The 1968 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois during the 1968 Big Ten Conference football season. In their second year under head coach Jim Valek, the Illini compiled a 1–9 record and finished in a tie for eighth place in the Big Ten Conference.[1]
1968 Illinois Fighting Illini football | |
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Conference | Big Ten Conference |
Record | 1–9 (1–6 Big Ten) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | Ellis Rainsberger (2nd season) |
MVP | Rich Johnson |
Captain | Carson Brooks, Tony Pleviak |
Home stadium | Memorial Stadium |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 1 Ohio State $ | 7 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 0 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 12 Michigan | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 10 Purdue | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Minnesota | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indiana | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Iowa | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Michigan State | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Illinois | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Northwestern | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wisconsin | 0 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 10 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The team's offensive leaders were quarterback Bob Naponic with 813 passing yards, running back Rich Johnson with 973 rushing yards, and wide receiver Doug Dieken with 223 receiving yards.[2] Fullback Rich Johnson was selected as the team's most valuable player.[3]
Schedule
editDate | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
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September 21 | Kansas* | L 7–47 | 46,359 | ||
September 28 | Missouri* |
| L 0–44 | 48,127 | |
October 5 | at Indiana | L 14–28 | 50,241–50,996 | [4] | |
October 12 | at Minnesota | L 10–17 | 49,864 | ||
October 19 | at No. 6 Notre Dame* | L 8–58 | 59,075 | ||
October 26 | No. 2 Ohio State |
| L 24–31 | 56,174 | |
November 2 | at No. 6 Purdue | L 17–35 | 62,321 | ||
November 9 | at No. 7 Michigan | L 0–36 | 56,775 | ||
November 16 | Northwestern |
| W 14–0 | 42,099 | |
November 23 | Iowa |
| L 13–37 | 35,055 | |
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Roster
edit1968 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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References
edit- ^ "1968 Illinois Fighting Illini Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
- ^ "1968 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
- ^ "Fighting Illini Football Record Book" (PDF). University of Illinois. 2015. p. 155. Retrieved December 29, 2016.
- ^ "Indiana Football 2023 Record Book" (PDF). Indiana University. p. 14. Retrieved December 28, 2023.