Illinois beat Nebraska 24-13 Friday night at Gies Memorial Stadium because it turned short throws into touchdowns while Nebraska's yardage produced little on the scoreboard. The Cornhuskers outgained the Illini 426 yards to 376 and piled up 25 first downs, but they converted just 1 of 4 fourth-down tries.
Neither team turned the ball over. That makes this one simple: Illinois got more out of its yards, and Nebraska did not.
How It Happened
The first quarter was scoreless. Nebraska broke through at 9:29 of the second when Mekhi Nelson ran 15 yards for a touchdown, and John Hohl added the extra point.
Illinois answered late in the half. Katin Houser hit Collin Dixon from 3 yards out with 1:48 left in the second quarter, and Ethan Moczulski's kick sent the teams to the locker room tied.
Houser put Illinois ahead in the third, finding Jordan Anderson for a 5-yard score at 8:33. He found Dixon again from 6 yards out early in the fourth, at 13:38, to give the Illini a two-touchdown cushion.
Nebraska struck back fast. Anthony Colandrea connected with Jacory Barney Jr. on a 51-yard touchdown at 10:44 of the fourth, but the two-point pass failed, leaving the Cornhuskers still needing more than a field goal. Moczulski closed it out with a 21-yard field goal at 7:51.
Key Performers
Katin Houser, Illinois: TD passes of 3 YDS (Collin Dixon), 5 YDS (Jordan Anderson) and 6 YDS (Collin Dixon)
Illinois passing (team): 22-36, 292 YDS, 8.1 yards per pass
Collin Dixon, Illinois: 3-yard and 6-yard TD receptions
Ethan Moczulski, Illinois: 21-yard FG, perfect on extra points
Jacory Barney Jr., Nebraska: 51-yard TD reception from Anthony Colandrea
Mekhi Nelson, Nebraska: 15-yard TD run
Houser accounted for every Illinois touchdown, and all of them came from inside the 10. Illinois averaged 8.1 yards per pass against Nebraska's 6.6, so the Illini got more out of each throw even with fewer completions.
What It Means
Nebraska did plenty right on the ground. The Cornhuskers ran for 142 yards at 4.6 a carry, while Illinois managed just 84 at 2.9. They also held the ball for nearly 32 minutes.
The problems were self-inflicted. Nebraska was flagged 11 times for 82 yards, against 6 for 55 for Illinois, and the fourth-down failures cost the Cornhuskers possessions. Illinois was better on third down, converting 8 of 15 to Nebraska's 6 of 14.
Illinois improves to 6-3 and 4-2 at home. Nebraska falls to 5-4 and is now 1-2 on the road, a loss that will sting given how thoroughly it controlled the run game and the clock.
The takeaway for the Cornhuskers is that yardage did not translate. A team that moves the ball like this and scores 13 points has a finishing problem, not a talent problem, and that is the part they have to fix.