Illini keep it close before unraveling
CHAMPAIGN — Miles Sanders set career highs by rushing for 200 yards and three touchdowns, Trace McSorley threw for three TDs and ran for a personal-best 92 yards and No. 10 Penn State scored 35 points in the fourth quarter to pull away for a 63-24 victory over Illinois on Friday night.
The Nittany Lions (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) broke this one open after getting all they could handle from a team showing signs of a turnaround in coach Lovie Smith’s third season.
Penn State fell behind by three early in the third before Sanders scored on a 48-yard run and put away Illinois (2-2, 0-1) with two touchdowns in the opening minute of the fourth.
McSorley threw a 16-yard TD pass to Juwan Johnson on the first play of the quarter. Ian Johnson intercepted Illinois quarterback M.J. Rivers, and McSorley hit KJ Hamler with a 21-yarder on the next play, making it 42-24.
Rivers, a true freshman, was 17-for-28 for 149 yards, a touchdown and an interception in his second start with AJ Bush nursing a hamstring injury.
Reggie Corbin ran for 87 yards for Illinois. Mike Epstein finished with 73 after back-toback 100-yard rushing games.
Midway through the second quarter, a 51yard run by Corbin set up a six-yard touchdown pass from Rivers to Ricky Smalling, after the Illini’s Daniel Barker fumbled a reception near the goal line, to make it a sevenpoint game.
Illinois’ Delano Ware intercepted a deep pass by McSorley into double coverage with about 30 seconds left in the half when Penn State could have opted to run out the clock. That led to a 42-yard field goal by Chase McLaughlin as time expired, making it 21-17.