1963 Illinois Fighting Illini football team
| 1963 Illinois Fighting Illini football | |
|---|---|
 | |
Big Ten champion Rose Bowl champion | |
Rose Bowl, W 17–7 vs. Washington | |
| Conference | Big Ten Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 4 |
| AP | No. 3 |
| Record | 8–1–1 (5–1–1 Big Ten) |
| Head coach |
|
| MVP | Dick Butkus |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Memorial Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 3 $ | 5 | – | 1 | – | 1 | 8 | – | 1 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 Michigan State | 4 | – | 1 | – | 1 | 6 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ohio State | 4 | – | 1 | – | 1 | 5 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan | 2 | – | 3 | – | 2 | 3 | – | 4 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iowa | 2 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 3 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 1 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1963 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1963 Big Ten season. In their fourth year under head coach Pete Elliott, the Fighting Illini compiled an 8–1–1 record (5–1–1 in conference games), won the Big Ten championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 153 to 89. They concluded the season with a 17–7 victory over Washington in the 1964 Rose Bowl. The Illini's sole loss was a 14-8 defeat against Michigan. They were ranked No. 3 in the final AP poll.[1]
Illinois center and linebacker Dick Butkus was selected as the team's most valuable player, won the 1963 Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the Big Ten's most valuable player, and was honored as a unanimous first-team player on the 1963 All-America team.[2][3] Tackle Archie Sutton was selected by the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) as a second-team All-American.[4]
The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Mike Taliaferro (434 passing yards, 41.8% completion percentage), fullback Jim Grabowski (491 rushing yards, 4.2 yards per carry), and wide receiver Bill Pasko (131 receiving yards).[5]
The team played its home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 28 | California* | W 10–0 | 42,357 | |||
| October 5 | No. 4 Northwestern |
| W 10–9 | 51,286 | ||
| October 12 | at No. 8 Ohio State | T 20–20 | 84,712 | |||
| October 19 | Minnesota | No. 7 |
| W 16–6 | 61,229 | |
| October 25 | at UCLA* | No. 4 | W 18–12 | 24,616 | ||
| November 2 | Purdue | No. 2 |
| W 41–21 | 61,796 | |
| November 9 | Michigan | No. 2 |
| L 8–14 | 55,810 | [6][7] |
| November 16 | at Wisconsin | No. 8 | W 17–7 | 65,418 | ||
| November 28 | at No. 4 Michigan State | No. 8 | W 13–0 | 74,342 | ||
| January 1 | vs. Washington* | No. 3 | W 17–7 | 96,957 | ||
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Players
- Dick Butkus - center/linebacker
- Jim Grabowski - running back
- Sammy Price - running back
- Gregg Schumacher - end
- Archie Sutton - tackle
- Mike Taliaferro - quarterback
- Wylie Fox - lineman
- Rich Callaghan - end (offense & defense)
Awards and honors
- Dick Butkus (Linebacker)
- Archie Sutton (Tackle)
Roster
| Player | Position |
| Bill Pasko | End |
| Neal Anderson | |
| Jim Plankenhorn | Offensive Tackle, Placekicker |
| Al Wheatland | Halfback |
| Mike Taliaferro (co-captain) | Quarterback |
| Dick Deller (co-captain) | Guard |
| Ron Fearn | Fullback |
| Mike Dundy | Defensive back |
| Dave Anderson | |
| Jim Warren | Halfback |
| Sammy Price | Halfback |
| Gary Eickman | Tackle |
| Jim Wainwright | |
| Lynn Stewart | Offensive Tackle |
| Bob Easter | Offensive Tackle |
| Dee Rutherford | |
| Dick Butkus | Center/Linebacker |
| Todd Gabbett | Guard |
| Rich Callaghan | End (offense & defense) |
| Fred Custardo | Quarterback, Placekicker |
| Larry Justiz | |
| Tony Parola | |
| Barry Deist | |
| Les Feuquay | |
| Dick Dorr | |
| Hal Wineland | |
| Ken Schreiner | Guard |
| Mario Camanaro | |
| Paul Upton | |
| Bill Minor | Guard |
| Hugh Woodson | |
| Gregg Schumacher | End |
| Dennis Senkowski | |
| Bruce Capel | |
| Art McCaskill | |
| Wayne Paulson | Halfback |
| Dave Mueller | |
| George Donnelly | Defensive Back |
| Dick Kee | |
| Dick Hochleutner | |
| Charles Galbreath | |
| Wylie Fox | Guard |
| Terry Fairbanks | |
| Jim Grabowski | Halfback |
| Kai Anderson | |
| Dick Fitzgerald | |
| Ron Acks | Fullback, Linebacker |
| Mike Summers | |
| Ken Nietupski | Tackle |
| Wayne Strauch | |
| Joe Wolfe | |
| Ed Walsh | |
| Jack Maggiore | Offensive Lineman |
| Dave DeWolf | |
| Bill Farrell | |
| Jim Unrath | |
| Steve Kimbell | |
| Royce Neisz | |
| John Willis | |
| Archie Sutton | Offensive Tackle |
| Bob Petkus | |
| Don Hansen | Linebacker |
| Eddie Russell | |
| Dave Russell | |
| Dave Powless | Guard |
| Dale Greco | |
| John Walker | |
| Bernie McCabe | |
| Ed Terrill | |
| Bill Harper | |
| Brian Duniec | Guard |
| Ed Washington | Offensive Tackle |
- Head coach: Pete Elliott (3rd year at Illinois)
References
- ^ a b "1963 Illinois Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 26, 2025.
- ^ "Fighting Illini Football Record Book" (PDF). University of Illinois. 2015. p. 155. Retrieved December 29, 2016.
- ^ "2014 NCAA Football Records: Consensus All-America Selections" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2014. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2014. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
- ^ "Staubach Leads Youthful NEA All-Americans". Evening Independent, St. Petersburg, FL. December 2, 1963. p. 14A.
- ^ "1963 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 26, 2025.
- ^ Lyall Smith (November 10, 1963). "Michigan KOs Illinois, 14 to 8". Detroit Free Press. p. 1D, 3D – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Mike Block (November 10, 1963). "'M' Humbles Fumbling Illinois, 14-8". The Michigan Daily. pp. 1, 7 – via Bentley Historical Library.