The 1983 Illinois Fighting Illini football team represented the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...

as a member of the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

during the

1983 NCAA Division I-A football season The 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the University of Miami, led by Bernie Kosar, winning their first national championship over perennial power and top ranked Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. The Hurricanes' 31–30 win over Neb ...

. Led by fourth-year head coach Mike White, the Fighting Illini compiled an overall record of 10–2 with a mark of 9–0, winning the Big Ten title. Illinois was invited to the

Rose Bowl Rose Bowl or Rosebowl may refer to: * Rose Bowl Game, an annual American college football game * Rose Bowl (stadium), Pasadena, California, site of the football game, and the home stadium of the UCLA Football team * Rose Bowl (cricket ground), West ...

, where the Illini lost to

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

. The team played home games at Memorial Stadium in

Champaign, Illinois Champaign ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Illinois, tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in ...

. The team's offensive leaders were quarterback

Jack Trudeau Jack Francis Trudeau (born September 9, 1962) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) from 1986 to 1995. He played college football for the Illinois Fighting ...

with 2,446 passing yards, running back Thomas Rooks with 842 rushing yards, and wide receiver David Williams with 870 receiving yards. Defensive end Don Thorp was selected as the team's most valuable player and also received the

Chicago Tribune Silver Football The ''Chicago Tribune'' Silver Football is awarded by the ''Chicago Tribune'' to the college football player determined to be the best player from the Big Ten Conference. The award has been presented annually since 1924, when Red Grange of Ill ...

trophy as the most valuable player in the Big Ten Conference. The 1983 Illini were the first team in Big Ten history to go 9–0 in regular season conference play, and the only team to do so until the

2017 Wisconsin Badgers football team The 2017 Wisconsin Badgers football team represented the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Badgers, led by third-year head coach Paul Chryst, were members of the West Division of the Big Ten C ...

repeated the feat. Since then, the

2019 Ohio State Buckeyes football team The 2019 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented Ohio State University during the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Buckeyes played their home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. This was the Buckeyes' 130th overall seaso ...

, the

2024 Oregon Ducks football team The 2024 Oregon Ducks football team represented the University of Oregon as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2024 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Ducks were led by third-year head coach Dan Lanning and they played their hom ...

and both the

2022 Michigan Wolverines football team The 2022 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Wolverines were led by eighth-year head coach Jim Harbaug ...

and

2023 Michigan Wolverines football team The 2023 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. In their ninth and final year under head coach Jim Harbaugh, ...

have accomplished the feat.

Schedule

Awards and honors

* Don Thorp (

Defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

) **

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

, (''defensive end'') * Jim Juriga, ( Tackle) **

, (''tackle'') * Craig Swoope, (

Defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

) **

, (''defensive back'')

References

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Illinois Fighting Illini football seasons Big Ten Conference football champion seasons

Illinois Fighting Illini football The Illinois Fighting Illini football program represents the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) level. The Fighting Illini are a founding member of ...

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