By Tribune News Service

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. —Bouncing off defenders like a pinball or slipping out of tackles as if covered in grease, running back Reggie Corbin’s escape-artist moves are becoming his signature at Illinois.

Coach Lovie Smith moved his finger as if drawing a lightning bolt to describe how Corbin makes defenders miss. Corbin calls his zigzags “the sauce.”

The redshirt freshman appears born for the position, in which he has quickly ascended into a leading role for the Illini.

But he said his moves are a combination of his first love (basketball) and his new love (rugby).

“I was big into basketball,” Corbin said this week. “I was a really good player. I didn’t get too serious about football until my sophomore year.

“Rugby helped me so much in football: being able to set my teammates up, getting up the field and making guys miss, using leverage, being able to change speeds. When you look on the (football) film, if my rugby coach saw it, he would be like, ‘Yeah, that’s exactly where he got that.’”

Those skills have helped the 5-foot-10, 185-pound Corbin emerge as one of the few highlights for the 2-4 Illini, who visit No. 3 Michigan on Saturday.