Gameday Central Illinois 7, Maryland 7; Halftime
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Oct. 31—All square at SECU Stadium
11 plays, 80 yards, 5:04
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Just four of the Illini's 11 plays on their final drive of the first half (presumably) was a run play. The best of the bunch? A 13-yard scramble by Katin Houser. A week after dominating the line of scrimmage and posting 225 rushing yards, Illinois is at 11 carries for 50 yards. But the Illini did find the end zone thanks to Houser in the passing game, culminating in an 11-yard strike to Brayden Trimble in the end zone.
Illinois 7, Maryland 7
***
Punting battle commence
3 plays, -4 yards, 1:12
Will Holmes sniffed out a potential Maryland trick play (or just a terrible run play) to stuff the Terps on first down. Pat Farrell batted down a Malik Washington pass on second down. Third down wasn't any better for Maryland, and the Terps had to punt.
Maryland 7, Illinois 0
***
Nothing doing for the Illini
3 plays, 0 yards, 2:22
Remember when Lars Rau had just 10 punts in Illinois' first six games? The Illini junior has been much busier post-bye week. First came eight punts against Oregon, and Rau has already been called on three times in the first half today, averaging 43.3 yards per punt. His latest came after another three-and-out by an Illinois offense that, once again, can't move the ball effectively on the ground.
Maryland 7, Illinois 0
***
Chased him down
4 plays, 3 yards, 1:32
Malik Washington has been able to scramble his way out of trouble for most of the first half. Just not with Will Holmes and Daniel Brown bearing down on him. The Maryland quarterback was sacked for the first time by Holmes and Brown in a third-and-long situation, and the 11-yard loss led to a Terps punt.
Maryland 7, Illinois 0
***
Another almost touchdown
10 plays, 48 yards, 4:31
Collin Dixon and Katin Houser are even. The last Illinois drive, Houser underthrew Dixon on what could have (would have?) been a lengthy touchdown pass. Dixon returned the favor on this drive, dropping a third-and-long pass in the end zone. Houser managed to split a soft double team on Dixon with a high-arching ball, but the Illini's top receiver couldn't haul it in. Ethan Moczulski's ensuing 52-yard field goal was no good, short and left.
Maryland 7, Illinois 0
***
Poor decision making
11 plays, 57 yards, 4:54
Malik Washington can be dangerous on the move. The Maryland quarterback is mobile and has a solid arm. A combination that screams "playmaker." Decision making, however, is a question mark. At least it was when, scrambling, he opted to try to connect with what he thought was an open enough receiver. Illinois free safety jumped at the floated pass and hauled it in for a much-needed takeaway.
Maryland 7, Illinois 0
***
Missed opportunity
5 plays, 32 yards, 1:57
The story: This could have been a scoring drive for Illinois. Collin Dixon had Maryland defensive back Amari Jackson beat down the sideline, but an underthrown ball from Katin Houser allowed Jackson to close enough to tackle Dixon as soon as he hauled in a 34-yard reception. So instead of Houser hitting Dixon in stride for a score, Illinois ultimately had to turn to Lars Rau to punt again.
Maryland 7, Illinois 0
***
Field position battle won
6 plays, 49 yards, 3:26
Forcing Illinois to go three-and-out backed up at the 1-yard line meant even with a solid punt from Lars Rau the Terrapins got the ball in Illini territory at the 49. Then chunk plays from Malik Washington — hitting Chris Durr Jr. on a screen pass for 16 yards and then scrambling for 21 more himself — set up the touchdown, which was an 8-yard rush from Washington.
Maryland 7, Illinois 0
***
A semi-expected three-and-out
3 plays, 5 yards, 0:57
Backed up to its own 1-yard line, Illinois was in a pickle. A jam. Some might call it "not ideal." Because it wasn't. Three plays later, Lars Rau was called on to punt.
Illinois 0, Maryland 0
***
Rough start, Part II
3 plays, 11 yards, 1:43
Maryland returned Katin Houser's interception to the 12-yard line, setting up a terrific opportunity for its offense. The Terrapins, instead, gave the ball right back, as running back DeJuan Williams fumbled at the 1-yard line trying to reach for the end zone, and Illinois cornerback Jakwon Morris recovered the loose ball.
Illinois 0, Maryland 0
***
Rough start
4 plays, 14 yards, 1:49
Katin Houser made a surprisingly quick comeback after breaking his throwing hand at Michigan State, outpacing even Illinois coach Bret Bielema's projected timetable of 4-6 weeks by cutting the end of that span in half. Houser started today's game and completed his first two passes. The first went to Hudson Clement for a first down. The second went to Maryland defensive back Messiah Delhomme for an interception.
Illinois 0, Maryland 0
***
Good morning from College Park, Md., where Illinois is looking to turn its midseason bounce back into a three-game winning streak. Standing in the Illini's way? A Maryland team that fired coach Mike Locksley during its bye week.
Could that change create just enough chaos the Terrapins snap their 12-game Big Ten losing streak?
That we'll find out this afternoon at SECU Stadium where vestiges of Maryland's past — a list of nine ACC championships, the most recent in 2001 — far outnumber anything from the Terps' current conference affiliation.
Illinois, meanwhile, is in the midst of a two-game winning streak after freshman quarterback Michael Clayton II led the Illini to an overtime victory at Michigan State and the run game and defense paved the way for a home win against Oregon.
Can Illinois make it three wins in a row?
It's kind of a pivotal question with games against Nebraska, UCLA, Iowa and Northwestern remaining. A win today at Maryland gets Illinois to 5-3 overall and means the Illini only have to win one more game to secure a third straight bowl berth — something that hasn't happened since John Mackovic prowled the sideline at Memorial Stadium.
So, yeah, today's game in the DMV is kind of important.