1983 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team

Last updated

1983 Eastern Illinois Panthers football
Mid-Con champion
Conference Association of Mid-Continent Universities
Record9–3 (3–0 Mid-Con)
Head coach
Home stadium O'Brien Stadium
Seasons
←  1982
1984  →
1983 Association of Mid-Continent Universities football standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 6 Eastern Illinois $^ 3 –0 –09 –3 –0
Southwest Missouri State 2 –1 –06 –5 –0
Northern Iowa 1 –2 –06 –5 –0
Western Illinois 0 –3 –03 –8 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

The 1983 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team was an American football team that represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Association of Mid-Continent Universities (Mid-Con) during the 1983 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by first-year head coach Al Molde, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 9–3 with a mark of 3–0 in conference play, winning the Mid-Con title. Eastern Illinois was invited to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they lost Indiana State in the first round.

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 3at Illinois State *
W 38–7 [1]
September 10at Southern Illinois *
L 14–1712,800 [2]
September 17 Grand Valley State *
W 35–216,400 [3] [4]
September 24at Northeast Missouri State *
W 42–0 [5]
October 1 Youngstown State *
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
W 21–20 [6]
October 8at Akron *No. T–19
W 10–7 [7]
October 15 Northern Iowa No. 14
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
W 13–07,100 [8]
October 22 Western Illinois No. T–9
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
W 20–0 [9]
October 29No. 20 Indiana State *No. 7
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
L 13–173,300 [10]
November 5 Southwest Missouri State No. 13
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
W 12–3 [11]
November 12at Western Kentucky *No. 11
W 34–145,000 [12]
November 26at No. 5 Indiana State*No. 6
L 13–16 2OT6,222 [13]

[14]

References

  1. ↑ "Eastern is off to flying start". Chicago Tribune. September 4, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "Miller's field goal sparks So. Illinois". The Indianapolis Star. September 11, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "Eastern Illinois beats Grand Valley". The Grand Rapids Press. September 18, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Final 1983 Cumulative Football Statistics Report (Grand Valley State)". National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved June 20, 2025.
  5. ↑ "Air raid; Eastern, Rafferty discover Wright way". Herald and Review. September 25, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Rafferty hurls E. Illinois by Youngstown State". The Des Moines Register. October 2, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Zips come up short in comeback try". The Akron Beacon Journal. October 9, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Eastern Illinois blankls N. Iowa". The Pantagraph. October 16, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Panthers claw 'Necks". The Rock Island Argus. October 23, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Indiana State downs Eastern Illinois 17–13". Southern Illinoisan. October 30, 1983. Retrieved November 11, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Nicholson, Eastern show 'em". Herald and Review (Decatur, Illinois). November 6, 1983. p. B2 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Eastern Illinois forgets protest, storms past Western Kentucky". The Courier-Journal . November 13, 1983 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "ISU wins, 16-13, on Bridges boots". The Indianapolis Star. November 27, 1983. pp. Sports 1, 17 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "EIU Football Online Guide, 2019" (PDF). Eastern Illinois athletics.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.