It’s hard to think of a program that has undergone a more drastic turnaround than Kansas. In just four years under head coach Lance Leipold, the Jayhawks have gone from cellar-dweller to Big 12 contender, capped off by the program’s first bowl win in over 15 years last December.
On Saturday night, Illinois delivered a message to Kansas: they aren’t the underdogs anymore.
In a game the Jayhawks were favored by 5.5 points (-205 moneyline) on DraftKings Sportsbook, it was the Fighting Illini (+170 moneyline) who came out like a team with something to prove. Brett Bielema’s squad, projected to be at the bottom of the Big 10 all offseason, pulled off a major upset in front of their home fans, taking down Kansas 23-17.
Illinois set the tone on the first drive of the game. Flushed out of the pocket, Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels threw an ill-advised pass to the sideline, where he was met by a leaping Xavier Scott for the interception.
The two teams then traded lengthy field-goal drives before Illinois committed its first turnover of the game, a fumble by Zakhari Franklin near its own 40. Illinois’ defense picked up its offense with a crucial stop on fourth down, stopping the Jayhawks a yard short.
Following a three-and-out by the Illini offense, Kansas drove down the field for an 81-yard drive. The three-minute series was capped off by a touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone from Daniels to Luke Grimm, giving the Jayhawks a 10-6 lead.
Illinois responded with another field goal from kicker David Olano to make it 10-6 with a minute to go before halftime. Rather than play it safe, Leipold let Daniels throw it, which proved to be a mistake. On third and thirteen at their own 33, with under 40 seconds in the half, Daniels was once again picked off by Xavier Scott, this time on a screen pass. Scott took the ball thirty yards to the house for a pick-six, and in just under thirty seconds of game time, Illinois had scored 10 unanswered points to take a 13-10 lead.
After Kansas went three-and-out, Illinois’ offense finally got into second gear. Quarterback Luke Altmyer conducted an eight-play touchdown drive, highlighted by a 28-yard pass to Pat Bryant to put the ball at the one yard line. Following a Kaden Feagin touchdown run, the Illini had retaken the lead, 20-17.
With all the pressure shifted back to their sideline, Kansas came up short, going three-and-out once again and giving the ball back to the Illini. As time became a real factor, Altmyer put together a methodical fifteen-play drive into Kansas territory, swallowing up nearly seven minutes of clock. A 43-yard field goal from Olano put Illinois firmly in control, up by six with less than a minute to go.
Having no timeouts left and needing a touchdown, Kansas got the ball to midfield before Daniels fumbled on the final play of the game, his fourth turnover of the night. The Illini faithful immediately stormed the field to celebrate a 23-17 upset win, the program’s first home victory over a ranked opponent since 2019.
Stats and Takeaways
Despite its offense producing just 271 total yards and 16 points, the Illinois defense stepped up on Saturday. In addition to his pick-six, Xavier Scott recorded another interception, a sack, and a tackle for loss out of the defensive backfield. Daniels was only able to throw for 141 yards, as the Illini secondary proved to be a difficult test for the dual-threat QB.
Saturday’s game might have been the biggest of Brett Bielema’s Illinois career; with a 19-19 record over four seasons in Champaign, the victory over Kansas marks the program’s first ranked win since 2021’s historic nine-overtime victory against Penn State. Entering the season, DraftKings Sportsbook set the Illinois win total at 5.5 games.
Kansas is still in great shape as a program under Leipold, but Saturday’s loss is a major setback in its quest to reach the College Football Playoff. Following Week 1, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Jayhawks at +1000 to win the Big 12, tied for the fourth-best odds in the conference. A non-conference loss won’t impact their quest to reach the championship game, but it is a worrying sign this early in the season.
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