The Washington Huskies football team are officially bowl-eligible after a statement 42-25 win against the No. 23 Illinois Fighting Illini on Saturday.

The Huskies earned their first ranked win of the season after they pulled away in the second half and the defense halted the Fighting Illini's attempts to get back into the game.

"I think we had six red zone opportunities, six touchdowns," Washington coach Jedd Fisch said in a postgame interview. "That was a good day. We took the ball away, which was awesome to see. That makes a huge difference. ... Felt like all the guys played really well."

Washington and Illinois went blow-for-blow throughout the first half. The Huskies had a narrow advantage in first-half shootout and went into halftime leading 21-17.

The Huskies led 14-3 through the first quarter after a pair of 13-yard touchdown connections between quarterback Demond Williams Jr. and wide receiver Dezmen Roebuck.

Roebuck finished the game with three receptions for 36 yards and two touchdowns. Williams went 26-for-33 for 280 yards and four touchdowns and added 66 yards on the ground on 10 carries. 

The Fighting Illini got back into the game courtesy of two second-quarter touchdown passes from quarterback Luke Altmeyer: a two-yard completion to wide receiver Collin Dixon with 7:26 left in the first half and a five-yard connection to tight end Tanner Arkin with 1:55 left in the second quarter.

The completion to Arkin gave Illinois a 17-14 lead, which was its only advantage in Saturday's contest.

Washington marched 75 yards down the field in just one minute, 15 seconds. The team capped the drive with a trick play that featured wide receiver Denzel Boston completing a 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jonah Coleman. That unique connection gave the Huskies the advantage going into the break.

Washington's defense forced a stop against the Fighting Illini on the opening drive of the second half.

The Huskies offense took over and marched 90 yards down the field. Coleman found the end zone on a seven-yard run and bolstered his team's lead to 28-17. It was the only score of the third quarter.

Coleman finished the game with 75 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries and reeled in four passes for 32 yards and a touchdown.

Washington's defense continued to step up in the second half. Senior cornerback Tacario Davis intercepted Altmeyer with 2:29 left in the third quarter.

The Huskies capitalized on that turnover and Williams found Boston for a six-yard touchdown completion with 14:45 left in the game. That completion increased Washington's lead to 35-17.

Boston caught 10 passes for 153 yards and a touchdown and went 1-for-1 passing for 12 yards and a touchdown.

Illinois, which received 30 yards of progress on two personal foul penalties committed by Washington on one play, found the end zone once more. Running back Jordan Anderson capped off a seven-play, 75 yard drive with a one-yard rushing touchdown. Altmeyer found receiver Cole Rusk on a two-point conversion to cut the Huskies' lead down to 35-25 with 11:07 left in the game.

Williams had his fourth touchdown pass of the day — a two-yard completion to tight end Decker DeGraaf — for the eventual final of 42-25 with 8:16 left in the game.

Freshman defensive back Rahshawn Clark picked off Altmeyer with 6:08 left in the game and the Huskies offense ran out the rest of the clock to secure the win.

Washington will look to build on its first ranked win of the season and secure higher-standing in the Big Ten in its next game against Wisconsin. Kickoff is still to-be-determined. The game will take place Nov. 8 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisc.

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