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Toronto Star
· collected 2026-10-11 · by Larry Lage The Associated Press
In a dramatic game at East Lansing, Illinois secured a 38-37 victory over Michigan State in overtime after stopping the Spartans' two-point conversion attempt. The Fighting Illini held a commanding lead but faced a comeback when coach Bret Bielema's decision to go for it on fourth down backfired. Coach Pat Fitzgerald of Illinois justified his risky late-game strategy due to defensive fatigue, and despite losing quarterback Katin Houser to injury, they managed the decisive play in overtime to secure the win.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-11,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In EAST LANSING, Mich., Illinois secured a 38-37 victory over Michigan State in an overtime thriller on Saturday. The Fighting Illini (3-3, 1-2 Big Ten) built a significant lead with scores on their first five drives, reaching a 16-point advantage by the third quarter. However, coach Bret Bielema's decision to go for it on fourth down late in regulation allowed Michigan State (2-4, 0-3) to rally and force overtime. In OT, Hudson Clement caught a crucial 25-yard touchdown pass from Michael Clayton, while Illinois successfully defended against Michigan State’s two-point conversion attempt to clinch the win. Coach Pat Fitzgerald noted that his defensive team's exhaustion made going for two in overtime a necessary decision.
Written for “College Football Game Highlight” on 2026-10-11,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Michael Clayton threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Hudson Clement on the first play of overtime and Illinois made a stop on a 2-point conversion attempt to hold on for a 38-37 win over Michigan State on Saturday.
asserted
Illinois → throw → Saturday
The Fighting Illini (3-3, 1-2 Big Ten) scored on their first five drives to take a 16-point lead midway through the third quarter and coach Bret Bielema made a decision late in the game that helped Spartans (2-4, 0-3) come back.
asserted
Spartans → score → game
Bielema chose to go for it on a fourth-and-1 at his 33 and Clayton was stuffed on a sneak, giving Michigan State the ball with 3:27 left.
asserted
Clayton → choose → 3:27
Jaziun Patterson’s 2-yard touchdown run with an extra point made it 31-all with 1:17 left.
asserted
it → make → 1:17
Patterson scored a third touchdown in overtime and coach Pat Fitzgerald went for 2 points and the win.
asserted
Fitzgerald → score → points
The Spartans lined up in a wildcat formation and tossed the ball to quarterback Alessio Milivojevic, whose pass short of the end zone fell incomplete.
asserted
pass → line → zone
“We were just so beat up on defense that to go for 2 in the end was a no-brainer,” Fitzgerald said.
asserted
Fitzgerald → beat → end
Illinois quarterback Katin Houser, who threw for a touchdown pass and ran for a score against one of his former teams, was injured while making a tackle on an interception return in the third quarter.
asserted
who → throw → quarter
Clayton threw passes for the first time in his career, including a 14-yard throw to Collin Dixon early in the fourth quarter for his ninth receiving touchdown this season, and a 2-point conversion created a 14-point lead.
asserted
conversion → throw → lead
Behind the call
The Spartans surprised Illinois with an onside kick in the fourth quarter and a video review determined receiver Samson Gash recovered it.
asserted
Gash → surprise → it
Gash, though, was flagged for being offside.
asserted
Gash → flag → ?
“I’ve never seen a review go and then come back and review it again and change,” Bielema said.
asserted
Bielema → see → it
While TV replays appeared to show he was not offside, Fitzgerald could not challenge the call.
uncertain
Fitzgerald → appear → call
“We were not offside,” Fitzgerald said.
asserted
Fitzgerald → say → ?
“I was told you couldn’t review being onside on the kick.”
asserted
you → tell → kick
The takeaway
Illinois: Houser hurt his left hand and will be out indefinitely.
asserted
Houser → hurt → hand
“I do know he had something broken in his hand, so we’ll try to gather information as best we can there,” Bielema said.
asserted
Bielema → know → information
“Didn’t say it was out for the year, but he’ll be out for obviously a considerable amount of time.”
asserted
he → say → time
After starting his college career with the Mel Tucker-led Spartans in 2022, he spent the last two seasons at East Carolina.
asserted
he → start → Carolina
After averaging fewer than nine points over the previous three games and being held to seven points in the first half, the offense suddenly showed signs of life with 24 points in the second half in a potentially positive sign.
asserted
offense → average → sign
“We’re going to get this going in the right direction,” Fitzgerald said.
asserted
Fitzgerald → go → direction
“We didn’t get the win, but we’re seeing growth.”
asserted
we → get → growth
Up next
Michigan State: Host Northwestern, Fitzgerald’s former team, on Saturday.
___
asserted
State → host → Saturday
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