BLOCKED KICK IS NO TRICK
Milan cleanly thwarts long FG as time expires to put exclamation point on nail- biting opener
Associated Press
CHAMPAIGN — The thwack echoed through the stadium after the ball smacked Jamal Milan’s right arm. If he felt sore, it was a small price to pay for preserving a victory.
Milan blocked Morgan Hagee’s 54- yard field- goal attempt as time expired, and Illinois opened its second season under coach Lovie Smith by beating Ball State 24- 21 on Saturday.
“I actually saw it and I heard it,” Milan said. “It was pretty low. At first I couldn’t believe that I hit it. But at the same time, I could feel it. It was as loud as it can be.”
Mike Epstein scored on a oneyard run with just over two minutes remaining after Mike Dudek returned a punt 52 yards. Isaiah Gay came through with a huge sack near the end.
Chayce Crouch threw for 145 yards and a touchdown. Mike Epstein ran for two scores.
Illinois — coming off a 3- 9 season — blew a nine- point halftime lead and wasted several scoring opportunities down the stretch. But Dudek brought them back into it with a big punt return through the middle and up the right side to the 35 in the closing minutes.
Epstein then plowed in from the 1 with 2: 06 left. Crouch converted the two- point conversion run to make it 24- 21. Ball State drove to the 30 before Gay sacked Riley Neal for a 17- yard loss. The Cardinals had the ball on the 36 with five seconds remaining when they turned to Hagee for the tying attempt.
A lunging Cameron Watkins just missed the block for Illinois, but Milan got it.
“It’s a tough look for a kicker,” Neal said. “We got all the faith in the world in Morgan Hagee. He’s been a good kicker ever since I got here, and he’ll be back. I don’t know how it works when it gets blocked, whose fault it is. But regardless of what it was, Hagee will be good.”
Neal passed for 204 yards and a touchdown. James Gilbert ran for 74 yards and a score for Ball State.
Illinois took a 16- 7 halftime lead, only to give up long touchdown drives on Ball State’s first two possessions of the third quarter.
Malik Dunner ran it in from the 3, capping a 75- yard drive. The Cardinals then went 77 yards, with Gilbert scoring from the 3 to give them a 21- 16 lead.
Quotable
“We got a lot of young guys out on the field,” Crouch said. “Some of our inexperience showed at times. But they’ll learn from it.”
Dudek’s return
Besides the big punt return, Dudek caught two passes for 47 yards and a touchdown. When the game ended, he got choked up.
After all, Dudek hadn’t played since a standout freshman season in 2014. He sat out the last two seasons because he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee twice.
“I was thinking about where I’ve been,” he said. “I was thinking about all of my teammates and coaches that had my back.”
The takeaway
Ball State: It was a rough finish for the Cardinals, who opened their second season under Mike Neu with a loss.
Illinois: The Illini hung on to win their 20th consecutive home opener — the nation’s fourth longest streak.