Blue White Illustrated

P E N N S T A T E F O O T B A L L >> With slightly more than 10 minutes left in the quarter, the Illini scored their third TD on a 60-yard drive. The 72,000 Illini fans were going wild, while a small con- tingent of Nittany Lion followers cringed silently in the bleacher seats in the open north end zone 100 yards away. "They came out and they whupped us pretty good," Conlin said. "They knew exactly what they were doing. I don't re- member being in the game until it was 21- 0. That's how out of sorts we were." Yet, there was no panic on the sideline. "It wasn't a good feeling, and Illinois was hot," Ganter remembered. "They were playing great and their fans were behind them. But we knew we could play better." Although no one watching the game in the stadium or on TV realized it at the time, Penn State set the tenor for its dra- matic comeback early in the second quar- ter on a 99-yard drive following a pooch punt. The Nittany Lions scored again from the Illini 38 shortly before the half following a blocked punt, but Illinois roared back for another touchdown, making the score 28-14 at halftime. In the Penn State locker room, Paterno told his players "to relax, play their game and not lose their poise," as several sportswriters reported after the game. "Coach Paterno told us to stay focused on turning it around, and that's what he always taught us," All-America guard Jeff Hartings recalled recently. "I know our offense didn't panic. We felt we just needed to put some plays together and get some stops [from our defense] and we could score enough points to win the game, and that's kind of what happened in the second half." Illinois took the second-half kickoff but had to punt, giving the Lions the ball at their own 41-yard line. A quick drive nar- rowed the score to 28-21, and when the defense forced the Illini to kick a 27-yard field goal after a time-consuming 71-yard march, the stage was almost set for Penn State's winning comeback. Midway through the fourth quarter, Milne ran 5 yards up the middle for the TD, and Brett Conway's PAT concluded the 55-yard drive, making the score 31-28 with 7 min- utes, 59 seconds left in the game. DOWN/DISTANCE YARD LINE PLAY First-and-10 Illinois 20 With a four-man Penn State rush, junior quarterback Johnny Johnson completes a screen pass toward the Illinois sideline to sophomore tailback Ty Dothard for 21 yards and a first down. First-and-10 Illinois 41 Johnson avoids a four-man Penn State rush but is forced to throw the ball away when Dothard cannot get open. Second-and-10 Illinois 41 Penn State switches to a prevent defense with three rushers. Johnson's pass attempt over the middle falls incomplete when senior wide receiver Jasper Strong cannot get open. Third-and-10 Illinois 41 As Penn State lines up in three-man rush, Illinois senior right guard Jonathan Kerr moves and Illinois is penalized 5 yards with 25 seconds remaining. Third-and-15 Illinois 36 Penn State continues to rush three, but Johnson's pass misses a wide-open Strong at the Nittany Lions' 45-yard line near the Illinois sideline. Fourth-and-15 Illinois 36 Facing another three-man rush, Johnson completes a pass to Strong for 17 yards at the right hash mark for a first down. Illinois calls its second timeout with 15 seconds left. First-and-10 Penn State 47 Johnson is forced to scramble by a five-man Penn State rush and overthrows senior wide receiver Jim Kline with 8 seconds left. Second-and-10 Penn State 47 With all three wide receivers lined up to the left, Penn State's three-man rush gives Johnson time to complete a pass to Strong near the Illinois sideline at the Nittany Lions' 29-yard line. Strong goes out of bounds with 2 seconds left. Illinois calls its last timeout. First-and-10 Penn State 29 Three Illinois receivers line up on left flank, but a six-man pass rush forces Johnson back to the 40 as the pocket collapses. He is hit by linebacker Phil Yeboah-Kodie just as he throws the ball toward the left side of the end zone. Penn State safety Kim Herring intercepts the pass in the end zone. I L L I N O I S ' F I N A L D R I V E On this drive, Illinois uses a shotgun formation with a three-wide receiver set that varies on each play, mostly with two receivers flanked to one side, right or left. It's a two-minute drill, with Fighting Illini offensive coordinator Greg Landry calling the plays. Penn State varies its defensive align- ment throughout, rushing three to six players and using different coverage schemes involving linebackers and de- fensive backs. –L.P. T I M E R E M A I N I N G : 5 2 | S T A R T I N G F I E L D P O S I T I O N I L L I N O I S 2 0 - Y A R D L I N E | T I M E O U T S 2 D R I V E S U M M A R Y 8 P L A Y S | 5 1 Y A R D S | : 5 2

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