Defense key as Minnesota takes down Illinois

 

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Team Stat Comparison
1st Downs	16	25
Total Yards	312	550
Passing	196	462
Rushing	116	88
Penalties	6-59	5-46
3rd Down Conversions	5-13	5-13
4th Down Conversions	1-1	0-2
Turnovers	1	3
Possession	29:32	30:28

Air/Ground Leaders
Minnesota Passing   C/ATT YDS TD INT Weber 18/26 184 1 0 Kucek 1/1 12 0 0	Illinois Passing   C/ATT YDS TD INT Williams 26/41 462 2 1 Team 0/1 0 0 0
Minnesota Rushing   CAR YDS TD LG Eskridge 26 124 2 46 Stoudermire Jr. 1 1 0 1	Illinois Rushing   CAR YDS TD LG Williams 18 41 0 21 Dufrene 10 36 0 7
Minnesota Receiving   REC YDS TD LG Decker 9 86 1 25 Simmons 4 33 0 9	Illinois Receiving   REC YDS TD LG Benn 12 181 0 31 Jenkins 3 117 2 54

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER				MINN	ILL
	TD	11:54	Eric Decker 25 Yd Pass From Adam Weber (Joel Monroe Kick)	7	0
SECOND QUARTER				MINN	ILL
	FG	03:00	Matt Eller 33 Yd	7	3
THIRD QUARTER				MINN	ILL
	TD	13:19	Deleon Eskridge 1 Yd Run (Joel Monroe Kick)	14	3
	FG	09:09	Matt Eller 28 Yd	14	6
FOURTH QUARTER				MINN	ILL
	TD	11:11	Deleon Eskridge 46 Yd Run (Pat Failed)	20	6
	TD	10:01	A.J. Jenkins 54 Yd Pass From Juice Williams (Matt Eller Kick)	20	13
	TD	05:24	Simoni Lawrence 9 Yd Fumble Return (Joel Monroe Kick)	27	13
	TD	04:47	A.J. Jenkins 35 Yd Pass From Juice Williams (Matt Eller Kick)	27	20

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Minnesota hassled Juice Williams all day, sacking him five time and taking his fumble back for a decisive touchdown in the Golden Gophers' 27-20 upset Saturday.

After Minnesota's Willie VanDeSteeg brought down Williams at the Fighting Illini 9 late in the fourth quarter, Simoni Lawrence scooped up the ball and ran it in for a touchdown and a 27-13 lead for the Golden Gophers (6-1, 2-1 Big Ten).

Fast Facts

• A season after finishing 1-11, Minnesota is 6-1 and bowl-eligible with Saturday's win at Illinois.

• The Golden Gophers are 6-1 for the third time since 2002. Prior to that '02 season, their last 6-1 start was in 1967.

• Illinois entered the game averaging 210.8 yards on the ground, but Minnesota held the Illini to just 88.

-- ESPN research

Just a week after he put up 431 combined yards in a win over Michigan, Williams was 26-of-41 passing for 462 yards and two touchdowns. Illinois (3-3, 1-2) turned the ball over three times.

One second-quarter drive summed up the afternoon for Illinois.

With Minnesota up 7-0, Williams ran out of heavy pressure for a big first down to keep a drive alive.

But a few plays later, Williams was chased out of the pocket as wide receiver Jeff Cumberland ran open across the end zone, waving his arms to get his quarterback's attention.

Then an 8-yard sack forced the Illini to kick a field goal.

VanDeSteeg was Williams' biggest headache Saturday. The senior defensive end had three of the Gophers' sacks and five tackles.

DeLeon Eskridge rushed for 119 yards and two touchdowns for Minnesota. His second touchdown, a 46-yarder early in the fourth quarter, gave the Gophers a 20-6 lead and forced the Illini to play from behind, neutralizing their running game.

Illinois entered the game averaging 210.8 yards on the ground, but Minnesota held the Illini to just 88.

Adam Weber completed 18 of 26 passes for 185 yards and a touchdown.

He found receiver Eric Decker, who entered the game with a Big Ten-best 50 catches, five times in the first quarter. They included a 25-yard touchdown scored when Decker lunged to tuck the ball just inside the pylon on the game's opening drive.

Decker finished with nine catches for 86 yards.

Illinois sophomore receiver Arrelious Benn caught 12 balls for 181 yards, his career high for yardage and third-straight 100-yard game.

Illini freshman A.J. Jenkins caught three passes for 117 yards, two of them long, late touchdowns that kept the Illini in the game.