ORLANDO, Fla. — Don’t say bowl games are meaningless. Not after the theater Illinois and South Carolina provided in Tuesday’s Cheez-It Citrus Bowl.
Illini coach Bret Bielema and Gamecocks coach Shane Beamer got into a heated skirmish in the third quarter, and their top-20 teams provided plenty of fourth-quarter drama as well.
But Illinois once again proved clutch and improved to 5-1 in one-score games this season and fifth fourth-quarter comeback victory with a 21-17 win over South Carolina, the Illini program’s first win over an SEC opponent and first bowl win since 2011.
Josh McCray ran for two second-half touchdowns and the Illinois defense forced a turnover on downs at their own seven-yard line with 3:11 left in the game.
Luke Altmyer passed for 174 yards, a touchdown and an interception, and Hank Beatty had a career-high 90 receiving yards to snap South Carolina’s six-game win streak. McCray ran for 114 yards and two touchdowns, while Aidan Laughery ran for 67 yards.
The Illini defense held South Carolina in check for most of the game becoming just the third team this season to hold the Gamecocks under 20 points. Matthew Bailey had a game-high 13 tackles, and Gabe Jacas had eight tackles and 3.0 tackles for loss. Ezekiel Holmes forced a fumble, and Jaheim Clarke recovered it.
LaNorris Sellers passed for 260 yards and a touchdown but ran for just 19 yards on 11 carries and was sacked twice (Mac Resetich and Dennis Briggs Jr.). Oscar Adaway ran for 69 yards and a touchdown and caught seven passes for 37 yards.
South Carolina took an early 3-0 lead with a 29-yard field goal by Alex Herrera off an 11-play, 43-yard drive. On the ensuing drive, Hank Beatty’s 59-yard catch and run set up Illinois with a 1st-and-goal at the 1-yard line. But Josh McCray was called for a fumble, a controversial call that looked close on reply, but the play stood. After Illinois forced a South Carolina 3-and-out, Illinois drove 76 yards in 11 plays, capped by a highlight reel scramble and 15-yard touchdown pass to Zakhari Franklin on the last play of the first quarter, which was originally called out at the 1-yard line but overturned as a touchdown upon review.
Illinois had just one drive in the second quarter and punted after gaining 28 yards. South Carolina outgunned Illinois 105-28 in the quarter and held the ball for 11:43 in the quarter but scored zero points. Ryan Meed broke up a fourth-down pass by South Carolina punter Kai Kroeger to defensive lineman Alex Huntley in the end zone, and Herrera then doinked a 41-yard field goal attempt off the right upright to end the half, giving Illinois a 7-3 lead at halftime.
Illinois attempted an onside kick to begin the second half and Mac Resetich got his hands on the ball but couldn’t reel it in. But Resetich got a sack on third down to force a quick South Carolina punt. But the Illini went 3-and-out itself to give the Gamecocks the ball back. And on 4th-and-1, Oscar Adaway ran for a 36-yard touchdown to give South Carolina a 10-7 lead with 10:50 left in the third quarter. Altmyer was then intercepted on the next drive on a deep shot by Jalen Kilgore after Zakhari Franklin fell down.
But the Illini defense got the ball back as Jaheim Clarke recovered a fumble forced by Ezekiel Holmes. The offense made the most of it, driving 63 yards in nine plays, highlighted by a 27-yard catch by Collin Dixon and capped by a three-yard touchdown run by McCray to give Illinois a 14-10 lead with 2:23 left in the third quarter. South Carolina responded, however, with a five-play, 75-yard drive, highlighted by a 60-yard pass to former Illinois receiver Dalevon Campbell and capped by a six-yard touchdown pass to Sellers. But during the drive, Bielema taunted Beamer with the substitution signal as Illinois had slow-jogged onto the field during South Carolina substitutions throughout the game.
The Illini responded again with a 12-play, 75-yard drive capped by a Josh McCray nine-yard touchdown run to take a 21-17 lead with 7:29 left. South Carolina drove inside the Illini 10-yard line, but Illinois forced three straight incompletions by Sellers to turn the ball over on downs. Illinois then ran out the clock, highlighted by a 60-yard McCray run to seal the win.
What it means: In just his fourth season in Champaign, Bret Bielema led Illinois to one of its most successful seasons in modern program history with the Illini reaching 10 wins for just the fifth time in program history and beating an SEC team for the first time in program history on a big stage on network television. With so many of its starters and stars set to potentially return, Illinois is starting to look like a program that can sustain success and potentially assert itself as a Wisconsin- or Iowa-like presence in an 18-team Big Ten. The Illini enter an important time in recruiting, both for transfers and prep recruiting, with momentum. The present of Illinois football hasn’t looked so bright in about 17 years — and potentially more than 30 years.
Star of the game: Illinois defensive coordinator Aaron Henry and the Illinois offense line. Henry, the second-year playcaller, had a winning game plan by focusing on containing Sellers in the pocket and limiting him as a runner. That put it on South Carolina’s flawed group of playmakers to beat them, and the Illini defense executed with sound tackling and getting key stops in their red zone as South Carolina scored just three times after getting into Illinois territory. But the offensive line also had one of its best games of the season, rushing for 183 yards against the No. 12 rushing defense in the country and allowed just one sack against the No. 3 pass rush in the country. Illinois won in the trenches and imposed its will late in the game against a formidable front.
Stats of the game
- South Carolina was 1-for-3 on fourth downs.
- Illinois was 8-for-12 on third downs, while South Carolina was 9-for-16 on third downs.
- Illinois had five tackles for loss, while South Carolina had three tackles for loss.
- Illinois had two penalties for 15 yards, while South Carolina had six penalties for 55 yards.
Don’t overlook:
Fabrizio Pinton struggled in his second full game as the starter. He had punts of 25 and 39 yards with a long of 46 yards. With Hugh Robertson and Declan Duley in the transfer portal, the Illini need to add a punter from the transfer portal.
What’s next: Recruiting season fully kicks into high gear. And after a surprise season, the Illini are looking to build more momentum.Illinois has already added six transfers but is still looking to add help on the offensive line, wide receiver, tight end and punter. The Illini also await the decisions of some of its current roster. Illini players have until Jan. 5 to enter the transfer portal, and three All-Big Ten players — left tackle J.C. Davis, outside linebacker Gabe Jacas and defensive back Xavier Scott — all have NFL Draft decisions to make Jan. 15. The first day of spring classes at the University of Illinois is Jan. 21, so spring semester additions will mostly be known by then. Meanwhile, the staff also will hit the recruiting trail for prep prospects as a contact period starts on Jan. 6, so this will be a critical time for the Illini to push for more prospects in the Class of 2026 and beyond.