Michigan
6-2 , 4-0
Illinois
5-3 , 3-2
Michigan Grabs Key Road Win With Comeback at Illinois
10/20/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
Site: Champaign, Ill. (Memorial Stadium)
Score: #24 Michigan 27, Illinois 17
Records: U-M (6-2, 4-0 Big Ten), Illinois (5-3, 3-2 Big Ten)
Attendance: 57,078
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Oct. 27 -- vs. Minnesota (Michigan Stadium), 3:30 p.m.
Boxscore | Player Participation | Postgame Notes
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The University of Michigan football team (No. 24 AP, No. 25 USA Today) came from behind to defeat the Illinois Fighting Illini 27-17 Saturday night (Oct. 20) at Memorial Stadium. Trailing by two scores for much the first half, the Wolverines (6-2, 4-0 Big Ten) broke a 17-17 tie with 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. Shaking off injury, senior quarterback Chad Henne(Wyomissing, Pa./Wilson HS) sparkled, tossing a pair of touchdowns while moving the Wolverines up and down the field all night.
Henne completing 18 of 26 pass attempts for 201 yards. In spot duty, due to the ailing Henne, freshman quarterback Ryan Mallett(Texarkana, Ark./Texarkana [Texas] HS) completed two passes for 16 yards. Filling in for an injured senior tailback Mike Hart(Syracuse, N.Y./Onondaga Central HS), sophomore running back Carlos Brown(Franklin, Ga./Heard County HS) added career highs with 113 yards on 25 carries.
Junior receiver Mario Manningham(Warren, Ohio/Warren G. Harding HS) led all receivers with nine catches for 102 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Senior receiver Adrian Arrington(Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington HS) complemented Manningham with three catches for 58 yards and one touchdown reception. The two receivers hooked up in the fourth quarter as Arrington found Manningham for the go-ahead touchdown with an 11-yard score on a trick play.
Defensively, fifth-year senior safety Brandent Englemon(Covington, Ky./Holmes HS) led all Wolverines with 11 total tackles. Senior safety Jamar Adams(Charlotte, N.C./Butler HS) added seven tackles. Fifth-year senior Shawn Crable(Massillon, Ohio/Washington HS) and senior linebacker Chris Graham(Indianapolis, Ind./Warren Central HS) posted six tackles apiece. Crable tallied 1.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble, while Graham posted 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack.
The Illini got the scoring started with a 26-yard post route from quarterback Juice Williams to receiver Jacob Willis on the second play from scrimmage. Illinois was aided by a 66-yard opening kickoff return by Vontae Davis to place the ball at the Michigan 33-yard line. Running back Ryan Mendenhall produced a seven-yard run on first down.
Illinois could not tack any more points on the board following an interception by defensive back Kevin Mitchell at the U-M 40-yard line. The turnover ended Michigan's first possession, a 23-yard drive that saw Henne find Manningham on a 15-yard catch on third-and-nine.
Due to injury, Henne was replaced by Mallett, who led the Wolverines to their first points of the contest, a 25-yard field goal by senior K.C. Lopata(Farmington, Mich./Farmington HS), which cut the Illinois lead to 7-3 at 1:21 in the first quarter. Brown tallied five carries for 21 yards during the possession. The drive covered 44 yards in 10 plays, taking just over four minutes off the clock.
The Illini extended their lead with an eight-yard touchdown run by Daniel Dufrene at 9:58 in the second quarter, capping off a season-long drive of 90 yards in 13 plays. Trailing 14-3 on the road, the Wolverines responded as a returning Henne shredded the Illinois secondary, completing four passes for 79 yards, including a 39-yard completion to Arrington on second-and-short. Henne capped off the drive with an eight-yard touchdown pass to Manningham, who stretched across the right pylon for the score.
With the Illinois lead trimmed to 14-10, Henne threw a 14-yard strike to Arrington to capture a 17-14 lead with 45 seconds remaining in the half. Henne continued his hot performance, completing five-of-seven passes for 59 yards during the drive. Initially, Arrington's touchdown grab was ruled as an incompletion, but instant replay review reversed the decision, giving Arrington his fifth touchdown catch of the season. The score came compliments of a personal foul penalty by Illinois that kept the drive alive as Joe Morgan ran into junior punter Zoltan Mesko(Twinsburg, Ohio/Twinsburg HS) on a punt attempt from the U-M 13-yard line.
Following a fumbled snap by Mallett at the Illinois 28-yard line midway through the third quarter, the Illini drove 50 yards in nine plays, tying the score at 17 on a 38-yard field goal by Jason Redan. The Illinois drive came mainly on the ground, as 43 yards came on running plays. Redan missed a 47-yard attempt wide right earlier in the half that also would have tied the game.
Michigan broke the tie in dramatic fashion, on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Arrington to Manningham on an end-around reverse pass. Arrington, who lined up left at the start of play, took the handoff from Henne before working right across the field and finding Manningham along the right sideline. The touchdown gave Michigan a 24-17 lead with 8:12 remaining in the fourth quarter. The two-play drive was set up following a fumbled punt by Kyle Hudson, which was recovered by senior long snapper Sean Griffin(Livonia, Mich./Catholic Central HS) at the Illinois 14-yard line.
Lopata added a 39-yard field goal at 3:49 in the fourth quarter to put the Wolverines ahead two scores and seal a 27-17 Wolverine victory. With the win, Michigan has become bowl eligible for the 33rd year in a row.
The Wolverines return home to host the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Saturday (Oct. 27). Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. EDT on ESPN Classic.
Contact: David Ablauf (734) 763-4423
Team Stats
MICH 0, ILL 7
ILL - Willis, Jacob 26 yd pass from Williams,Isiah (Reda,Jason kick) 2 plays, 33 yards, TOP 0:56
MICH 3, ILL 7
MICH - Lopata, K.C. 25 yd field goal 10 plays, 44 yards, TOP 4:05
MICH 3, ILL 14
ILL - Dufrene, Daniel 8 yd run (Reda,Jason kick), 13 plays, 90 yards, TOP 6:23
MICH 10, ILL 14
MICH - Manningham, M. 8 yd pass from Henne, Chad (Lopata, K.C. kick) 6 plays, 80 yards, TOP 1:57
MICH 17, ILL 14
MICH - Arrington, A. 14 yd pass from Henne, Chad (Lopata, K.C. kick) 14 plays, 81 yards, TOP 5:05
MICH 17, ILL 17
ILL - Reda,Jason 38 yd field goal 9 plays, 50 yards, TOP 3:44
MICH 24, ILL 17
MICH - Manningham, M. 11 yd pass from Arrington, A. (Lopata, K.C. kick) 2 plays, 13 yards, TOP 0:46
MICH 27, ILL 17
MICH - Lopata, K.C. 39 yd field goal 6 plays, 25 yards, TOP 2:45
