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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; October 8, 2010 - Penn State will host Illinois Satutday in Beaver Stadium in the Nittany Lions' 91st Homecoming contest and Big Ten opener. The game, which is scheduled for a noon kickoff, will air on ESPN2, the Penn State Sports Network and www.GoPSUsports.com.
The Nittany Lions own a 65-20-5 record in Homecoming games, including a 39-5 mark under Joe Paterno. Penn State defeated Minnesota, 20-0, on Homecoming last season, its fifth straight victory in front of the alumni audience. The Fighting Illini will be the Lions' Homecoming opponent for the third time, with Penn State earning wins in 2000 (39-25) and 2006 (26-12).
The Nittany Lions and the Fighting Illini are meeting for the 18th time, with Penn State leading the series, 14-3. Since beginning Big Ten play in 1993, the Lions own an 11-2 record versus Illinois, including a 6-0 mark at Beaver Stadium. A year ago, Penn State claimed a 35-17 victory at Memorial Stadium in Champaign. Tailback Stephfon Green and Evan Royster both cracked 100 rushing yards in last year's win over the Illini.
Starting in 2011, Penn State and Illinois will be in the same Big Ten division and play on an annual basis.
Penn State is 12-1 in its next game after a loss since the start of the 2005 season. The Nittany Lions are 13-1 after a loss if the 2009 season opening win over Akron is included.
Royster gained 56 yards on just 10 carries last week at Iowa to move into fourth place on the Penn State career rushing list with 3,271 yards. Royster needs 31 yards to pass Blair Thomas for third place and needs 128 yards to break Curt Warner's school record of 3,398 yards.
Last week, then-No. 17 Iowa took a 10-0 first quarter lead and made a goal line stand early in the third quarter to fend off Penn State and claim a 24-3 victory in Iowa City in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
The Nittany Lion defense held the Hawkeyes scoreless in the second half, limiting Iowa to just four first downs and 114 yards in the final 30 minutes. For the game, the unit recorded 9.0 tackles for loss, its second highest total of the season, and allowed Iowa to convert on just two of 10 third down attempts.
True freshman quarterback Rob Bolden posted his fourth 200-yard passing performance of the season, completing 20-of-37 passes for 212 yards. Bolden has already moved into a tie with Kevin Thompson for 13th place on the school career 200-yard passing game list.
The Nittany Lions lead the nation in opponent third down conversions at 21.1 pct. (12 of 57), turning in a 2 of 10 effort at Iowa. Penn State is tied for 15th in the nation in scoring defense (15.0 ppg) and is No. 18 in total defense (290.4 ypg). The Lions are second in the Big Ten and No. 25 nationally in pass defense (172.2 ypg).
Illinois travels to Happy Valley for its first road game of the season, coming off a good effort in a 24-13 home loss to No. 2 Ohio State last week. The 2-2 Illini built two leads and limited the Buckeyes to just 290 total yards but a late touchdown gave the Buckeyes a two-score lead.
First year starting quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase directs the Illinois offense. The redshirt freshman has completed 54.4 percent of his passes (43 of 79), throwing for 489 yards and three touchdowns with four interceptions in his first four career starts. Junior running back Mikel Leshoure powers the Illini ground game, gaining 478 yards on 77 carries (6.2 avg.) and three touchdowns.
Junior linebacker Martez Wilson, a 2010 Butkus Award Watch List nominee, has emerged as a leader on one of the conference's top defenses. He leads the team in total tackles (34), tackles for loss (5), sacks (2), and has accounted for one of the Illini's five forced fumbles.
Big Ten Tailgate and Big Ten Kickoff will originate from Penn State this weekend on the Big Ten Network. The Tailgate program includes a feature on Sue Paterno and her passionate iinvolvement with Special Olympics Pennsylvania for more than 20 years. The program will originate Friday at 11:00 p.m. and re-air Saturday at 12:30, 5:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. At 10:00 a.m., Big Ten Kickoff will air live from Beaver Stadium prior to the Big Ten Network Pre-Game Show.
Penn State is idle next week and returns to action on Oct. 23 when it makes its second Big Ten road trip of the season, playing Minnesota for the first time in its new home, TCF Bank Stadium. The game time and televising network for the Nittany Lions' and Golden Gophers' battle for the Governors' Victory Bell is yet to be determined. Minnesota (1-4, 0-1) travels to Wisconsin and Purdue in the next two weeks.