28 Days - 30 B1G Years - 1983

by Bama Hawkeye on Aug 4, 2011 11:15 AM CDT in Illinois

Some teams get lost. This is one that shouldn't have.

Illinois made a bit of noise the year before. Mike White led the Illini to the Liberty Bowl, where they lost to Alabama in the last game Bear Bryant coached. The next year was special.

After a loss at Missouri to start the season (because Illinois should never play Mizzou in football), Illinois knocked off Stanford. They then won the league. But that doesn't say enough. Illinois hosted #4 Iowa and beat them 33-0. Two weeks later, they beat #6 Ohio State. Two weeks after that, they beat #8 Michigan. By the time the season was done, Illinois was 10-1 (9-0) and #4 in the country. As of today, this is the only Big Ten team to ever win 9 conference games (we'll see if that changes this year).

So why does this team not get recognized among the best? The Rose Bowl. Illinois traveled to Pasadena, where they met a 6-4-1 UCLA squad that was deservedly unranked. Illinois lost 45-9. It was uglier than that.

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This was also the only team to beat every other Big Ten team.

And that will probably never happen again.

As for the Rose Bowl, it was the second year that UCLA used it as their home field during the season. Most pundits give 37 points for a Rose Bowl home field advantage, so they really won.

Oh, can I mention Illinois’ FIVE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS here? Glad to see Nebraska catch up.

by hup oranje on Aug 4, 2011 12:01 PM CDT reply actions

Better be glad Nebraska didn't just kick the extra point in the Orange Bowl.

Otherwise they’d have SIX NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS.

Reporter: "What would it take to get you to spend three or four days outside in a tent, on concrete?"
Joe Paterno: "Depends what she looks like."

by Cornbadger on Aug 4, 2011 12:28 PM CDT up reply actions

I'm now blind

After looking at those uniforms.

by mikjones24 on Aug 4, 2011 12:46 PM CDT reply actions

Imagine how we feel having to keep this thing in the trophy case every year

Illinois: Damaging retina’s since ’83

With the #1 overall pick in the Rapture Draft, God chooses the Macho King Randy Savage

by BuckeyeSki on Aug 4, 2011 12:51 PM CDT up reply actions

since ever, actually.

Editor at BT Powerhouse, a Big Ten Basketball blog.
Author at Acme Packing Company, a Green Bay Packers blog

by OBrienSchofieldismyHero on Aug 4, 2011 11:14 PM CDT up reply actions

I love

that helmet! and I don’t give a crap about illinois.

"they're calling insane hogs???"

by CrowTrobot on Aug 5, 2011 12:55 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

I must say, I miss the oversized Rose Bowl designs teams used to put on their uniforms for the game.

But as for the colors, I think someone forgot to tell the team manager the 70’s had ended by that point.

by I-L-L-matic on Aug 4, 2011 1:17 PM CDT reply actions

I do wish we still rocked Chief pride stickers on the helmets though.

"Many people need desperately to receive this message: 'I feel and think much as you do, care about many of the things you care about, although most people do not care about them. You are not alone.'"

by U-God on Aug 4, 2011 1:40 PM CDT up reply actions