Rutgers gets rolled by Illinois, falls 35-13
Rutgers Football found themselves back in the loss column today, as Illinois controlled the Scarlet Knights by a score of 35-13 inside of Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Check out our summary from today’s Big Ten matchup below.
First Quarter Recap
Illinois won the toss and deferred to the second half, Rutgers opened up at their own 25-yard line. A promising drive would stall in Illinois territory, but an excellent special teams play by Cam Miller pinned the Illini at their own one-yard line.
Despite being backed up, the Illinois offense marched 99 yards in 12 plays to take a 7-0 lead.
Second Quarter Recap
The long Scarlet Knights drive faltered in the redzone, and Jai Patel got Rutgers on the board with a 26-yard field goal.
The Rutgers defense came up with a takeaway thanks to a deflection from edge Eric O’Neill and interception from Farell Gnago. O’Neill also recorded a sack on the drive.
The Scarlet Knights turned to running back Ja’Shon Benjamin on the sudden change, setting up the offense at the edge of the redzone. Athan Kaliakmanis had a ball batted on third down, and Patel converted on a 40-yard field goal to cut into the Illinois lead.
Illinois extended their lead thanks to a couple big runs from quarterback Luke Altmyer, who scored a touchdown on fourth-and-goal.
Rutgers went three-and-out in their two-minute drill, and Illinois got the ball back with plenty of time to put some more points on the board. Altmyer found receiver Hank Beatty for a one-yard score to push the lead to 21-6. The Illini also get the ball to open the second half.
Third Quarter Recap
Illinois walked down the field and extended the lead on an impressive touchdown catch from wide receiver Hudson Clement.
Rutgers went three-and-out yet again and Illinois converted a fourth-and-five to set up Luke Altmyer’s fourth passing touchdown of the afternoon.
Fourth Quarter Recap
Illinois missed a field goal early in the quarter and Kaliakmanis found KJ Duff for a three-yard score to cap off a long drive.
Up Next for Rutgers Football
Rutgers Football returns home next week, as the Scarlet Knights will face the Maryland Terrapins inside SHI Stadium. Kickoff is set for 2:30pm and the game will be televised on FS1.
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