With a 20-point deficit towering over the Illini, some of the 50,112 fans at Memorial Stadium began to trickle back to their tailgates in the third quarter of Saturday’s game. For those who stayed until the end, however, the wait was worth it.

Illinois kicked off the 2005 football season with a 33-30 overtime win against Rutgers. It didn’t come easily and it didn’t come fast, but Illinois stood up to the adversity and proved this team can turn around its game play as well as its attitude.

“It really wasn’t pretty, but I think the biggest question since we’ve been here is what was our team going to do under adversity?” said head coach Ron Zook following the game. “I told them (Friday) night, ‘we’re a better football team than you guys think we are.'”

Illinois struggled in the first half, scoring just one touchdown, as untested quarterback Tim Brasic tossed the ball six yards to Jody Ellis in the end zone. Rutgers, on the other hand, made a first quarter field goal and two touchdowns. The Scarlet Knights scored again in the second quarter with a field goal, bringing the score to 20-7 at the half.

Zook called the first half “an effort” for the Illini. He cited bad field position and “killing ourselves on first downs” as the biggest hurdles. But he said he never knew how bad the game got, and never lost hope.

“You’ve got to keep fighting; you’ve got to keep going,” Zook said. “It’s a 100-yard field, it’s a 60-minute game, and you’ve got to keep fighting.”

Fight they did, and, with 1:13 on the clock, Brasic connected with running back E.B. Halsey in the end zone, and sophomore kicker Jason Reda got the ball through the uprights to tie the game at 27.

Illinois got the ball back with 28 seconds remaining. Brasic attempted a pass to DaJuan Warren, but it was incomplete. On the next throw, Brasic connected with Halsey, who was run out of bounds at the Illinois 43. Brasic then completed a pass to Kendrick Jones for eight yards and the first down.

“Sometimes as a quarterback, in your mind everything slows down,” Brasic said. “On that play, that’s what happened. I just saw everything so perfectly. I saw where the defenders were going, and I saw where Kendrick was going, and he just made a great catch.”

Thirteen seconds on the clock. Brasic attempts a pass to Kyle Hudson, but it’s batted away by Rutgers’ Courtney Greene. A 14-yard pass to Halsey, and Illinois is at the 35-yard line with three seconds left.

Reda, who struggled last season as a true freshman, steps up for the 52-yard kick. The ball goes wide right. Overtime.

“Never,” Zook said to questions on whether he thought about having All-American punter Steve Weatherford try the kick. “(Reda’s) not going to make every field goal, and I’ve never seen one that does. But he’s a good kicker.”

Rutgers got the first overtime possession. Thanks to some tough Illinois defense and a holding penalty, the Scarlet Knights never even got a first down. Jeremy Ito made a field goal from the 40, and Illinois got the ball with the score at 30-27.

Back on offense, Brasic rushes for eight yards to the Rutgers 17. There’s a flag before the play, though, as Ellis is called for a false start. Illinois ball on the Rutgers 22.

Again, Brasic looks to Halsey. Again, he connects, this time in a 20-yard pass. Two yards to go.

Rutgers calls a timeout, but it’s first and goal and Memorial Stadium is jumping. The Block-I stands solid. Most fans are still in the stands, but few are in their seats.

On the field, Pierre Thomas rushes up the middle for two yards, the touchdown, the win and the fireworks.

“We see now that when you go out there, you work hard and you give everything you’ve got, it’s a little hard to surrender,” Halsey said. “We didn’t surrender, we didn’t fall.”

On the field, Chancellor Richard Herman runs to hug Zook, who is surrounded by reporters. Players rush for the stands to celebrate with fans. In the locker room, the team shoots water at each other, while Charles Myles attempts to dance and the Illini sing the school fight song for just the fifth time in three seasons.

Zook, who took home the game ball, warns that this is only one game, albeit an important one.

“They did it. I’m happy for them and proud of them,” Zook said. “Obviously, it’s a great win for us, but we’ve got a long, long way to go.”