CHICAGO — The spotlight’s all yours, Northwestern.
The Wildcats (7-3, 3-3 Big Ten) are coming off a 20-17 thrilling win against Iowa, while Illinois (5-5, 3-4) is looking to become bowl-eligible after dropping their last two games against Michigan and Minnesota.
Both offenses will head toward the West end zone today after a contentious rule change by the Big Ten on Friday due to concerns about player safety.
Read up on our coverage of today’s game, including NU’s new quarterback in Evan Watkins, and check out The Daily’s liveblog for more from Wrigley Field.
First quarter update from Colin Becht:
In a quarter that featured three swings of momentum, Northwestern has overcome an almost complete absence of run defense to trail Illinois by only 21-14.
The NU rush defense has simply been abused by a variety of rushers for the Fighting Illini. Running back Mikel Leshoure has 10 carries for 153 yards with two touchdown, quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase gained 51 yards on six carries, and backup running back Jason Ford rushed for 20 yards on two carries with a touchdown.
After surrendering two quick touchdowns and fumbling the ball twice on its first two possession, NU found a spark when a trick play pass from wide receiver Eddie McGee fell into the hands of junior safety Brian Peters. Peters returned the pick 60 yards for the Cats’ first points of the game.
However, NU was unable to build off the momentum of its pick-six as Leshoure broke a 70-yard run on the next play from scrimmage, setting up a five-yard touchdown run by Ford.
After an interception from redshirt freshman quarterback Evan Watkins set the Illini with the ball at the NU 15-yard line, Illinois kicker Derek Dimke pushed a 28-yard field goal wide right.
Redshirt freshman Mike Trumpy responded to the fortunate break with an 80-yard touchdown run, NU’s longest running play since 1982.
Second quarter update:
NU continued to ride big plays while a renewed emphasis on defense has left the Cats with a 27-24 halftime deficit against Illinois.
After giving up 224 yards rushing on 18 attempts in the first quarter, NU held the Illini to 79 yards on 13 carries in the second. The Cats had limited Illinois to just 22 yards on first 10 carries of the second quarter before Leshoure broke a 39-yard rush on the last drive of the half.
The Illini opened the scoring in the second quarter with a 45-yard field goal from Dimke, one of two converted field goals for him in the quarter. However, the Cats responded with 10 unanswered points to bring the game to a tie.
After a rare three-and-out from both offenses, freshman wide receiver Venric Mark redeemed himself for an early fumble with a 58-yard punt return to the Illinois 14. The Cats were unable to make much of the great field position and had to settle for a 31-yard field goal by senior kicker Stefan Demos.
On the ensuing Illinois possession, Peters came up with his second interception of the game on a deep ball to the NU 25-yard line.
That pick set up the Cats for their most balanced drive of the game, marching 75 yards for the tying score. Watkins finally found some comfort moving the ball through the air, completing 3-of-3 passes for 59 yards. Trumpy capped the drive with his second touchdown of the game, a two-yard rush.
The Illini responded with a drive from its own nine-yard line that resulted in a 39-yard field goal for Dimke as time expired on the half.
Third quarter update:
After the frantic back-and-forth pace of the first half, NU and Illinois settled down into a slower pace in the third quarter while the Illini built on their lead, going up 34-24.
The Cats were unable to build any semblance of a drive, going three-and-out on their first two drives of the quarter.
Illinois controlled the ball for a significant majority of the quarter and scored the lone points on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Scheelhaase to wide receiver A.J. Jenkins. The touchdown pass, the first by either team of the game, capped a 14-play, 61-yard drive by the Illini.
NU produced a strong drive to end the qu
arter and start the fourth quarter with the ball at the Illinois 29-yard line.
