1964 Illinois Fighting Illini football team
| 1964 Illinois Fighting Illini football | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conference | Big Ten Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 16 |
| Record | 6–3 (4–3 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. 4 Michigan $ | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 Ohio State | 5 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iowa | 1 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 1 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1964 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 1964 Big Ten season. In their fourth year under head coach Pete Elliott, the Fighting Illini compiled a 6–3 record (4–3 in conference games), tied for fourth place in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 142 to 100. They were ranked No. 2 in the AP poll in week 3 but dropped out of the poll after losing to Ohio State.[1]
Center and linebacker Dick Butkus was a unanimous pick for the 1964 All-America team.[2] He was also named the American Football Coaches Association Player of the Year, finished third in Heisman Trophy balloting, and was selected as the team's most valuable player.[3]
Two other Illinois players received first-team All-America honors: guard Archie Sutton and fullback Jim Grabowski. Grabowski led the Big Ten with 186 carries, 1,004 rushing yards, and 10 rushing touchdowns. The team's other statistical leaders included quarterback Fred Custardo (1,012 passing yards, 54.1% completion percentage), and wide receiver Bob Trumpy (28 receptions for 428 yards).[4]
The team played its home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 26 | at California* | No. 3 | W 20–14 | 44,704 | ||
| October 3 | at Northwestern | No. 3 | W 17–6 | 52,062 | ||
| October 10 | No. 4 Ohio State | No. 2 | L 0–26 | 71,227 | [5] | |
| October 17 | at Minnesota | W 14–0 | 60,475 | [6] | ||
| October 24 | UCLA* |
| W 26–7 | 68,727 | ||
| October 31 | at Purdue | L 14–26 | 59,425 | [7] | ||
| November 7 | at Michigan | L 6–21 | 62,415 | |||
| November 14 | Wisconsin |
| W 29–0 | 55,077 | ||
| November 21 | Michigan State |
| W 16–0 | 32,000 | [8] | |
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Awards and honors
Center/linebacker Dick Butkus won numerous honors in 1964, including:
- He was a unanimous pick for the 1964 All-America team with first-team honors from the Associated Press (AP),[9] United Press International (UPI), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), Central Press (CP), Football News (FN), Time magazine,[10] and The Sporting News (TSN).
- He was selected by the AFCA and Sport Magazine as the college football player of the year.[11][12]
- He finished third in Heisman Trophy balloting.[13]
Others receiving All-America honors included:
- Defensive back George Donnelly won first-team honors from The Sporting News and Time magazine.
- Fullback Jim Grabowski won first-team honors from the UPI and Football News. Grabowski was later inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
- Guard Archie Sutton won first-team honors from Time magazine.
1965 NFL draft
| Player | Round | Pick | Position | Club |
| Dick Butkus | 1 | 3 | Linebacker | Chicago Bears |
| George Donnelly | 1 | 13 | Back | San Francisco 49ers |
| Archie Sutton | 2 | 15 | Tackle | Minnesota Vikings |
| Gregg Schumacher | 13 | 170 | End | San Francisco 49ers |
| Dave Powless | 17 | 225 | Guard | New York Giants |
- Dick Butkus was also drafted by the Denver Broncos in the 1965 American Football League draft.[14]
References
- ^ "1964 Illinois Fighting Illini Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 26, 2025.
- ^ "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 February 10, 2015.
- ^ "Fighting Illini Football Record Book" (PDF). University of Illinois. 2015. p. 155. Retrieved December 29, 2016.
- ^ "1964 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 26, 2025.
- ^ Dick Forbes (October 11, 1964). "OSU Pulverizes Illini, 26-0". The Cincinnati Enquirer. p. 1E – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Bristling Illini Bury Minnesota". Minneapolis Tribune. October 18, 1964. p. Sports 1 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Purdue Upsets Illini, 26-14; Rose Bowl Stock Goes Up". The Indianapolis Star. November 1, 1964. p. IV-1 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Bob Hoerner (November 22, 1964). "State's 'Champaign Party' Goes Down Drain: Grabowski, Butkus Help Sing Spartans Again, 16 to 0". Lansing State Journal. p. 1F – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Dick Butkus Leads AP All-America Selections". Streator Times-Press. December 4, 1964. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Frederickson Makes 'Time' All-America At Fullback". The Montgomery Advertiser. November 28, 1964. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Nation's Coaches Surprise With Selection of Two Quarterbacks For 75th Annual "Diamond Jubilee" All-America Football team". The Mendocino Beacon. December 25, 1964. p. 21 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sport Magazine Picks Butkus As Top Gridder". The Decatur Daily Review. January 7, 1965. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Huarte Wins Heisman Gridiron Trophy". Chicago Tribune. November 25, 1964. p. 1 (section 3) – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 394