“Hey, Fred!”
As he trotted off the Memorial Stadium turf Saturday and prepared to make a right turn into the tunnel to the Illinois locker room, senior defensive end Fred Wakefield slowed down for the first time all day. Hesitating just long enough for his pursuer to pull even, Wakefield spun around to find smiling coach Ron Turner offering an outstretched hand.
“Nice game, Fred,” said Turner.
Nice game, indeed.
The Illini (4-2, 1-2) took it all out on the Iowa Hawkeyes, romping 31-0 to record their first shutout since 1994 (East Carolina), their first Big Ten whitewash since 1990 (Purdue) and their first Big Ten win of the year.
OK, so it was Iowa. As offenses go, the Hawkeyes (1-6, 1-1) this season haven’t gone very far. Iowa came in ranked 101st in the nation in rushing, 89th in scoring, and had given up 36 sacks. And let’s not forget redshirt freshman quarterback Jon Beutjer’s inexperience. On this day, the former Wheaton-Warrenville star didn’t lose his head, but he was clearly in over it.
Still, give Illinois’ much-maligned defense its due.
The Illini had had two weeks to dwell on their embarrassing performance at Minnesota; two weeks to be asked over and over how they could have looked so inept in that 44-10 rout; two weeks to let the regrets build. Lucky Iowa.
With games the next two weeks at Penn State and Michigan State and the Big Ten race more scrambled than a henhouse in an earthquake, the victory couldn’t have come at a better time.
“I expected our guys to be ticked off today,” said Illinois defensive coordinator Tim Kish, after getting an ice-water shower from his players. “We went up there [Minnesota] and laid an egg. These guys have a lot of pride, though, and it showed today.”
Making only his third career start, Beutjer was intercepted twice and sacked four times. Iowa’s running game didn’t fare any better. The Hawkeyes lost two fumbles and managed only 86 net yards running.
Leading the onslaught were sophomore outside linebacker Jerry Schumacher with 15 tackles; senior middle linebacker Robert Franklin with eight tackles and an interception; junior defensive end Terrell Washington with eight tackles, one and a half sacks and one forced fumble; and Wakefield with five tackles, two sacks and one forced fumble.
“It feels real good right now,” Wakefield said. “We got after them today. This is the first shutout we’ve had since I’ve been here. A shutout is something we’ve wanted for a long time.
“What was the key today? Just our attitude. We went back to having fun.”
In front of a homecoming crowd of 62,639, the offense had its moments. Quarterback Kurt Kittner completed 17-of-25 passes for 248 yards and three second-quarter touchdown passes. Flanker Aaron Moorehead caught four of Kittner’s passes for 125 yards, including 61- and 23-yard scores. And tailback Rocky Harvey added 104 yards on 14 carries.
More Top Picks Best Sensory Chairs For Autistic Kids
After coming up empty on its first two drives in the first quarter, Illinois took a 7-0 lead midway through the second period on an 80-yard drive and Kittner’s 1-yard pass to Brian Hodges.
Two minutes later, the Illini capitalized again after an interception by Franklin gave them the ball at their own 49. Kittner scrambled right and when the cornerback came up to stop him, Kittner found Moorehead wide open down the sideline for a 61-yard TD.
Illinois’ third score was also set up by the defense. Five plays after Washington separated Beutjer from the ball and Brandon Moore recovered Beutjer’s fumble at the Iowa 49, Kittner found Moorehead from 23 yards out for a 21-0 halftime lead.
A 33-yard Steve Fitts field goal and Mon Long’s 75-yard interception return completed the scoring.
But as good as the offense was, it wasn’t nearly as excited by its performance as the recently ineffective defense.
“Believe me,” said Franklin, “this is a big confidence-boost; especially after last week. It feels like we’re back on top of things now. It was a very tough two weeks. In practice the seniors made it a point to tell the young guys we don’t have any rookies on this team. We had a few words, but nothing that broke anyone’s heart. This win is very rewarding.”
Said Turner: “It’s been a rough couple of weeks, but today was good to see.”