For the first time in Champaign this year, it felt like football season. The weather was perfect as a sold-out crowd packed Gies Memorial Stadium.
The No. 17 Illini (5-2, 2-2) spoiled the day with a flat performance in their 34-16 loss against the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0, 3-0).
“We created a memory you don’t want to have,” said head coach Bret Bielema.
Senior quarterback Luke Altmyer came into the game with memories of his own. Altmyer remembers the gravity that Mississippi State–Alabama games carried when he attended as a kid and understood what the crowd was feeling today. Illinois struggled in what might’ve been the final home sell-out of Altmyer’s collegiate career.
“I ain’t gonna have another opportunity like that, to be able to play at home in front of a sold-out crowd, beautiful day against the number one team,” Altmyer said. “As a kid, you dream about that. For as long as I can remember, I dreamed about that.”
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Change of pace
When the team needed him most, Altmyer faltered early. The quarterback threw his first interception of the season in the first quarter after Ohio State junior cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr. tipped a pass.
Altmyer lacked his usual sharpness, failing to connect with senior wide receiver Hank Beatty and sophomore wide receiver Collin Dixon through open windows.
The quarterback found his rhythm while playing at a faster tempo. Altmyer quickly led the Illini down the field at the end of the first half and the beginning of the second.
“It’s something I’m used to in games,” Altmyer said. “That’s very stressful for defenses. They run kind of an NFL-style defense, not used to up-tempo offense. That’s something we wanted to use to our advantage.”
Illinois opened the third quarter with its best drive of the game. The Illini entered the red zone, and for the first time this season, scored a touchdown from inside the 20 against the Buckeyes.
On fourth-and-goal, Altmyer handed the ball off to Beatty, who pitched the ball to junior running back Aidan Laughery. Laughery waltzed into the endzone untouched to bring the Illini within ten, but that was as close as the game got.
“When we went to some pace there, (we) really, really played well and did some things that I thought would be advantageous for us,” Bielema said. “We probably should have gone to it a little bit sooner.”
Death by a thousand paper cuts
The Buckeyes brought with them a star-studded offense. Sophomore wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and sophomore quarterback Julian Sayin each ranked as preseason Heisman favorites. The Illini held the two at bay, along with the rest of the Buckeye offense.
Sayin went 19 for 27 on passes for 166 yards, while Smith had 42 yards on five receptions. Every Ohio State player besides Sayin logged less than 50 yards in the game. The big play never came for Ohio State, but the team still put up 34 points.
Ohio State made the most of Illinois’ mistakes. Senior punter Keelan Crimmins, in an attempt to field a poor snap, lowered his knee. The miscue gave the Buckeyes the ball at the Illinois 38.
“When I saw (Crimmins) put the knee down on the punt, I’m like, ‘What else could happen?’” Bielema said.
Illinois turned the ball over five times in the loss. In addition to the Altmyer interception and the botched punt, the team fumbled twice and turned the ball over on downs to end the game.
“Before you can win a football game, you gotta stop losing it,” Bielema said. “We lost that game.”
Much-needed break
The Illini have their first bye week of the season on deck. Illinois heads out of the break on its longest trip of the year, when it heads to Seattle to take on the Washington Huskies (5-1, 2-1).
@BrendanGallian
