1953 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

American college football season February 2026 August 2023 1953 Illinois Fighting Illini football 1953 Illinois Fighting Illini football team.jpg 285 Big Ten Conference Big Ten 7 7 7–1–1 5–1 Ray Eliot 12th Don Ernst Robert Lenzini Memorial Stadium Big Ten co-champion The 1953 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1953 Big Ten season. In their 12th year under head coach Ray Eliot, the Fighting Illini compiled a 7–1–1 record (5–1 in conference games), tied for first place in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 228 to 133. They were ranked No. 7 in the final AP poll. The sole defeat was a 34–7 loss to Wisconsin.1953 Illinois Schedule and Results Sports Reference LLC SR/College Football July 27, 2025 https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/illinois/1953-schedule.html Tackle Don Ernst was selected as the team's most valuable player.Fighting Illini Football Record Book University of Illinois 2015 December 28, 2016 155 http://sidearm.sites.s3.amazonaws.com/fightingillini.com/documents/2015/8/3/3_History_7_30.pdf November 29, 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20201129040612/http://sidearm.sites.s3.amazonaws.com/fightingillini.com/documents/2015/8/3/3_History_7_30.pdf dead Sophomore halfback J. C. Caroline led the team with 1,256 rushing yards on 194 attempts (6.5 yards per carry) and was selected as a consensus first-team player on the 1953 All-America team.2014 NCAA Football Records: Consensus All-America Selections National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) 2014 February 10, 2015 6 http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2014/Awards.pdf December 22, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20141222163944/http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2014/Awards.pdf dead Guard John Bauer was selected by the Newspaper Enterprise Association as a third-team All-American.Harry Grayson Harry Grayson Harry Grayson Picks All-America for 1953 Independent Record Helena, Montana 1953-11-29 Guard Jan Smid and back J. C. Caroline received first-team honors on the 1953 All-Big Ten Conference football team.Coaches Pick Gopher's Giel Ludington Daily News November 24, 1953 6 https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=110&dat=19531124&id=JFNOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=eDwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3916,1826150UP All-Big Ten The Oshkosh Northwestern November 23, 1953 16 https://www.newspapers.com/clip/104922910/up-all-big-ten/ Newspapers.com The team played its home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois. Schedule 1953 AP September 26 t y Nebraska Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL 21–21 40,011 October 3 w y Stanford Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL 33–21 32,737 October 10 w y Ohio State 3 Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH Illibuck 41–20 81,745 October 17 w 9 Minnesota Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL 27–7 55,641 October 24 w y 7 Syracuse Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL 20–13 30,076 October 31 w 4 Purdue Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL rivalry 21–0 57,210 November 7 w y 4 Michigan 17 Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL series 19–3 69,507 November 14 l y 3 Wisconsin Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI 7–34 52,887 November 21 w y 7 Northwestern Dyche Stadium Evanston, IL rivalry 3–0 51,039 Roster PlayerPositionPeter PalmerRobert BishopJohn RyanEnd, Defensive BackRobert Lenzini (captain)GuardRoger WolfJan SmidGuardStephen NosekQuarterbackJohn BauerGuard, TackleMichael GausJack ChamblinDavid BauerDefensive BackPaul FurimskyDean WilmannDale FosterPaul LuhrsenBaird StewartJames PollittRichard KohlhagenKenneth SwientonFloyd McAfeeJames CalderRonald YochemRobert WimanDon ErnstRandall RaybornFrancis HoffmanJoseph YuskoWalter VernascoEndDonald BostromJames BronsonEm LindbeckHugh WoodsonPatrick PhillipsJerry MarkbreitGeorge WalshClarence DeMossHalfbackHerbert BadalJames MinorTerry MatthewsKenneth MillerFullbackStan WallaceDefensive BackDonald TateJames DunneJack SopkinRobert AlexanderGus MackrisRoger MeullerRichard PiggottCharles SchiesserRichard RosenbergRobert DesenfantsRudolf SiegertDonald GrotheThomas MillerPlacekickerJ. C. CarolineHalfback, Defensive BackRobert GraeffRichard OhlsMelvin BatesFullbackDean RennClifford WaldbeserElry FalkensteinQuarterbackHerbert Borman July 2025 Head coach: Ray Eliot (12th year at Illinois) References Illinois Category:Illinois Fighting Illini football seasons Category:Big Ten Conference football champion seasons Category:College football undefeated seasons Illinois Fighting Illini football