McCourt the Prophet: Illini Kicker Delivers Game-Winner at Rutgers in 23-20 Victory

What James McCourt realized is sometimes when he writes it down in his notebook, it will come true.

The Illinois senior kicker sent a game-winning kick through the uprights with three seconds remaining propelling the Illini to its first win of the 2020 football season. McCourt’s kick allowed Illinois to escape with a 23-20 victory over Rutgers Saturday ending a six-game losing streak and a 371-day gap between wins for the Illini program.

McCourt, who had missed the last two games due to coronavirus contact tracing protocols due to being a housemate to quarterback Brandon Peters, who tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this month, had missed two field goal attempts in the fourth quarter (54-yarder and 46-yarder) but managed to regroup to nail a 47-yard attempt to send Illinois home from New Jersey with a victory.

“I held on to that belief, even in the times after the two missed kicks, I remembered what I wrote in my notebook and that this moment was going to come,” McCourt said.

McCourt, who hit the game-winning field goal last season against then-No. 6 Wisconsin in the biggest win of the Lovie Smith era of Illinois football, says he keeps a personal notebook journal of his thoughts, fundamentals and habits as a kicker.

"I remembered what I wrote in my notebook and that this moment was going to come." - Illinois senior kicker James McCourt

After being cleared to resume practice on Wednesday, McCourt wrote down that he’d have an opportunity for a game-winner this weekend and his written proclamation came true. The senior kicker says he showed his teammates the passage in the locker following the Illini’s first win since a 37-34 come-from-behind win at Michigan State on Nov. 9, 2019.

“Obviously you don’t want to wear your emotions on your sleeve but after I missed those last two (field goals), I was obviously upset and I had thought I was going to let my teammates down,” McCourt said. “I quickly got out of that mindset and (Illinois special teams coach Bob Ligashesky) said to me ‘one kick and you got to move on’.”

McCourt is now just one of three Illinois kickers to have multiple game-winning field goals with less than a minute to go in their college career.

Illinois (1-3) was led by a run-first and practically run-only offensive philosophy directed by redshirt freshman Isaiah Williams and his 296 total yards (192 rushing, 104 passing) as the highest-ranked recruit in Illini history since highest ranked quarterback recruit since Isiah "Juice" Williams in 2006 cut through the Rutgers defense with highly effective RPO run reads.

Chase Brown, who Illinois offensive coordinator Rod Smith said his staff had to figure out a way to get more opportunities, left Rutgers with a career-high 131 yards on the ground in just 17 attempts.

“Chase is a dog and he makes my job way easier,” Williams said. “I know that on every play, he’s got my back...it’s a connection that we have honestly. ”

Rutgers took an early 10-0 lead but from that moment, the game went back-and-forth in terms of momentum but Illinois never had the lead until McCourt’s right foot touched that football on Illinois’ final play. The win represents the sixth win under Lovie Smith by eight points or less. Similarly to how McCourt’s game-winning kick over Wisconsin last year on Homecoming weekend, Smith said he’s hoping this victory turns around what had been a forgettable start to the 2020 season.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve felt a win,” Lovie Smith said. “When you talk to the team and you can call on that kind of experience, it helps. We were down by 10 on the road today and a lot of things were going against us. These guys just kept fighting and refused to lose.”

Rutgers (1-3) proceeded to give back the early lead with three second half interceptions as the Illini used its turnover-happy defensive philosophy to mount a comeback win on the road.

Illinois is scheduled to take to the road again next weekend to play a Nebraska team that got off the 2020 losing skid Saturday with a home win over Penn State.