Illinois Drops Big Ten Opener at #7 Ohio State

Saturday, September 26

Columbus, Ohio

11 AM CT

University of Illinois

2-2 , 0-1

Ohio State

3-1 , 1-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Illinois	7	3	3	6	19
Ohio St.	14	14	0	14	42

Varsity Network

September 26, 2026 | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery

RECAP

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Illinois dropped its Big Ten opener to #7 Ohio State, 42-19, on Saturday afternoon at Ohio Stadium.

Illinois (2-2, 0-1 Big Ten) had the ball within the red zone and down only two possessions at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but a 13-play, 74-yard drive ended in a turnover on downs with Ohio State maintaining a 28-13 lead. OSU capitalized with Jeremiah Smith's fourth touchdown to put the game away.

Quarterback Katin Houser, who threw for 263 yards, and running back Aidan Laughery, who ran for 113 yards, led the Illinois offense to a balanced 462 total yards. Houser found seven different receivers, including Hudson Clement for 87 yards on five catches, as the Illini had the top yardage output by an opponent at Ohio Stadium since 2022 (Michigan, 530).

"We just couldn't quite finish some key parts of the game," said Laughery. "We had good execution, but in critical moments, we failed to come up with the plays we needed. So, it's back to work."

Ohio State (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) was led by Smith, an All-American wide receiver and Biletnikoff Award favorite. Quarterback Julian Sayin found Smith 12 times for 217 yards and four touchdowns. Sayin threw for 367 yards.

Illinois returns home to Gies Memorial Stadium to host Purdue next Saturday for Homecoming. Kickoff is set for 3:15 p.m. CT on Big Ten Network. The Illini will look to keep The Cannon Trophy in Champaign for a third straight season.

POSTGAME NOTES

Team Notes

Illinois racked up 462 yards of total offense, the most by an Ohio State opponent since the 2024 season (Oregon, 496 yards on Oct. 12, 2024). It also marked the most by an opponent at Ohio Stadium since the 2022 season (Michigan, 530 yards on Nov. 26, 2022).
Illinois' 22-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter marked the first first-quarter TD by an opponent at Ohio Stadium in the last 12 games (Indiana on Nov. 23, 2024).
Illinois is 21-9 overall over the last three seasons (2024-26) and has the fourth-best winning percentage in the Big Ten (.700).
Bret Bielema is 39-28 during his six-year Illinois career. His .582 winning percentage trails only Robert Zuppke's .618 for the best in Illinois history (50 game minimum).

Player Notes

Aidan Laughery ran the ball 11 times for a season-high 113 yards.
- The first player to rush for 100+ yards at Ohio State since Michigan's Kalel Mullings (116 yards) on Nov. 30, 2024.
- Eighth Illini since 1945 to rush for 100+ yards at Ohio State and the first since Daniel Dufresne (106 yards) on Nov. 10, 2007
Matthew Bailey led the defense with 14 tackles and 1.0 TFLs.
- Recorded a career-high 14 tackles (previous high 13 vs. South Carolina, 12/31/24)
- Sixth-career game with 10+ tackles, first since tallying 10 stops in back-to-back games last season vs. Maryland (11/15/25) and at Wisconsin (11/22/25)
Katin Houser completed 21 of 37 passes for 263 yards and a touchdown.
Jordan Anderson carried the ball twice for 20 yards and a touchdown.
- Scored the Illini's first touchdown of the game on a career-long carry of 22 yards, for his second touchdown of the season and the third of his career.
Ty Robinson caught four passes for 45 yards and a touchdown.
- Caught a 27-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter, his second TD of the season.
Hudson Clement caught five passes for 87 yards.
- Has recorded a reception in 31 consecutive games; entered the contest tied for fifth in the nation.
Mac Resetich made seven tackles and recorded a pass breakup.
- Tied his career high with seven total tackles.
Ca'Lil Valentine rushed 10 times for 47 yards and caught one pass for 33 yards.
- Hauled in a career-long 33-yard reception that put Illinois in Ohio State territory and led to a second-quarter field goal drive.