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A couple of minutes later, Harvey was on his knees in prayer, unable to watch as the Michigan Wolverines took one final shot at the end zone.

It was that kind of day at Michigan Stadium on Saturday. First, the outcome appeared inevitable and then it didn't. But in the end, Harvey's initial instinct to dance was the right one as the Fighting Illini shocked the No. 9 Wolverines 35-29.

"Wow," Fighting Illini coach Ron Turner said afterward. "It was a hell of a football game."

This is why they play the game no matter how big the point spread is. A slippery field, a couple of hot hands and a key injury on the opposing sideline can sometimes turn a 24-point underdog into a bulldog for just long enough to pull off a stunning upset. All of the aforementioned happened for the Fighting Illini as they overcame enormous odds and a 27-7 deficit in the final 23 minutes to beat the Wolverines.

A steady rain fell for most of the afternoon, making the turf very soggy in the second half. Despite the sloppy field, Fighting Illini quarterback Kurt Kittner and tailback Rocky Harvey racked up yardage and points nearly every time they touched the ball after the break. And on the other sidelines, tailback Anthony Thomas left the game with a broken finger shortly after halftime, virtually paralyzing the Wolverines offense.

"The game did change (after Thomas' injury)," said Wolverines quarterback Tom Brady, who was 23-of-28 for 307 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. "But the other running backs expect to play and feel they can continue the same level of running that Anthony had."

Unfortunately for the Wolverines, Thomas' understudies proved why they spend most of their time on the bench. Combined, four other backs put up 33 yards on 12 carries after Thomas exited with 21 carries for 128 yards and two touchdowns. As a result, the Fighting Illini controlled the ball and their destiny in a game that was seemingly out of reach.

"At halftime, I said, 'Keep believing,'" Turner said. "Nobody believed this could happen except the guys in the Illinois locker room."

With Kittner hitting receivers for short gains and Harvey using his speed to blast up the middle of an uninspired defense, the Fighting Illini made believers out of everybody. They mounted two long scoring drives sandwiched around a short possession by the Wolverines to cut the Fighting Illini deficit to six with 6:25 left.

Kittner finished with a career-high four touchdowns and 280 yards on 24-of-33 passing.

"At the half I though we had control of the game," Wolverines coach Lloyd Carr said. "But we absolutely played as poorly defensively as you can play. And we suffered the consequences."

Big consequences such as a 59-yard touchdown pass from Kittner to Harvey put the Fighting Illini ahead for the first time 28-27 with 2:42 left. Fittingly, Harvey also scored the backbreaking touchdown, scampering 54 yards with 59 seconds left.

Rocky Harvey dives for the end zone ahead of a Michigan defender.(AP)

"I told Rocky 'I need you to make some big plays in the second half," Turner said. "I knew with his quickness, he could make holes. I just told him to keep coming."

And Harvey did, 17 times in all for 106 yards -- although he did cause his team some hair-raising moments near the end. If Harvey had taken a knee after making a first down instead of going into the end zone on his long run, the Wolverines wouldn't have had a chance to mount a comeback. They had only two timeouts remaining, not enough to keep the Fighting Illini from running out the clock.

"Heck, we teach our kids to go for the score, not take a knee," Turner said of the play. "I don't blame him for that."

Still, the Wolverines made it interesting, getting two points when cornerback Tony Francis intercepted a Brady pass at the Fighting Illini 2 and fumbled into the end zone, where safety Muhammad Abdullah fell on it for a safety.

After the ensuing free kick, Brady had 6 seconds remaining to heave the ball toward the end zone. His pass from the Wolverines 41 fell way short of its mark and to the turf as Harvey was saying his prayers on the sidelines.

"Just keep on hoping for a bowl game," Harvey said just seconds after the final gun. "Gotta go. They're waiting on me now so we can go sing our (fight) song."

And, thanks to the god of underdogs, dance their way home to Illinois.