Ameer Abdullah breaks loose. | Gallery

Nebraska 39
Illinois 19

Oct. 5, 2013 • 11 a.m. Central
Memorial Stadium •Lincoln, NE • ESPNU
1st2nd3rd4th F 
Illinois057719
Nebraska14913339
1st quarter
NEB - Ameer Abdullah 2 run (Pat Smith kick) 11:06
NEB - Quincy Enunwa 4 pass from Tommy Armstrong (Smith kick) 5:53
2nd quarter
NEB - Smith 27 field goal, 13:04 
ILL - Taylor Zalewski 38 field goal, 7:50 
NEB - Imani Cross 2 run (Smith kick failed) 4:18
ILL - Safety, Cross tackled in end zone, 1:44
3rd quarter
NEB - Abdullah 43 run (Mauro Bondi kick) 12:58
ILL - Donovonn Young 1 run (Zalewski kick) 5:54 
NEB - Kenny Bell 37 pass from Armstrong (Bondi kick failed) 2:44
4th quarter
NEB - Smith 32 field goal, 5:16 
ILL - Josh Ferguson 1 run (Zalewski kick) 0:57
 
                           ILL       NEB
FIRST DOWNS ............... 24        24
  Rushing ................. 11        14 
  Passing ................. 11         8 
  Penalty .................. 2         2
RUSHES-YARDS (NET) .... 48-195    50-335
PASSING YDS (NET) ........ 177       186
  Att-Comp-Int ....... 31-16-1   20-11-0
TOTAL OFFENSE ......... 79-372    70-521
Punt Returns-Yards ....... 0-0       1-0
Kickoff Returns-Yds ..... 4-96      1-26
Int. Returns-Yards ....... 0-0       1-6
Punts (Number-Avg) .... 5-40.0    1-40.0
Fumbles-Lost ............. 1-1       3-1
Penalties-Yards ......... 3-38      8-71
Possession Time ........ 32:41     27:19
Third-Down Conv. ..... 4 of 15   6 of 12
Fourth-Down Conv. ..... 2 of 4    0 of 1
Red-Zone Scores-Chances .. 3-3       5-6
Sacks By: Number-Yards ... 0-0      3-16

RUSHING
ILL: J.Ferguson 19-114; D.Young 15-61; N.Scheelhaase 9-11; R.O'Toole 3-8; A.Bailey 2-1. 

NEB: A.Abdullah 20-225; I.Cross 15-76; T.Newby 4-19; T.Armstrong 9-18; R.Kellogg 1-minus-1; TEAM 1-minus 2

PASSING
ILL: N.Scheelhaase 13-26-1 135; R.O'Toole 3-5-0-42
NEB: T.Armstrong 8-13-0 135; R.Kellogg 3-6-0 51; A.Abdullah 0-1-0-0

RECEIVING
ILL: J.Ferguson 8-82; M.Barr 4-30; J.Davis 3-45; M.LaCosse 1-20
NEB: Q.Enunwa 4-80; K.Bell 4-65; S.Cotton 1-17; A.Abdullah 1-15; J.Long 1-9

Attendance: 90,458

Tommy Armstrong | More photos

Coverage

Stats & Recap
Complete Stats

Abdullah, Huskers Run By Illini: Ameer Abdullah rushed for a career-high 225 yards and two touchdowns to lead Nebraska to a 39-19 Big Ten-opening win over Illinois.

Nebraska rolled up 521 yards of total offense as quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. had another solid performance in his second career start. The Blackshirts provided a solid defensive presence, holding the Illini to just 10 offensive points until the final minute of the game.

Omaha World-Herald*
Lincoln Journal Star*
More Neb. sources
Opponent & Natl. sources
Photos/Audio/Video
2013 schedule
04/06Reds 32, Whites 25
08/31WyomingW 37-34
09/07S. MissW 56-13
09/14UCLAL 21-41
09/21South Dakota St.W 59-20
10/05IllinoisW 39-19
10/12@ PurdueW 44-7
10/26@ MinnesotaL 23-34
11/02NorthwesternW 27-24
11/09@ MichiganW 17-13
11/16Michigan St.L 28-41
11/23@ Penn St.W 23-20
11/29IowaL 17-38
01/01@ GeorgiaW 24-19
Pregame links & info
Randy Gregory

Commentary

Stryker

The Nebraska defense left its elementary school play­ground beatings behind, and may have entered its adolescence.

HuskerMax
Sherman

There’s no path more immediate into the hearts of Husker fans than by running a smooth option play.

Vogel

Nebraska showed Saturday that it could win in the Big Ten if it plays smart.

Hail Varsity
Johnson

I don’t know that the Blackshirts turned a corner, but they made critical-situation plays.

Sipple

This was a game for old-school Husker fans.

Lincoln Journal Star
Tate

Nebraska’s football tradition … is too far advanced for an Illini program forever struggling to regain its footing.

Champaign News-Gazette
Callahsn

The Huskers played like they knew the importance of this game.

HuskerOnline
Chatelain

Even Ron Brown can’t help but think of Tommie when he sees Tommy.

Omaha World-Herald
Shatel

With November weather as a blustery backdrop, the Huskers might have found something. Maybe.

Omaha World-Herald
Husker Mike

Taylor Martinez is Nebraska’s best quarterback. Or at least, when he’s healthy.

Hamar

Yes, you can and should credit Abdullah, but the work of the O-line should not be ignored.

Grand Island Independent
York

The Huskers’ offensive line was versatile, tough, smart, disciplined and productive.

Huskers.com
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