Illinois Fighting Illini

The Illinois Fighting Illini represent one of the Big Ten's original programs, playing home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, a venue built as a tribute to Illinois students who died in World War I. The program's history stretches back to the sport's earliest days, and orange and blue have flown through eras of dominance and rebuilding alike. Illinois has produced some of the game's pioneering coaches and stars across more than a century of competition.

Illinois football, guided for 29 seasons by legendary coach Robert Zuppke, won national championships in 1914, 1919, 1923, and 1927, with a fifth title following in 1951. Red Grange, "the Galloping Ghost," became one of the sport's first national superstars playing for Illinois in the 1920s. The Fighting Illini were a founding member of the Big Ten Conference and remain one of its longest-standing programs.