1997 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

Last updated

1997 Illinois Fighting Illini football
Fighting Illini logo.svg
Conference Big Ten Conference
Record0–11 (0–8 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinator Buddy Teevens (1st season)
Defensive coordinator Tim Kish (1st season)
MVP Robert Holcombe
Captains
Home stadium Memorial Stadium
Seasons
←  1996
1998  →
1997 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
No. 1 Michigan $  8 –0   12 –0  
No. 12 Ohio State  6 –2   10 –3  
No. 16 Penn State  6 –2   9 –3  
No. 15 Purdue  6 –2   9 –3  
Wisconsin  5 –3   8 –5  
Iowa  4 –4   7 –5  
Michigan State  4 –4   7 –5  
Northwestern  3 –5   5 –7  
Minnesota  1 –7   3 –9  
Indiana  1 –7   2 –9  
Illinois  0 –8   0 –11  
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1997 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their first year under head coach Ron Turner, the Fighting Illini compiled a 0–11 record (0–8 in conference games), finished last out of eleven teams in the Big Ten, and were outscored by a total of 368 to 119. [1]

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Mark Hokestra (1,029 passing yards), running back Robert Holcombe (1,253 rushing yards, 36 points scored) and wide receiver Lenny Willis (465 receiving yards). [2]

As of 2024, the 1997 Illinois team was the last Big Ten football team that failed to register a single win.

The team played its home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 66:00 pm Southern Miss *
 ESPN2 L 7–2444,519
September 132:30 pmat Louisville *
 CBS L 13–2636,824
September 2011:30 amNo. 19 Washington State *
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
ESPN2L 22–3547,131
September 2711:30 amat No. 11 Iowa
ESPN2L 10–3870,397
October 411:30 amNo. 2 Penn State
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
ESPN2L 6–4151,523
October 1111:00 amat Wisconsin
ESPN Plis L 7–3179,327
October 251:00 pmNo. 22 Purdue
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL (rivalry)
L 3–4845,122
November 11:00 pmat Indiana
L 6–2332,705
November 811:00 am Northwestern
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL (rivalry)
ESPN PlusL 21–3441,195
November 1511:00 amat No. 4 Ohio State
ESPN PlusL 6–4192,008
November 221:00 pm Michigan State
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
L 17–2730,087
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

[3]

References

  1. ↑ "1997 Illinois Fighting Illini Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  2. ↑ "1997 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  3. ↑ "fightingillini.com". Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
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