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Illinois Beat Maryland 20-17 on Ethan Moczulski's 26-Yard Field Goal at the Buzzer

Moczulski kicked the winner on the final play at SECU Stadium after Illinois drove 67 yards in the last 5:45, completing a third straight win and spoiling interim coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim's Maryland debut.

By Orbit Post2 min read
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Illinois Beat Maryland 20-17 on Ethan Moczulski's 26-Yard Field Goal at the Buzzer

Key points

  • Illinois beat Maryland 20-17 at SECU Stadium in College Park on Saturday, winning on Ethan Moczulski's 26-yard field goal on the final play.
  • With the score tied, Illinois held the ball for the final 5:45 and drove 67 yards.
  • Maryland led 7-0 after the first quarter.

Illinois beat Maryland 20-17 at SECU Stadium in College Park on Saturday, winning on Ethan Moczulski's 26-yard field goal on the final play. The kick broke a 17-17 tie and gave Illinois its third straight win, according to Deadspin's Field Level Media report and the University of Maryland athletics recap.

With the score tied, Illinois held the ball for the final 5:45 and drove 67 yards. Jordan Anderson ran 12 yards and then kneeled at the 2-yard line to set up the kick, and Moczulski made it as time ran out.

A game that kept changing hands

Maryland led 7-0 after the first quarter. Katin Houser threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Brayden Trimble with 27 seconds left in the first half to tie the game 7-7 for Illinois. Houser also threw an interception in the game.

Moczulski kicked a 45-yard field goal in the third quarter. Maryland answered in that quarter with a rushing touchdown from DeJuan Williams, and Maryland quarterback Malik Washington also scored a rushing touchdown. Washington threw for 190 yards with an interception.

Javari Barnett then put Illinois in front for the first time. He scored on a 64-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter, and Illinois led 17-14. Sean O'Haire tied the game again for Maryland with a season-long 46-yard field goal with 10:16 left, setting up the final drive.

Collin Dixon caught six passes for 103 yards for Illinois, the top receiving line in the reports.

What the result means

Illinois improved to 5-3 overall and 3-2 in the Big Ten. Maryland fell to 2-6 overall and 0-5 in the Big Ten, and the loss was its sixth in a row.

The game was also the debut for Maryland interim coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim. Maryland is 0-1 under him after a day when his team led early, tied the game late in the fourth quarter, and then never got the ball back.

Quarter scores tell the shape of it. Maryland scored 7, 0, 7 and 3 by quarter. Illinois scored 0, 7, 3 and 10, with all 10 of its fourth quarter points coming after Barnett's long run gave it a lead to protect.

The closing drive is the part Maryland will look back on. After O'Haire tied the game, Maryland never touched the ball again, because Illinois ran the last 5:45 off the clock, finished the drive at the 2-yard line, and left Moczulski a short kick to win it.

Timeline

  1. Oct 31, 2026Katin Houser throws a 16-yard touchdown pass to Brayden Trimble with 27 seconds left in the first half, tying Maryland 7-7.
  2. Oct 31, 2026Javari Barnett runs 64 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter to give Illinois a 17-14 lead, and Sean O'Haire ties it 17-17 with a 46-yard field goal with 10:16 left.
  3. Oct 31, 2026Ethan Moczulski kicks a 26-yard field goal on the final play after a 67-yard drive, and Illinois wins 20-17.

Sources