Here was the situation:
With 5 minutes, 40 seconds to play, Rutgers had the ball at the Illinois 2-yard line and facing a fourth-and-goal. The Scarlet Knights trailed 31-14 at the time.
A field goal would cut the deficit to two scores. A touchdown would provide some window dressing in a non-competitive defeat to a fellow Big Ten-division cellar dweller and, perhaps, give an offense with a young quarterback some much-needed confidence heading into next week.