The Chips were held in check, as their offense just couldn’t finish the job in Champaign.
Time and time again, the Central Michigan Chippewas (1-2) found themselves deep in opposing territory with a chance to score full points— and time and time again, they could not convert, ultimately falling to the Illinois Fighting Illini (3-0) by a final score of 30-9 on Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium.
It was perhaps their major failing, as the Chippewas struggled in Illini territory all day, with two field goals inside the 20-yard line and an interception on an endzone shot from the 28-yard line. The inability to finish was especially frustrating on a day where by the total team stats, they were comparable to a Big Ten team capable of a winning season.
The scoring started on the second drive of the game, as the Illini went for a shock fourth-down attempt from the Central Michigan 30-yard line, as UTSA transfer Zakhari Franklin hauled in the five-yard gain to set up a Pat Bryant touchdown reception from Luke Altmyer two plays later to take the initial 7-0 lead with 7:05 to go in the first quarter.
Central’s responding drive saw them drive all the way inside Illinois’ 10-yard line hanks in part to a personal foul call, but a Marion Lukes touchdown run from nine yards out was called back due to a holding penalty on Brayden Swartout and effectively neutered the drive, with Tristan Mattson kicking the field goal from 32 yards out to cut into the lead.
The Chips’ defense would stand tall on the next drive, forcing the Illini into an unfavorable field goal position from 54 yards out— an attempt which they missed. The Chippewas took the ball from there, but would get no further than the Illinois 43-yard line, as a fourth-down pass attempt from Joe Labas fluttered out of his hands and was knocked down by Illinois’ Seth Coleman.
Illinois had to cede to the CMU defense once again, settling for a David Olano field goal from 49 yards out to push the margin to 10-3 with 1:55 remaining in the first half.
The Chippewas put together their best offensive drive of the day on the ensuing drive, cobbling together a 10-play, 67-yard drive which— once again— was capped off by a Mattson field goal, this time from 29 yards out after a missed connection between Labas and tight end Gavin Harris on third down which could have set them up inside the one-yard line.
Illinois once again punched CMU’s defense in the mouth with a drive-opening 31-yard gain down the sidelines to get into CMU territory quickly on a must-score drive. On first-and-10 from the Central 44-yard line, the defensive line found Luke Altmyer in the backfield, forcing him to try and toss the ball away, seemingly creating a great opportunity for a stop or loss with 14 seconds left.
Instead, the ball fluttered enough for Altmyer to catch it himself, scramble for three yards and keep the drive alive for at least one more play. The sequence wound up giving backup kicker Ehtan Moczulski a chance from 59 yards out— a program record. Moczulski’s spinning attempt floated along the crossbar and behind the goalpost, giving Illinois the 13-6 lead at the halftime break.
It proved to be a crucial exchange, as Illinois got the ball back to start the second half and scored four plays into their first drive on a second Altmyer-to-Bryant connection, this time from 20 yards out. The pass put Illinois up 20-6 just two minutes into the third quarter.
The Chippewas got off to a promising start with a 21-yard connection to Evan Boyd to move the sticks, but the play was immediately squandered by a five-yard sack, a no gain run up the middle and a strip sack fumble marked for a 13-yard loss.
Illinois would have to settle for a David Olano field goal from 34 yards out after a drive lasting over five minutes thanks in part to three false start penalties committed on the drive, once again expanding to 23-6 with 4:43 to go in the quarter.
Central followed up with a hot start, as Solomon Davis broke free for a 30-yard completion, BJ Harris picked up four yards and Joe Labas escaped pressure for a 13-yard scamper, but the drive would end ignominiously right after that, with Labas tossing a lazy ball into double coverage and Xavier Scott leaping up for the pick to end the threat.
Illinois was forced to a three-and-out on the drive, and Central took the ball to the Illinois 21-yard line on third-and-seven. Labas handed the ball off to BJ Harris, who would break two tackles en route to a 14-yard gain to give CMU a new set of downs inside the Illini 10.
Three straight incompletions and two pass break-ups by Miles Scott later, the coaching staff elected to kick the field goal instead of go for it. Tristan Mattson’s conversion was good from 25 yards out to put the score at 23-9 early in the fourth quarter.
Perhaps as part of that decision, the Chippewas went aggressive to steal a possession, opting for the onside kick. Mattson’s kick got the requisite yardage on the short boot, but he was unable to get a clear path to the ball, gifting Illinois the ball at the CMU 46-yard line.
Kaden Feagin carried the ball over the goal line five plays later to put the score at its final 30-9 tally, and the rest of the game clock was occupied with backups.
Joe Labas had an uneven performance for CMU, with legitimate moments on the ground with several nice scampers also neutered by two bad sacks and a fumble. He finished 12-of-25 for 191 yards and one interception. Tyler Jefferson was 3-of-4 for 42 yards in his one drive of service.
Central had a lot of success toting the rock even without scores, with five players registering at least five carries. Myles Bailey led with 49 rushing yards, while BJ Harris had 38 and Labas had 20 net yards. Solomon Davis also had nine yards on a reverse sweep to set up a third-down conversion.
The passing offense saw 11 players with at least one reception on the day, but Evan Boyd led them all with 38 yards on three catches. Solomon Davis (two catches, 34 yards) and Marion Lukes (two catches, 10 yards) were the other receivers with multiple catches.
Linebacker Jordan Kwiatkowski was flying around the field today for the Chippewas, with 12 total tackles and a half-TFL to pace the defense. Donte Kent also had a good day, with six tackles, a half-TFL and a pass break-up as well— though he was also tagged with pass interference in the endzone. Fernando Sanchez III, Da’Raun McKinney and Elijah Rikard each nothced a sack on the day.
Tristan Mattson was 3-of-3 on field goals, a career high for makes.
For Illinois, Luke Altmyer was 19-of-29 for 242 yards and two touchdowns. Pat Bryant, who was responsible for both scores, also finished as the game’s receiving leader in receptions (seven) and yards (112.) Zakhari Franklin played a nice role primarily in the first half, with five receptions for 68 yards.
Josh McCray led the Illini running room with eight carries for 54 yards, while Kadin Feagan had the lone touchdown to go with 10 carries for 25 yards. Ca’Lil Valentine had 53 yards on five carries.
Defensive back Matthew Bailey had seven tackles to lead the team, while linebacker Gabe Jacas (six tackles, two tackles-for-loss, sack, forced fumble) was a highlight-reel player for the Illini. Dennis Briggs Jr. extended his team sacks lead with a solo sack of his own, while Angelo McCullom and Joe Barna combined for a half-TFL.
David Olano was 1-of-2 on field goal attempts, making from 49 yards and missing from 54 yards, while Ethan Moczulski notched a program-record 59-yarder on his only attempt.
Central now looks forward to their first conference game against Ball State next Saturday afternoon, while Illinois travels to 23rd-ranked Nebraska for a Friday night showdown next week.