COLLEGE FOOTBALL : Big Ten Roundup : Illinois Scores 3 Times in 4th Quarter to Beat Ohio State, 31-12

Howard Griffith rushed for 2 touchdowns and Patrick Donnelly recovered a fumbled punt snap in the end zone as Illinois, scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter, beat Ohio State, 31-12, in a Big Ten game Saturday at Columbus, Ohio.

Illinois, 2-2 overall and 1-0 in the conference, went ahead, 17-6, on the first play of the fourth quarter on a 5-yard run by Griffith. The score capped a 47-yard drive after an Ohio State fumble.

Ohio State stalled at its 40 and Jeff Bohlman came in to punt. The snap went through his hands and, as Bohlman chased the ball, he tried to kick it through the end zone. But Donnelly recovered the ball in the end zone for a 24-6 Illinois lead with 12:21 left.

After Ohio State scored on a 13-yard pass from Greg Frey to Jeff Graham, Illinois scored again on an 11-yard run by Griffith.

The victory was the first for Illinois at Ohio Stadium since a 17-13 win in 1967, which also was the last year that Ohio State (2-2, 0-1) had dropped its Big Ten opener.

Ohio State, playing without leading rusher Carlos Snow, who is out with a knee injury, managed only 38 yards rushing.

Purdue 14, Minnesota 10--Freshman Brian Fox threw 2 touchdowns and safety Marc Foster had 2 interceptions, leading the Boilermakers over the Gophers at West Lafayette, Ind., in the Big Ten opener for both teams.

Fox completed 10 of 15 passes for 170 yards and touchdowns plays of 30 yards to Calvin Williams and 39 yards to Scott Nelson as the Boilermakers evened their overall record as 2-2 before a Homecoming crowd. Minnesota also is 2-2.

Fox, a 6 foot 5 inch, 205 pounder from Orlando, Fla., also threw 2 interceptions, but 1 popped out of his receiver’s hands. He threw for 1 touchdown on a fourth-and-5 play after being hit and nearly throwing an interception two plays earlier.

Foster’s 2 interceptions gave him 6 this the season and 11 as a Boilermaker. His second theft Saturday stopped Minnesota at midfield with 1:54 remaining.

Ronnie Beeks also had a first-half interception that stopped a Minnesota drive at the Purdue 3, giving him 4 interceptions this season.

The lone Gopher touchdown came on a 9-yard pass from Alan Holt to Paul Hopewell on Minnesota’s first possession.

Michigan 62, Wisconsin 14--Tony Boles, a 190-pound tailback, rushed for 3 touchdowns and Michael Taylor passed for 1 and ran for another to lead the No. 19 Wolverines to a rout of the winless Badgers at Madison, Wis. The game was the Big Ten opener for both teams.

The Wolverines (2-2) quickly took command and rolled to a 48-0 lead before Wisconsin (0-4) scored late in the third quarter. Wisconsin is off to its worst start since 1968, when the Badgers finished 0-10.

The 62 points were the most scored against Wisconsin since a 62-7 loss at Ohio State on Nov. 8, 1969. Wisconsin’s worst defeat in 100 years of football was 63-0 at Minnesota on Nov. 15, 1890.

Iowa 10, Michigan State 10--Michigan State’s John Langeloh and Iowa’s Jeff Skillett each missed field goals in the final 16 seconds, their third failed tries of the game, as the Big Ten foes settled for a tie in their conference opener at East Lansing, Mich.

Iowa (2-2-1) evened the score 10-10 late in the third quarter when Tony Stewart and Jon Filloon combined on a 5-yard touchdown halfback option pass.

In the final quarter, Michigan State (0-3-1) put together an 8-play drive that covered only 29 yards but consumed 3:12 off the clock. But Langeloh’s 45-yard field goal try went wide right with 16 seconds left.

On the next play, quarterback Chuck Hartlieb gave the Hawkeyes their final chance to win by passing to wide receiver Travis Watkins for a 38-yard gain. But Skillett’s 51-yard try with 7 seconds left was wide right.

Michigan State took a 10-3 lead when McAllister and Andre Rison teamed up on a 48-yard touchdown pass play with 9:50 left in the third quarter. Rison got the ball on the 30-yard line, spun out of one tackle, dodged another, and then carried two Iowa players the final 5 yards into the end zone.

Spartan tailback Blake Ezor carried 24 times for 138 yards.

Indiana 48, Northwestern 17--Anthony Thompson rushed for 153 yards and 3 touchdowns to lead the Hoosiers over the Wildcats at Evanston, Ill., in another Big Ten opener.

Thompson scored Indiana’s first 3 touchdowns on runs of 11, 1 and 1 yards as the Hoosiers improved to 3-0-1 overall and 1-0 in the Big Ten. Northwestern is 0-4 and 0-1.

Cal Miller, Barry Way and Tom Bolyard also ran for Indiana touchdowns. Pete Stayonovich kicked two field goals and extended his string of successful extra-point kicks to 80, breaking the Big Ten record of 76 in a row by Ali Haji-Shiekh of Michigan in 1982.