CHAMPAIGN — Kaden Feagin scored on a 1-yard run with 9:34 to play, David Alano later added a 43-yard field goal and Illinois rallied to beat No. 19 Kansas 23-17 on Saturday night.
Playing in front of a sellout crowd at Memorial Stadium, Illinois (2-0) beat a ranked nonconference opponent at home for the first time since topping No. 22 Arizona State on Sept. 17, 2011. The Illini also avenged a 34-23 loss last year at Kansas.
Feagin scored after Luke Altmyer found Pat Bryant for 37- and 28-yard completions on the eight-play, 80-yard drive.
Altmyer completed 16 of 25 passes for 192 yards. Zakhari Franklin had nine catches for 99 yards, and Bryant had three receptions for 70 yards.
The win gave coach Bret Bielema a 20-19 record in four years in charge of the Illini.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment. We’ve got to build on this now,” he said. “I had a feeling we were going to match up well. I liked our demeanor. I felt good about the game coming into it, and it was fun to watch it play out in front of you.”
Kansas’ Jalon Daniels was 18 of 32 for 141 yards with two touchdown passes and three interceptions.
Daniels scrambled and found a wide-open Lawrence Arnold in the end zone for 13-yard touchdown pass that give the Jayhawks a 17-13 lead with 4:57 to go in the third quarter.
Luke Grimm caught nine passes for 40 yards and a touchdown for Kansas (1-1). Devin Neal ran for 101 yards on 14 carries.
“This stings, and it should,” coach Lance Leopold said. “We’re see what we’re made of. I’m confident our upperclassmen will respond.”
Leopold praised Illinois’ receivers.
“They made some really big-time plays,” he said. “When you play against good football players, they’re going to make good plays.”
Illinois and Kansas combined for 17 points in the final 3:32 of the second quarter.
The Illini led 13-10 at halftime thanks to Xavier Scott’s 28-yard return of an interception with 36 seconds left in the quarter. Scott read a screen pass attempt by Daniels and raced untouched into the end zone. It was Scott’s second interception of the game.
A 50-yard Alano field goal with 1:05 to play in the quarter was set up by a spectacular one-handed, 42-yard catch by Franklin along the sideline with Kansas’ Damarius McGhee holding his other arm.
The Jayhawks went ahead 10-3 on a 3-yard TD pass from Daniels to Grimm in the back of the end zone with 3:32 remaining in the half.
The takeaway
Illinois: The Illini proved they could go toe-to-toe and beat a ranked opponent, a good sign with games against No. 8 Penn State, No. 10 Michigan and No. 7 Oregon in the next six weeks.
Kansas: Despite the loss, the Jayhawks showed they have a potent running attack and sturdy defense. The Illinois offense scored only one touchdown — albeit the winning one — gained just 79 rushing yards and was held to 14 first downs.
Valentine’s night
Freshman running back Ca’Lil Valentine carried the load for the Illini down the stretch. He gained 25 yards on eight carries, all in the fourth quarter.
“Ca’Lil is explosive, dynamic and he has so much composure,” Bielema said.
Sellout storm
The game drew 60,670 — the first sellout at Memorial Stadium since 2016 — and hundreds of fans stormed the field after the win. Bielema saluted them.
“This was by far the best crowd I’ve been a part of in my four years here,” he said. “They came here hoping to see something, and now they can believe it.”
Up next
Illinois: Hosts Central Michigan on Saturday.
Kansas: Hosts UNLV on Friday night at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan.
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