MOUNT VERNON, Iowa – The Illinois College football team overwhelmed Cornell College almost from the opening kickoff on Saturday afternoon, jumping out to a 27-0 lead at halftime and cruising through the second half for a 47-10 victory. With the win, IC improves to 2-3 (1-0 Midwest Conference South Division) on the year.
While the Illinois College defense locked down the Rams on Saturday, limiting Cornell to fewer than 200 yards of total offense and forcing five turnovers, the spotlight also shone brightly on
Zack DeWitt. With five extra points and four field goals, DeWitt tied a MWC record for points in a game by a kicker, accounting for 17 points with his right foot.
Though the first Illinois College possession of the game ended with an interception, the Blueboy defense answered the call in what would become a theme for the whole game. With Cornell threatening and the ball at the IC 10-yard line, Blayze Griffis was intercepted in the end zone by
Carter Hilley to end the threat.
Starting with the ball on their own 20-yard line, the Blueboys went to work with
Drew Chance picking out
Glen Gibbons Jr. over and over on Illinois College's second drive. Gibbons Jr. had five catches among IC's eight plays and he picked up 70 of the 80 yards. The last completion covered 11 yards and gave the Blueboys the 7-0 following the DeWitt extra point.
After Illinois College allowed only three yards and forced Cornell to punt, the Blueboys took over with 5:37 left in the first quarter and proceeded to go on a 15-play, 68-yard drive that included a pair of fourth-down conversions.
Seth Ferguson bulled his way into the end zone from one yard out to make it 14-0 early in the second quarter.
Later in the quarter, IC had a drive stall in Cornell territory, but a fumble by Cornell's return man on the
Logan Smith punt resulted in a recovery by
Beau Barbour inside the Ram 10-yard line. On this occasion, the Cornell defense was up to the challenge, but the Blueboys were able to cash in regardless with a 24-yard DeWitt field goal to make it 17-0.
As the game ticked towards halftime, Illinois College extended its lead on a 23-yard DeWitt field goal. Then, with less than two minutes remaining in the first half, Griffis was intercepted for the second time in the game by Hilley and this time the sophomore raced in from 32 yards out for the score to make it 27-0 at the half.
Any chance of a Cornell comeback was snuffed out pretty early on in the third quarter when
Stuart Wolf intercepted Griffis and had IC setting up shop at the Ram 24-yard line. Though the Blueboys went backward on their drive, DeWitt bailed them out with a 45-yard field goal to take a 30-0 lead. After another Cornell drive went nowhere, Illinois College extended its lead once again as Chance hit
Mason Farris for a 41-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter.
With time ticking away against Cornell, the Rams were able to get on the board with a field goal late in the third quarter and a touchdown early in the fourth to make it 37-10. Illinois College answered with a 61-yard drive that milked more than four minutes off the clock and ended with a 46-yard field goal from DeWitt to increase the IC advantage to 40-10.
The final nail in the coffin came on the ensuing drive when
Jaris Dalman forced a fumble that was recovered by
Mike Koos, setting Illinois College up in Cornell territory. On the second play of the drive,
Jason Barbour burst through the line for 35 yards and the final touchdown. The extra point was, of course, good from DeWitt to reach the final score on the day.
After opening with an interception, Chance recovered nicely and ended 25-of-44 for 326 yards and two touchdowns. Barbour led the IC rushing attack with 13 carries for 74 yards and the Blueboys set a season high with 170 yards on the ground overall. Gibbons Jr. closed out the game with 11 catches for 151 yards and a touchdown. Farris added four catches for 67 yards and a touchdown. Defensively,
Matt Graef was all over the place for the Blueboys, ending with 17 tackles (14 solo).
Next weekend is Homecoming Weekend on the Hilltop. The Blueboys take on Monmouth College at England Stadium on Oct. 13. Kick-off is set for 1 p.m.
