Northwestern got a first down on their their first possession of the third quarter,but punted and helped the Hawkeye out with a face mask penalty. Robinson’s running got the ball to the NU 26.Stanzi hit McNutt at the 5 and then in the end zone to give Iowa it’s first TD and lead 10-7 with 9:59 left in the third.NU again failed to move the ball,punted and Stanzi burned them, with the home run this time, finding Derrell Johnson-Koulianos in stride and he ran down the near sideline 70 yards,diving into the pylon to make it 17-7.The pair of TD’s coming just 3:38 apart.The Fourth quarter started with NU in possession but James Morris picked off a Persa pass that was deflected.Stanzi then threw into double coverage and Brian Peters easily intercepted and despite a personal foul on the Cats, they tool over on their own 15.They got their first scoring drive since early in the game by moving those 85 yards in 13 plays,using 4:35 off the clock. Persa hit Jeremy Ebert on a lob pass from six yards out with 6:21 to play,cutting the Iowa lead to 17-14.The Cats then forced a punt,but had no return man and the ball rolled dead at the nine with 4:08 left.Persa engineered a 91 yard 11 play drive which ended with the 8 yard pass to Fields with 1:22 left,regaining the Cats lead.That was when Persa hurt his Achilles and ended his season. The Hawkeyes tried to drive for a final winning score but Stanzi’s last fourth down desperate pass into the end zone fell incomplete. On to Wrigley Field next week.

NOTES—Attendance was a sellout 47,130….A limited amount of restricted view and standing room only tickets are available for next Saturday’s game with Illinois at Illinois.Kickoff is 2:30pm….The last time NU played a football game in the City Limits of Chicago was in 1997, the Pig Skin Classic when they blanked Oklahoma 24-0 at Soldier Field.

CHAMPAIGN—This is a new season low! At the expense of the Illini, DeLeon Eskridge rescued Minnesota from its tenth loss Saturday, leading the Gophers to a 38-34 comeback upset of Illinois with a last-minute touchdown run.Eskridge scored three touchdowns for the Golden Gophers (2-9, 1-6 Big Ten) and rushed for 49 yards on 14 carries.The last, a 2-yarder, came with 16 seconds to play and capped an 80-yard drive engineered by quarterback Adam Weber.Trailing 34-31 and facing a third and 10 at his own 20 with 2:30 to play, Weber dropped back to pass and didn’t see an open receiver. Instead he saw a huge hole in the middle of the Illinois defense, and ran straight into it for 29 yards and a first down at the Minnesota 49. Six plays later Eskridge gave the Gophers the lead.Weber, who some fans have said should give way to sophomore MarQueis Gray, was 20 of 26 for 225 yards and two TDs. He was seldom pressured by the Fighting Illini.The loss keeps Illinois (5-5, 3-4) a game short of bowl eligibility. Illinois hasn’t been to a bowl in three years.With just over eight minutes to play, the Illini looked close to locking up that key sixth win when Mikel Leshoure burst around the right end for a 55-yard touchdown that, with the extra point, gave Illinois a 34-24 lead.Leshoure finished with 141 yards on 18 carries and scored two touchdowns.Badly needing an answer to Leshoure’s potentially back-breaking run, the Gophers got a 92-yard kickoff return by Troy Stoudermire. Justin Green’s tackle at the Illinois 4 only delayed the inevitable.It was Eskridge this time, too, running 4 yards on second down for a score that pulled the Gophers back to within three at 34-31 with 7:55 to play.The Gopher defense, which sacked quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase three times, quickly stopped the Illini on their next two possessions, not allowing Illinois even one clock-draining first down.Minnesota led 17-7 at the half on Eskridge’s first touchdown run, a scoring pass from Weber to Tiree Eure and a line-drive 45-yard field goal by Eric Ellestad.Illinois turned that halftime deficit into a lead in the first eight minutes of the second half.Leshoure’s first touchdown ended an 80-yard drive that made the score 17-14.Minutes later, Illinois linebacker Nate Bussey recovered a fumble by Gopher Eric Lair at the Minnesota 37.From there, Scheelhaase guided Illinois to the 17, where he flawlessly led Spencer Harris on a crossing route into the end zone. Illinois blew the extra point, but was back in the lead, 20-17, with 7:59 to play in the third quarter.Scheelhaase was 10 of 21 for 172 yards and two TDs. He found A.J. Jenkins six times for 137 yards and a touchdown.Illinois has two shots left at the sixth win that would make it bowl eligible. Both are on the road, vs Northwestern next week at Wrigley Field and at Fresno State. Illinois hasn’t been to the postseason since the 2008 Rose Bowl.

SOUTH BEND—Freshman Tommy Rees threw three touchdown passes in his first collegiate start and Notre Dame used two Utah special teams mistakes Saturday to rout the slumping, 15th-ranked Utes 28-3.Returning from a week off, Notre Dame (5-5) played like a fresh team and moved within one win of becoming eligible for a bowl. Utah (8-2), meanwhile, looked like a team still reeling from its 47-7 loss to TCU a week earlier.The victory was Notre Dame’s first over a team ranked in the AP top 25 since 2006, when the Irish defeated Penn State.Robert Blanton blocked a Utah punt, picked up the ball and ran in for a TD late in the opening period. And a fumble on the second-half kickoff by star Utah returner Shaky Smithson was quickly turned into the first of two Rees-to-Duval Kamara TD passes.Rees, who replaced injured starter Dayne Crist during a loss to Tulsa two weeks ago, got better as the game progressed and finished 13 of 20 for 129 yards.Notre Dame’s maligned defense bottled up Utah – which came in averaging 41 points per game – and stopped the Utes from scoring in the second half after they reached the 6 and 12 on separate drives.Utah quarterback Jordan Wynn completed 24 of 39 for 195 yards and was shaken up with just more than five minutes left after taking a hard hit after delivering a pass. He returned to the game two plays later.

DEKALB—John Shurna matched a career-high with 31 points as Northwestern shook off a sluggish early shooting to roll past Northern Illinois 97-78 in a season opener for both teams Friday.The Huskies led 11-5 after five minutes while the Wildcats missed 13 of their first 14 shots. But guard Drew Crawford ignited Northwestern with 12 points in a 19-5 run as the Wildcats claimed a 24-16 lead and never looked back.Shurna, who scored 31 points twice last season, had seven three-pointers and scored 25 second-half points. Crawford closed with 20 while Michael Thompson had 15. Xavier Silas led the Huskies with 25 points, Tim Toler had 12 and Nate Rucker added 11.

Terrance Hill scored 21 points to lead four Loyola players in double figures as the Ramblers defeated Eastern Kentucky 73-57 in the Nick Kladis Classic on Friday night.It was the season opener for both schools.Walt Gibler had 17 points and nine rebounds for Loyola, which had its biggest margin of the night at the end of the game. Ben Averkamp had 15 points and Jordan Hicks scored 10.Spencer Perrin and Joshua Jones scored 14 points each for Eastern Kentucky.Loyola was 9-for-18 from 3-point range, led by Hill’s 5-of-6 performance.Indiana State won the first game in the three-day event, 69-46 over Texas-Pan American.

SOUTH BEND—Ben Hansbrough scored 16 of his 20 points in a first half dominated by Notre Dame as the Irish routed Georgia Southern 98-61 on Friday night in the season opener for both teams.Notre Dame ran off the first 11 points before two free throws by Eric Ferguson got Georgia Southern on the board at the 16:32 mark. The Irish immediately went on a 19-1 tear, and by the time Ferguson hit a layup at 11:53, the score was 30-5.Coach Mike Brey’s squad ran off a 28-7 streak and at halftime Notre Dame led 62-23.Ferguson led all scorers with 26 and teammate Rory Spencer added 18. Jack Cooley added 11 for Notre Dame, which started five seniors and outrebounded the Eagles 47-26.

A limited number of partial view tickets will go on sale for the Allstate Wrigleyville Classic at 10 a.m. next Saturday, November 13, at Tickets.com. These seats, primarily located in the terrace reserved and upper deck reserved sections of Wrigley Field, have been released to allow the greatest number of fans an opportunity to enjoy college football inside Wrigley Field. This group of tickets will be the final inventory available for purchase to the public. Northwestern University , the University of Illinois and the Chicago Cubs have each sold out of their allocations.Partial view tickets are located throughout Wrigley Field and include occasional structural obstruction while viewing the field. This allotment of partial view tickets has been viewed and approved for sale after the final placement of the football field within the ballpark.The Allstate Wrigleyville Classic, hosted by Northwestern University , will mark the first college football game at Wrigley Field since 1938, when DePaul University played its home games at the ballpark. The contest will be the first football game of any kind at the Friendly Confines since the Chicago Bears last played there in December of 1970(a win over the Packers). Kickoff for the Allstate Wrigleyville Classic takes place at 2:30 p.m. CST.

Derrick Rose and the Bulls knew exactly how to take advantage of a tired opponent.Luol Deng scored 26 points, Rose had 22 and Bulls raced to a 30-point lead in the first half en route to a 120-90 romp over the weary Golden State Warriors on Thursday.Rose added 13 assists for his third double-double of the season. He finished one assist shy of his career best, which he’s increased twice already this season. Rose is handing out 9.6 assists per game, 3.3 better than he averaged in either of his first two NBA seasons.Monta Ellis had 24 points to lead the Warriors, who pulled out a 122-117 victory in New York on Wednesday night. Stephen Curry added 17 points for Golden State, which played without ailing forward David Lee.Bulls guard Keith Bogans had his best game of the season, with 14 points and six steals. He also did a nice job defensively of keeping Ellis under control.Rose and Deng combined for 39 points in a first half that Chicago dominated in every facet of the game. The Bulls outrebounded Golden State 26-20 and forced 11 turnovers (leading to 21 points) while committing only four. They outshot the Warriors 53.1 percent to 39.1 percent.The Warriors looked tired one night after their win at Madison Square Garden. In that game, Lee sustained a cut on his left elbow when he inadvertently struck former Knicks teammate Wilson Chandler in the mouth.The blow shattered one of Chandler’s teeth into four pieces and dislodged another. One of the bits of tooth ended up in Lee’s arm. Lee was able to finish the game, scoring a season-high 28 points, but the wound became so sore afterward that Lee said he couldn’t remember experiencing so much pain. He sat out Thursday, with Brandan Wright starting in his place.Lee’s presence might not have made much of a difference for the listless Warriors. The Bulls were quicker to the ball and in transition, and Golden State was flat-footed defensively, leading to several easy baseline buckets for the Bulls. Two of those were two-handed dunks by Rose, bringing the crowd to its feet in what was largely a laid-back atmosphere. erhaps most indicative of the Warriors’ lack of energy was the fact that the Bulls a franchise-low seven fouls. The Bulls committed an average of 25 fouls during their first six games, more than all but three NBA teams. Golden State took only seven free throws in the game.The win was important for a Bulls squad that has one more home game before heading out on a seven-game road swing. That’s the annual sojourn known as the “Circus Trip” because the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus reserves the United Center during the second half of each November, forcing the Bulls on a long trip.Golden State finishes a five-game road trip of its own against Milwaukee on Saturday. The loss to the Bulls dropped the Warriors to 2-2 on the trip, but their 6-3 start is still impressive considering Golden State opened 3-8 last season on its way to a 26-56 record.

NOTES—Lee said his arm felt better Thursday and he hopes to be able to play Saturday….Ellis entered second in the NBA in scoring at 27.1 points per game….. Joakim Noah had 17 points and seven rebounds, the first time this season he did not record a double-double.

Kyle Turris and Eric Belanger scored 35 seconds apart in the second period and backup Jason LaBarbera made 35 saves in the Phoenix Coyotes’ 2-1 victory over the Blackhawks on Wednesday.Phoenix improved to 5-5-5, and the Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks dropped to 8-9-1 with their fourth loss in five games.The Blackhawks also blew a lead at home for the sixth time this season.LaBarbera, winless this season in three appearances entering the game, won for the fourth time in four career games against the Hawks. He faced 26 shots in the first two periods, but only 10 in the third.Turris tied it 6:23 into the second period, rapping Wojtek Wolski’s short pass by goalie Marty Turco. Wolski faked defenseman Nick Boynton to open up the passing lane and free Wolski for the shot.Eric Belanger made it 2-1 at 6:58 by slapping the puck into the net over Turco’s right shoulder on a 2-on-1. Belanger took a loose puck at center ice and raced down the right side before shooting.The outburst by the Coyotes, who took 22 shots, more than answered the game-opening goal by Brian Bickell. His wrist shot through a double screen 9:22 into the first period and caromed off Phoenix defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson and past LaBarbera.The best chance for the Hawks after Phoenix took the lead was a deep-angle shot by Tomas Kopecky midway through the third period. LaBarbera hugged the left-wing post and steered it away.

NOTES—Joel Quenneville shifted Patrick Kane frrom right to left wing, pairing him with center Tomas Koepcky and right wing Marian Hossa. Kane was held to one shot. … Through 15 games, Phoenix is three points behind its pace of last season, when it made the playoffs for the first time since 2002. … Phoenix forward Shane Doan missed his third consecutive game because of a lower-body injury.

CHAMPAIGN—Before the start of the season, Illinois coach Bruce Weber said his team would go as the seniors go.Weber’s seniors answered his call Wednesday night when No. 13 Illinois beat Toledo 84-45 in the second round of the 2K Sports Classic.Toledo (0-1) took on the Illini (2-0) with only five of its players on scholarship, and Illinois proved to be too strong a force for the Rockets to stop.Demetri McCamey, one of the seniors, had 13 points and seven assists for the Illini, though he sat for most of the second half, playing a total of 18 minutes. Seniors Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale added 12 and 10 points, respectively. Davis had six rebounds.The Illini hit their first 10 shots from the field, half of them from beyond the 3-point line.D.J. Richardson opened the 3-point surge early in the half, Bill Cole followed with one of his own and McCamey had three 3s, as the Illini led 25-5 with 14:13 to play in the first half.McCamey credited his strong shooting to the extra work he put in since Monday’s win over UC Irvine, where he admitted he struggled offensively.It was all Illinois in the first half as the Illini went on runs of 6-0, 10-0 and 8-0. They led 47-18 at halftime after shooting 20 for 33 (60.6 percent) from the field, including and 5 for 11 from behind the arc (45.5 percent). McCamey finished the first half with 11 points and six assists.After a sluggish start to the second half in their season opener, the Illini opened the final 20 minutes with an 8-2 run to go take a 55-20 lead.Weber was pleased with the lack of complacency he saw in his team.Weber sat most of his starters for the second half, but there was no shortage of offensive production as Illinois’ bench scored 41 points.Freshman reserve Meyers Leonard had 10 points and six rebounds.Delino Dear scored 11 points for the Rockets, who have lost 33 straight road games and 49 of their last 50.