard TD pass to Arrelious Benn on the next possession.
- NCAAF FINAL
1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
ILLINOIS 14 14 0 7 35
MINNESOTA 0 7 3 22 32 FINAL
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QUARTER: ILLINOIS - TD, JEFF CUMBERLAND 22 YD PASS
FROM JUICE WILLIAMS (MATT
ELLER KICK), 5:19. ILLINOIS
7-0
ILLINOIS - TD, TERRY HAWTHORNE 44 YD
INTERCEPTION RETURN (MATT
ELLER KICK), 14:04. IL
Nov 7 3:19 PM - NCAAF
ILLINOIS 35
MINNESOTA 32 0:00 LEFT, 4TH QTR
Nov 7 3:19 PM
TD MINNESOTA BEN KUZNIA 3 YD RETURN OF BLOCKED PUNT (ERIC ELLESTAD KICK)
Illinois 35, Minnesota 32 4th - 3:05Nov 7 3:13 PM
TD MINNESOTA BEN KUZNIA 3 YD RETURN OF BLOCKED PUNT (ERIC ELLESTAD KICK)
Illinois 35, Minnesota 32 4th - 3:05Nov 7 3:13 PM
TD ILLINOIS ARRELIOUS BENN 4 YD PASS FROM JACOB CHAREST (MATT ELLER KICK)
Illinois 35, Minnesota 25 4th - 5:10Nov 7 3:04 PM
TD ILLINOIS ARRELIOUS BENN 4 YD PASS FROM JACOB CHAREST (MATT ELLER KICK)
Illinois 35, Minnesota 25 4th - 5:10Nov 7 3:04 PM
TD ILLINOIS ARRELIOUS BENN 4 YD PASS FROM JACOB CHAREST (MATT ELLER KICK)
Illinois 35, Minnesota 25 4th - 5:10Nov 7 3:04 PM
TD MINNESOTA JON HOESE 3 YD RUN (ADAM WEBER PASS TO DA'JON MCKNIGHT FOR TWO-POINT CONVERSION)
Illinois 28, Minnesota 25 4th - 9:13Nov 7 2:53 PM
TD MINNESOTA JON HOESE 3 YD RUN (ADAM WEBER PASS TO DA'JON MCKNIGHT FOR TWO-POINT CONVERSION)
Illinois 28, Minnesota 25 4th - 9:13Nov 7 2:53 PM
TD MINNESOTA JON HOESE 3 YD RUN (ADAM WEBER PASS TO DA'JON MCKNIGHT FOR TWO-POINT CONVERSION)
Illinois 28, Minnesota 25 4th - 9:13Nov 7 2:53 PM
TD MINNESOTA JON HOESE 10 YD PASS FROM ADAM WEBER (PAT FAILED)
Illinois 28, Minnesota 16 4th - 13:49Nov 7 2:42 PM
TD MINNESOTA JON HOESE 10 YD PASS FROM ADAM WEBER (PAT FAILED)
Illinois 28, Minnesota 16 4th - 13:49Nov 7 2:42 PM- NCAAF
ILLINOIS 28
MINNESOTA 10 0:00 LEFT, 3RD QTR
Nov 7 2:32 PM - NCAAF
ILLINOIS 28
MINNESOTA 7 0:00 LEFT, 2ND QTR
Nov 7 1:38 PM
TD MINNESOTA KEVIN WHALEY 5 YD RUN (ERIC ELLESTAD KICK)
Illinois 14, Minnesota 7 2nd - 7:45Nov 7 1:05 PM
TD MINNESOTA KEVIN WHALEY 5 YD RUN (ERIC ELLESTAD KICK)
Illinois 14, Minnesota 7 2nd - 7:45Nov 7 1:05 PM- NCAAF
ILLINOIS 14
MINNESOTA 0 0:00 LEFT, 1ST QTR
Nov 7 12:42 PM
TD ILLINOIS TERRY HAWTHORNE 44 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN (MATT ELLER KICK)
Illinois 14, Minnesota 0 1st - 0:56Nov 7 12:37 PM
TD ILLINOIS TERRY HAWTHORNE 44 YD INTERCEPTION RETURN (MATT ELLER KICK)
Illinois 14, Minnesota 0 1st - 0:56Nov 7 12:37 PM
TD ILLINOIS JEFF CUMBERLAND 22 YD PASS FROM JUICE WILLIAMS (MATT ELLER KICK)
Illinois 7, Minnesota 0 1st - 9:41Nov 7 12:11 PM
TD ILLINOIS JEFF CUMBERLAND 22 YD PASS FROM JUICE WILLIAMS (MATT ELLER KICK)
Illinois 7, Minnesota 0 1st - 9:41Nov 7 12:11 PM
TD ILLINOIS JEFF CUMBERLAND 22 YD PASS FROM JUICE WILLIAMS (MATT ELLER KICK)
Illinois 7, Minnesota 0 1st - 9:41Nov 7 12:11 PM
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