CHAMPAIGN — With less than a minute to go in Saturday’s epic upset of 6th-ranked Wisconsin, Illinois was on the move and the tension inside Memorial Stadium was building.
But with Wisconsin clinging to a 23-21 lead, and the Illini having driven to the Wisconsin 38, I’m guessing the Badgers still felt they would get the job done. Their defense would rise up, the Illini drive would stall and a 50-plus yard field goal attempt would fall short.
Then came the play that could define an Illini season.
On second-and-eight from the Wisconsin 38, the handoff went to Dre Brown.
Of all the players on the roster, Brown knows the frustration and maddening lack of Illini football progress better than anyone. He missed his first two seasons due to serious knee injuries and went through the agonizing and lonely rehabilitation process wondering when and if his career would ever get started.
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A lesser person could have given up. Two knee injuries and four surgeries could be viewed as a demoralizing sign a football career just wasn’t meant to be.
But Brown persevered. He ran the Memorial Stadium steps drenched in sweat, often with teammate Mike Dudek, who also had consecutive knee surgeries. Brown played for three head coaches (Tim Beckman, Bill Cubit and Lovie Smith) and finally made his college debut in 2017.
He remained steadfast in his commitment to Illini football even though Lovie Smith launched into a sweeping rebuild and even though wins in the Big Ten were rare and criticism of the program was fairly common.
If you look at Dre Brown’s bio on the Illini website, you’ll see that he’s listed as being from DeKalb. Yes, he played his high school ball there. But this 22-year-old married man was born in Decatur while his parents attended Millikin University. He still has relatives sprinkled around our city.
Pushed into the background of the running back position when Reggie Corbin surged in 2018, Brown has been a study in patience and understanding. He’s so respected in the Illini locker room that when he gets a chance, and when he excels, the whole team feels delighted for his success.
So here he was last Saturday, taking that second-and-eight handoff from the Wisconsin 38 and spinning around right end fueled by five years worth of pent-up frustration and determination.
What happened in the next few seconds was the statement play of this statement game. Brown turned the corner and slammed into a Wisconsin defensive back with the force of a tornado. He pivoted and plowed over another defender and spun again, churning forward for more.
Dre Brown had 11 carries (for 70 yards).
— Illinois on BTN (@IllinoisOnBTN) October 20, 2019
It was one run, a gigantic chain-mover, that has @BTNGlenMason handing him Week 8 honors.@DreBrown27 | @IlliniFootball pic.twitter.com/ytungASk2I
Wisconsin’s chance to win the football game largely evaporated on that play as Brown created a path of destruction and plowed for 13 yards in an effort that brought Illinois’ upset hopes to the edge of reality.
From the 25, Illinois ran three more times, largely positioning the ball for placekicker James McCourt, who won the game 24-23 with a game-ending 39-yard field goal.
Lovie Smith does what many coaches do following a big win. He imposes a 24-hour celebration limit, making sure to switch the focus to the next game. That’s appropriate, because Illinois needs to quickly take aim on Purdue, Saturday’s opponent in West Lafayette, Ind.
But there’s an exception that should be made to the 24-hour rule. And that’s Dre Brown’s inspirational run that made this stunning upset possible.
The moment Tony Adams (@Iwill_suceed20) found his mother after @IlliniFootball upset the No. 6-team in the country. Photo credit @clayphoto pic.twitter.com/XGOs8BCcjQ
— Joey Wagner (@mrwagner25) October 19, 2019
That run — and all the hard work and dedication that allowed Dre Brown to arrive at that moment — should be remembered forever as a play where the Illini said, “Enough of being stomped on and beaten down. Today we make our own statement.”
Frankly, it seems too Hollywood to believe Illinois will win three more games and dance off to a bowl game that signals Lovie Smith’s program has indeed turned a corner.
But why not? With five games remaining, no team on the schedule is as good as Wisconsin. Winning at Iowa is unlikely. But Illinois has now shown what can happen when Lovie Smith’s best roster decides it’s sick and tired of being sick and tired.
Put that Dre Brown run on a video loop and play it around the clock in the new football performance center. It’s just 13 yards. But if Lovie can truly spin this program in a new direction, it has a chance to be the signature play that demonstrates the kind of determination that brought about this long overdue change.
Mark Tupper is the retired Executive Sports Editor of the Herald & Review. He can be reached at marktupper@barbeckbb.com