Post Game Notes From Ohio State vs. Illinois – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/17/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 17, 2001
Recap| Final Stats| Quotes
Ohio State Postgame Notes
With the loss, the Buckeyes drop to 6-4 overall and 4-3 in Big Ten Conference play.
With the loss today, Ohio State leads the all-time record with Illinois, 57-29-4. The Buckeyes lead the series in Columbus, 25-17-4. Illinois has won six of the last eight games in Ohio Stadium.
Buckeye head coach Jim Tressel is 6-4 in his first season at Ohio State and 141-61-2 in his career.
The attendance today of 104,407 is an Ohio Stadium record.
Scott McMullen’s 10-yard touchdown pass to Chris Vance in the first quarter was his second career TD pass. His first came against Fresno State in the 2000 season opener.
Chris Vance has had a touchdown in each of the last three games.
With 192 yards today, Jonathan Wells went over the 1,000-yard mark this season. He is the 16th OSU running back to reach the milestone. Wells has 1,128 yards on the season.
Wells rushed for a career-high 192 yards, the fourth consecutive game, and sixth time this season, he has reached the century mark. In his career, Wells has eight career 100-yard games. Last season, he had two 100-yard games (113 vs. Miami (Ohio), 131 at Illinois).
Donnie Nickey’s second-quarter interception was the fifth of his career and marked his second consecutive game with an interception. He also picked off passes vs. Purdue last week, vs. Fresno State and at Iowa in 2000 and vs. UCLA in 1999. Quarterback Craig Krenzel posted a career-high 164 yards in the game today. His 17-yard touchdown pass to Michael Jenkins in the third quarter was the first of his career.
Michael Jenkins’ 10 receptions are a career high. With 155 yards today, the game marks his third 100-yard performance this season (vs. Akron, 106, at Penn State, 172).
Simon Fraser’s unassisted sack of Illinois quarterback Kurt Kittner in the third quarter was the first of his career.
Bam Childress’ 7-yard reception from Craig Krenzel in the fourth quarter was the first catch of his career.
The game today marked the first career starts for quarterback Scott McMullen and receiver Chris Gamble.
Illinois Postgame Notes
Illinois quarterback Kurt Kittner passed for 274 yards today, pushing him over the 8,000-yard career passing mark. Kittner has thrown for 8,073 yards in his career.
Junior linebacker Jerry Schumacher recorded his sixth sack of the season. Schumacher now leads a group of 18 Illinois defenders in that category.
Ohio State attempted a pair of two-point conversions in the game today but were stopped each time by Illinois. For the season, Illinois has only allowed one successful two-point conversion in four tries by their opponents.
Illinois wide receiver Dwayne Smith blocked his second punt of the season. For the year, Illinois has blocked six kicks (Washington 3, Smith 2, Piazza 1).
Illinois quarterback Kurt Kittner led Illinois to its fourth consecutive come-from-behind victory. During the go-ahead drive, Kittner was 3-for-4 passing for 45 yards. He also converted a pair of third downs. The win is Illinois’ fifth come-from-behind win of the season.
Sophomore fullback Carey Davis posted his first rushing touchdown of the season. Davis has three receiving touchdowns this year.
Kurt Kittner threw for 274 yards in the game today. It is the 10th 250-plus yard passing day of Kittner’s career.
With the win today over No. 25 Ohio State, Illinois picked up its third win over a Top 25 opponent. The win also is the second over a ranked opponent on the road. Illinois defeated No. 25 Louisville 34-10 Sept. 22 and won at then-No. 15 Purdue 38-13 Nov. 3.
The win makes Kittner the all-time winningest quarterback in school history. Kittner has 23 career wins as the starting quarterback for Illinois, tying him with Jack Trudeau.
Linebacker Ty Myers picked off his first career pass. He returned it five yards for his first career touchdown. The return is Illinois’ fourth interception return for a touchdown this season and the first since Christian Morton and Bobby Jackson returned interceptions for touchdowns vs. Purdue.
The Illini have returned interceptions for touchdowns in all three of their wins over Top 25 opponents,.
This is the first 9-1 start for Illinois since 1983 and 6-1 Big Ten start since 1989.
Illinois has reached the nine-win mark for only the seventh time in school history.
This is the second consecutive win for the Illini in Ohio Stadium.
