STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – The doors to Penn State’s “S-Block” student section swung open at around 5:45 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday evening – and the rest is history.

A white-clad mob gradually made its way into Beaver Stadium during the next two hours for the season’s designated “White Out” game, until all 109,626 fans were accounted for.

Even before the first chants of “We are Penn State” resonated through the stands, players and coaches from both teams knew the matchup under the lights of Happy Valley was going to be something special.

“It was a great atmosphere, it’s something that you love to play in, an atmosphere like that, that’s what’s exciting,” Illinois head coach Ron Zook said. “The fans were into it, the noise, it was loud, and our guys were into it.”

The eighth-largest crowd in the stadium’s history made quite a racket, to say the least. The voice of a sliver of Illini orange in the south end zone was drowned out by the screaming, towel-waving sea of white – much to the delight of the Nittany Lions.

“It was just electric out there. We fed off those guys,” Penn State senior wide receiver Deon Butler said. “They made it tougher on (Illinois quarterback Juice) Williams, and that helped us out. It’s just great for our fans to be able to come out like this and support us in the way they did.”

The Illinois offense was consistently bombarded by the thunderous roar of the crowd, especially as it drew closer and closer to the Penn State student section in the stadium’s north end zone.

The volume level, however, was a non-factor when it came to calling plays and making changes at the line, according to Williams.

“We do a lot of things with hand signals, so it’s not that bad for us, we were still able to communicate,” the quarterback said. “We just got to ignore the sound, ignore the volume out there.”

A different breed of gunslinger

When the Nittany Lions took to the field of Memorial Stadium on Sept. 29, 2007, then-senior quarterback Anthony Morrelli was at the helm of the Penn State offense in a Nittany Lion 27-20 loss. Morrelli, a successful pocket passer, lacked the mobility on the ground that his successor, Daryll Clark, displayed Saturday night.

The 6-foot-2-inch, 253-pound senior quarterback racked up 50 yards and a touchdown on the ground against the Illinois defense, along with 181 yards and two touchdowns through the air.

“If everything wasn’t open, he’d take off and run, so we had to worry about the run too,” Illini cornerback Vontae Davis said. “Last year, they didn’t have a running quarterback. So if everything collapsed, he’d find ways to get the ball downfield.”

A Penn State team still feeling the sting of last year’s loss in Champaign watched closely as its more versatile offensive attack posted the game’s final points with less than 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Nittany Lions scored on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Clark to tight end Andrew Quarless, effectively closing out Illinois’ chances at a comeback.

“(Clark) was phenomenal,” Butler said. “He hit the open guys, he scrambled, he held onto the ball. He did a good job considering the crazy atmosphere and his first Big Ten game. I think as the season goes on, he’ll be calmer and more comfortable.”

Illini injury report

The fourth quarter not only brought the Illini their second loss against a top-12 team this season but also a pair of injury scares.

After hauling in a 54-yard pass from Williams with about 13 minutes remaining, sophomore receiver Arrelious Benn landed awkwardly in the end zone as a Penn State player dragged him down from behind. Trainers immediately tended to Benn, who gingerly rose to his feet before beginning a light jog toward the sideline.

“My helmet just slipped down my forehead, and I got a little dizzy,” Benn said.

On the fourth play of Illinois’ next possession, starting running back Daniel Dufrene coughed up a fumble on the Illini 36-yard line and remained on the ground after the play.

The Illinois training staff made another trip onto the field to assist Dufrene, who would never re-enter the game. Zook said the decision to sit him for the remaining 7:52 was purely a precautionary measure. The running back suffered a strain to his shoulder area.

“He could have gone back in there but I really didn’t want him to go back in there, but I thought he had a big night,” Zook said.

Dufrene paced the Illini on the ground with 96 rushing yards.