WOLVERINES BEAT ILLINOIS AFTER CORUM HURTS KNEE
ANN ARBOR >> Michigan survived a pair of scares.
Jake Moody made a goahead, 35-yard field goal with nine seconds left, lifting the third-ranked Wolverines to a 1917 win over Illinois on Saturday.
Michigan (11-0, 8-0 Big Ten, No. 3 CFP) played much of the second half without star running back Blake Corum, who hurt his left knee after being tackled just before halftime and had only one carry in the second half.
X-rays, though, gave coach Jim Harbaugh and his players a sense of relief.
“Structurally good, which is great news,” Harbaugh said.
The Wolverines will now turn their attention to playing rival and second-ranked Ohio State on the road, where they have not won since 2000 with a spot in the Big Ten champinship game at stake and College Football Playoff implications.
“We’ve been preparing for this the whole year,” defensive lineman Kris Jenkins said.
The Fighting Illini (7-4, 5-3) took a 17-10 lead late in the third quarter on Chase Brown’s 37yard touchdown run. But the couldn’t build on it.
With a chance to run out the clock and a one-point lead, they had to punt to Michigan late in the game. The Illini failed to hold on and beat a top-three team for the first time since knocking off top-ranked Ohio State in 2007.
“Very angry. Very upset,” coach Bret Bielema said. “I think our kids did a lot to win the football game and to continually have things just go against us, very frustrating.”
Brown finished with 140 yards rushing and two scores on 29 carries, choosing to play with an injured right leg that he hurt last week.
Illinois quarterback Tommy DeVito, a Syracuse transfer, was 21 of 30 for 178 yards.
With Corum out and the passing game off, the Wolverines had to settle for Moody making four field goals in the second half.
J.J. McCarthy was 18 of 34 for 208 yards, missing some throws and having some dropped on afternoon that had a wind chill of 11 degrees and wind gusts hovering around 18 mph.
“A lot of things to fix, but it was great to go out there and just get the win and be in those elements,” McCarthy said. “We haven’t been in a game where the wind was really like that and it was great to get that experience.”
Corum had 108 yards rushing and his 19th touchdown this season on 18 carries before watching nearly two quarters from the sideline with his helmet off. The Heisman Trophy hopeful has run for 100 yards in eight straight games to tie the school record set by current