No. 22 Illinois (5-1) celebrated with a 43-27 victory against Purdue University (2-3). The Illini were able to defend the Canon Trophy and keep it in Champaign for two years in a row for the first time since 2002.
Takeaways
Illinois: According to the scoreboard, Illinois was in control of this game the entire way. But after some slow starts at the beginning of the second half, Illinois was risking losing its two-touchdown lead. Illinois’ defense let Purdue run for 151 yards and giving them a chance to come back into the game. Luckily, Illinois’ offense was also running up and down the field as Senior quarterback Luke Altmyer threw for 390 yards.
Purdue: The Boilermakers were looking to take back the Canon trophy from Illinois, but they were not able to slow down Illinois defensively. After giving up so many yards, Purdue was down as much as 19 points in the game. Boilermakers did come up with big stops, forcing the Illini to give the ball up and give Purdue a chance. With eight tackles for loss, Illinois was unable to rush the ball and give Purdue to advantage.
Key moment
After a slow start to the game, Illinois was looking for a momentum-shifting play to take the lead in the game. In the second quarter, Sophomore linebacker Jojo Hayden forced the fumble and gave Illinois a chance to take the lead. Senior quarterback Luke Altmyer, on his first play of the drive, found a wide-open Hank Beatty. The senior receiver ran up the left sideline, beating out three boilermaker defenders and scoring a 62-yard touchdown. That touchdown gave Illinois the lead for the rest of the game, and Beatty ended the game with a career high of 186 receiving yards.
Key Stat
Coming into this game, Purdue has not fumbled the ball a single time this season. In this game alone, Illinois has forced Purdue to fumble the ball twice. All of Purdue’s fumbles in this game have resulted in Illinois scoring points and saving Illinois from losing the lead in the game.
Up Next
Illinois will return to Champaign to host their toughest opponent of the season, No. 1 Ohio State. The Buckeyes and the Illini will face off next Saturday at 11:00 a.m.