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The Eastern Illinois Panthers are the intercollegiate athletic programs of Eastern Illinois University (EIU) located in Charleston, Illinois, United States. The Panthers athletic program is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) and competes at the NCAA Division I level in the Football Championship Subdivision. EIU's colors are blue and gray. Selected as the team mascot in 1930, EIU's panther was informally known as "Billy" for many years and was officially named "Billy the Panther" in 2008. Panther teams have won five NCAA national championships in three sports. The Panthers also won the 1969 NAIA men's soccer title.
The Eastern Illinois Panthers football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Eastern Illinois University located in the U.S. state of Illinois. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. The school's first football team was fielded in 1899. The team plays its home games at the 10,000 seat O'Brien Field, which is named after former head coach Maynard O'Brien.
The Mid-America Classic is a long-standing American college football rivalry game played in most years since 1901 between the Panthers of Eastern Illinois University and the Redbirds of Illinois State University. The 2022 season marked the 110th meeting between the two teams with Illinois State's win extending their lead in the series to 59–42–9.
The 2013 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2013 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by Dino Babers in his second and final season as head coach, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 12–2 overall with a mark of 8–0 in conference play, winning the OVC title for the second consecutive season. Eastern Illinois earned the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, where the Panthers defeated Tennessee State in the second round before losing to Towson in the quarterfinals. The team played home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois.
Caelan Kamuela “Kamu” Grugier-Hill is an American football linebacker for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Eastern Illinois, and was drafted by the New England Patriots in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL Draft.
The 1978 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University during the 1978 NCAA Division II football season, and completed the 78th season of Panther football. The Panthers played their home games at O'Brien Stadium in Charleston, Illinois. The 1978 team came off a 1–10 record from the previous season. The 1978 team was led by coach Darrell Mudra. The team finished the regular season with a 9–2 record and made the NCAA Division II playoffs. The Panthers defeated Delaware, 10–9, in the National Championship Game en route to the program's first NCAA Division II Football Championship.
The 2018 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by Kim Dameron in his fifth and final season as head coach, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 3–8 overall with a mark of 3–5 in conference play, tying for sixth place in the OVC. Eastern Illinois played home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois.
The 2019 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by first-year head coach Adam Cushing, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 1–11 overall with a mark of 1–7 in conference play, placing last out of nine teams in the OVC. Eastern Illinois played home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois.
The 2020 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by second-year head coach Adam Cushing, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 1–5 overall with an identical mark in conference play, placing last out of eight teams in the OVC. Eastern Illinois played home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois.
The 1979 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University during the 1979 NCAA Division II football season, and completed the 78th season of Panther football. The Panthers played their home games at O'Brien Stadium in Charleston, Illinois.
The 1981 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Association of Mid-Continent Universities during the 1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season, and completed the 80th season of Panther football. The Panthers were led by fourth-year head coach Darrell Mudra and played their home games at O'Brien Stadium in Charleston, Illinois. Eastern Illinois finished the season with an overall record of 7–4 and shared the conference title with Northern Iowa and Western Illinois.
The 1971 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as an independent during the 1971 NCAA College Division football season. The Panthers played their home games at O'Brien Stadium in Charleston, Illinois.
The 1986 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference (GCAC) during the 1986 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Al Molde, the Panthers played their home games at O'Brien Stadium in Charleston, Illinois. Eastern Illinois finished the season with an overall record of 11–2 and won the GCAC title with a mark of 5–1 in conference play. The team was invited to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they beat Murray State in the first round before losing to Eastern Kentucky in the quarterfinals.
The 1996 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by tenth-year head coach Bob Spoo, the Panthers compiled and overall record of 8–4 with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, tying for second place in the OVC. Eastern Illinois was invited to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they lost to Northern Iowa in the first round.
The 2000 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2000 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by 14th-year head coach Bob Spoo, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 8–4, finishing second in OVC with a conference mark of 6–1. Eastern Illinois was invited to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they lost in the first round to Montana. The Bobcats were ranked 17th in the final Sports Network poll. Their starting quarterback, Tony Romo, went on to play 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL).
The 2001 Eastern Illinois Panthers represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2001 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by 15th-year head coach Bob Spoo, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 9–2, winning the OVC title with a conference mark of 6–1. Eastern Illinois was invited to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they lost in the first round to Northern Iowa. The Bobcats were ranked ninth in the final Sports Network poll.
The 2021 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by Adam Cushing in his third and final season as head coach, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 1–10 with a mark of 1–5 in conference play, tying for sixth place in the OVC. The team played home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois.
The 2005 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2005 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by 19th-year head coach Bob Spoo, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 9–3 with a mark of 8–0 in conference play, winning the OVC title. Eastern Illinois was invited to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they lost Southern Illinois in the first round.
The 2009 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2009 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The team was led by 22nd-year head coach Bob Spoo and played their home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois. The Panthers finished the season with an 8–4 record overall and a 6–2 record in conference play, making them conference champions. The team received an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, where they lost to Southern Illinois in the first round. Eastern Illinois was ranked No. 19 in The Sports Network's postseason ranking of NCAA Division I FCS teams.
The 2022 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represents Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2022 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Panthers are led by first-year head coach Chris Wilkerson and play home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois.
References
- ↑ Weaner, Phil (November 20, 1994). "Thankfully, mercifully... Salukis' misery ends". The Southern Illinoisan . p. 1C. Retrieved January 18, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "EIU Football Online Guide, 2019" (PDF). Eastern Illinois athletics.