1997 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team

1997 Western Illinois Leathernecks football
Gateway champion
NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal, L 12–14 vs. McNeese State
Conference	Gateway Football Conference
Ranking
Sports Network	No. 2
Record	11–2 (6–0 Gateway)
Head coach	Randy Ball (8th season)
Home stadium	Hanson Field
Seasons ←  1996 1998  →

1997 Gateway Football Conference standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 2 Western Illinois $^		6	–	0					11	–	2
Northern Iowa		5	–	1					7	–	4
No. 4 Youngstown State ^		4	–	2					13	–	2
Southwest Missouri State		3	–	3					5	–	6
Indiana State		2	–	4					3	–	8
Southern Illinois		1	–	5					3	–	8
Illinois State		0	–	6					2	–	9
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 1997 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team represented Western Illinois University as a member of the Gateway Football Conference during the 1997 NCAA Division I-AA football season. They were led by eighth-year head coach Randy Ball and played their home games at Hanson Field. The Leathernecks finished the season with an 11–2 record overall and a 6–0 record in conference play, making them conference champions. The team received an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they defeated Jackson State before losing to McNeese State in the quarterfinals. ^[1]

Running back Aaron Stecker, a transfer from Wisconsin, finished the year with 1,957 rushing yards and 24 touchdowns, which ranked second and first in Division I-AA respectively. Stecker was named the Gateway Conference's offensive player of the year. ^[2]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
August 28	No. 6 Eastern Illinois *	No. 9	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	W 41–0	6,700	[3]
September 6	Truman State *	No. 5	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	W 45–18	7,000	[4]
September 13	at Alcorn State *	No. 5	Jack Spinks Stadium Lorman, MS	W 31–17	4,121	[5]
September 20	at Marshall *	No. 4	Marshall University Stadium Huntington, WV	L 7–48	26,724	[6]
October 4	at Southern Utah *	No. 9	Eccles Coliseum Cedar City, UT	W 45–6	4,445	[7]
October 11	No. 17 Northern Iowa	No. 5	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	W 29–22 2OT	13,446	[8]
October 18	at Indiana State	No. 5	Memorial Stadium Terre Haute, IN	W 37–3	2,381	[9]
October 25	Southwest Missouri State	No. 3	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	W 37–7	10,874	[10]
November 1	Southern Illinois	No. 2	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	W 31–26	5,241	[11]
November 8	at Illinois State	No. 2	Hancock Stadium Normal, IL	W 37–23	6,512	[12]
November 22	at No. 4 Youngstown State	No. 2	Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	W 24–21	12,134	[13]
November 29	No. 14 Jackson State *	No. 2	Hanson Field Macomb, IL (NCAA Division I-AA First Round)	W 31–24	8,980	[14]
December 6	No. 7 McNeese State *	No. 2	Hanson Field Macomb, IL (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	L 12–14	5,000	[15]
*Non-conference game Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "Western Illinois Football Record Book" (PDF). Western Illinois University Athletics. p. 72. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
2. Bryant, C.B. (November 28, 1997). "Leathernecks charge up hill behind Stecker". Clarion-Ledger . p. 1C. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Western Illinois tops Eastern in opener". The Pantagraph . Associated Press. August 29, 1997. p. B4. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Leathernecks rout Truman State 45-18". Belleville News-Democrat . Associated Press. September 7, 1997. p. 2D. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Record-setting Stecker runs over Alcorn". The Clarion-Ledger . Associated Press. September 14, 1997. p. 5D. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Marshall easily pins first loss on Western Illinois". Herald and Review . Associated Press. September 21, 1997. p. C5. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Western Illinois 45, Southern Utah 6". Quad-City Times . October 5, 1997. p. 3F. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
8. "2 OTs: UNI stumbles". Des Moines Register . Associated Press. October 12, 1997. p. 6D. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Western Illinois 37, Indiana State 3". Quad-City Times . Associated Press. October 19, 1997. p. 2F. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
10. Scranton, Lyndal (October 26, 1997). "Stecker, W. Illinois stun SMS". Springfield News-Leader . p. 1C. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
11. Hardwig, Greg (November 2, 1997). "Stecker sticks it to SIU". The Southern Illinoisan . p. 1C. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
12. Reinhardt, Randy (November 9, 1997). "Redbirds go out with a bang, loss". The Pantagraph . p. F1. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
13. "Leathernecks capture Gateway championship". The Southern Illinoisan . Associated Press. November 23, 1997. p. 3C. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
14. Cooper, Craig (November 30, 1997). "WIU wins a wild one". Quad-City Times . p. 10S. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
15. "Western Illinois falls to McNeese State in quarters". The Pantagraph . Associated Press. December 7, 1997. p. F3. Retrieved November 6, 2021– via Newspapers.com.