Illinois Fighting Illini
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Illinois Fighting Illini
University University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Conference Big Ten
NCAA Division I
Athletics director Ron Guenther
Location Champaign, IL
Varsity teams 21 (10 men's, 11 women's)
Football stadium Memorial Stadium (Champaign)
Basketball arena Assembly Hall (Champaign)
Mascot None
Nickname Fighting Illini
Fight song Illinois Loyalty, Oskee Wow Wow
Colors Orange and Blue

             
Homepage fightingillini.com

The Fighting Illini (also known as The Illini) are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The University offers 10 men's and 11 women's varsity sports.

The University operates a number of athletic facilities, including Memorial Stadium for football, the Assembly Hall for men's basketball, and the Atkins Tennis Center for men's and women's tennis. The Fighting Illini lay claim to over twenty-five National Championships dating back to 1900. However, the Illini have won just two National Championships since 1958 — Men's Tennis in 2003 and Men's Gymnastics in 1989.

Contents

Organization

The University's Division of Intercollegiate Athletics administers the official athletics teams of the University. All of the University's athletics teams participate in the NCAA's Division I, and form the Big Ten Conference with 10 other primarily midwestern universities. The football team participates in a subdivision within the Division I known as Division I-A.

Men's Sports

Baseball, basketball, cheerleading, cross country, football, golf, gymnastics, tennis, track and field, and wrestling.

Women's Sports

Basketball, cheerleading, cross country, golf, gymnastics, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.

Athletic Accomplishments

Baseball

  • Big Ten Champions: 1900, 1903, 1904, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1910, 1911, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1921, 1922, 1927, 1931, 1934, 1937, 1940, 1947, 1948, 1952, 1953, 1962, 1963, 1989, 1990, 1998, 2005

Basketball: Men

Main article: Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball
  • National Champions: 1915 (Mythical National Championship awarded by the Helms Athletic Foundation in 1935)
  • NCAA Final Four: 1949, 1951, 1952, 1989, 2005
  • Big Ten Champions: 1915, 1917, 1924, 1935, 1937, 1942, 1943, 1949, 1951, 1952, 1963, 1984, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005
  • Big Ten Tournament Champions: 2003, 2005

Basketball: Women

  • Big Ten Champions: 1997

Cross Country: Men

  • Big Ten Champions: 1921, 1947, 1984

Fencing: Men

  • National Champions: 1956, 1958

Football

Main article: Illinois Fighting Illini football

Golf: Men

  • Big Ten Champions: 1923, 1927, 1930, 1931, 1940, 1941, 1988

Gymnastics: Men

  • NCAA National Champions: 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1950, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1989
  • Big Ten Champions: 1911, 1912, 1929, 1935, 1939, 1941, 1942, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1981, 1983, 1988, 1989, 2004

Gymnastics: Women

  • Big Ten Champions: 1990

Swimming and Diving: Men

  • Big Ten Champions: 1911, 1912, 1913

Tennis: Men

Main article: Illinois Fighting Illini men's tennis
  • NCAA National Champions: 2003
  • NCAA National Runner-up: 2007
  • Big Ten Champions: 1914, 1917, 1922, 1924, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1932, 1946, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
  • Big Ten Tournament Champions: 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005

Track and Field: Men

INDOOR

  • NCAA National Champions: 1921, 1926, 1943, 1945, 1946
  • Big Ten Champions: 1912, 1913, 1914, 1916, 1920, 1921, 1924, 1928, 1946, 1947, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1958, 1977, 1981, 1987, 1988, 1989

OUTDOOR

  • NCAA National Champions': 1921, 1927[3], 1944, 1946, 1947
  • Big Ten Champions: 1907, 1909, 1913, 1914, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1934, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1975, 1977, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1994

Track and Field: Women

INDOOR

  • Big Ten Champions: 1989, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996

OUTDOOR

  • Big Ten Champions: 1988, 1989, 1992, 1995, 2005, 2007

Volleyball

  • NCAA Final Four: 1987, 1988
  • Big Ten Champions: 1986, 1987, 1988, 1992

Wrestling

  • Big Ten Champions: 1913, 1917, 1920, 1922, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1930, 1932, 1935, 1937, 1946, 1947, 1952, 2005

Famous athletes

Noteworthy teams

Men's Basketball: 1988-1989 season

Overall record: (31-5)

Head coach: Lou Henson

Story: Ranked #1 during the regular season. Known for their athletic style. Defeated in the Final Four of the 1989 NCAA Tournament, by the Michigan Wolverines even though they had defeated them twice during the regular season. Michigan went on to win the National Championship.

Men's Basketball: 2004-2005 season

Overall record (tournaments included): 37-2

Regular season: 29-1

Big Ten Conference play: 15-1

Head coach: Bruce Weber

Starters:

Story: The first Illinois men's basketball team to be ranked number one in the polls since Lou Henson's "Flying Illini" of 1989. Illinois won the Big Ten Tournament and were the overall number one seed in the 2005 NCAA Tournament, eventually losing to the University of North Carolina, the number two overall seed, in the finals, 75-70. This Illinois team tied the NCAA record for most wins in a season with 37 and was undefeated until losing the final game of the regular season at Ohio State by the score of 64-65.

Symbol and controversy

Main article: Chief Illiniwek
The Chief Illiniwek symbol
The Chief Illiniwek symbol

A symbol of the University's athletic teams was, from 1926–2007, a Native American figure, Chief Illiniwek, who sparked significant controversy beginning in the 1980s. Critics of the symbol claimed that it was a racist stereotype and a symbol of the oppression to Native Americans that took place in past American history. Supporters claimed that it was inoffensive and a source of pride and reverence to the Native American heritage of Illinois—a view supported by a majority of students and alumni. Past Sioux elder, Frank Fools Crow, made and sold an authentic ceremonial costume and headdress to the university; recently, the Oglala Sioux tribe demanded the costume and headdress back from the university, though this move was opposed by one of Fools Crow's descendants [1].

The University was (and is) deeply divided on this issue; while some of the faculty condemned the symbol, the administration remained supportive of it. The University Board of Trustees announced on February 16, 2007, that the Chief's last public performance would be the final home game of the 2006–2007 Men's Basketball season. The name "Fighting Illini" was retained, as the NCAA rescinded its criticism of the use of the term. The name "Fighting Illini" pre-dates the Chief Illiniwek symbol and was bestowed upon the team in honor of Illinoisans who fought in World War I; the use of the name "Illini" dates to the 19th century. At the Chief's last performance on Wed., February 21, 2007, students wore black to honor and mourn the chief's final performance.

In the 2008 student elections, a referendum supporting the re-instatement of the Chief Illiniwek symbol was passed by an overwhelming majority, 79% to 21%. While it was not a legally binding referendum question, it was successful in that it allowed the students' voice to finally be heard, as they were completely left out of the decision making process - the decision was announced after a series of closed-door meetings.

References

  1. ^ <http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/ill/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2006MG-TheRecordBook.pdf>
  2. ^ A now-defunct organization also voted the Illini as co-champ in 1951. However, the school does not claim this as a "National Championship
  3. ^ The Illini were voted unofficial National Champions in 1927, since the NCAA did not hold a National Championship competition that year.

See also

External links

v • d • e
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Academics
Athletics
Points of Interest
Students
v • d • e
Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Network
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