Ohio State comes from behind to hold off Illinois
10/2/2010CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Things have never been easy for the Buckeyes when they play at Illinois, and Saturday was no different. Ohio State struggled past the Illini by a 24-13 score, twice coming from behind in their Big Ten opener.
The Buckeyes (5-0, 1-0) also had to survive a scare in the second half when junior quarterback Terrelle Pryor had to be helped off the field after he stumbled awkwardly on a short run. After the game Pryor said the injury was a “minor quad strain” in his left thigh. He missed seven offensive plays, returning to play all of the fourth quarter.
Pryor broke a 66-yard run on Ohio State's second series of the game, with the Buckeyes trailing 7-0. He took the ball to the Illinois eight, and four plays later threw a touchdown pass to Brandon Saine.
Illinois (2-2, 0-1) went up 10-7 after a field goal that followed a Pryor interception deep in OSU territory, but the Buckeyes went back in front 14-10 just before the half as Pryor tossed an 11-yard touchdown to Dane Sanzenbacher.
A Devin Barclay 32-yard field goal made it 17-10 Ohio State with under nine minutes left in the game, and after Illinois cut the lead to 17-13, the Buckeyes put it away with a six-yard scoring run from Dan Herron with 1:49 left.