The 1953 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois during the 1953 Big Ten Conference football season. In their 12th year under head coach Ray Eliot, the Illini compiled a 7–1–1 record, finished in a tie for first place in the Big Ten Conference, and were ranked #7 in the final AP Poll. The sole defeat was a 34–7 loss to Wisconsin.[1]
| 1953 Illinois Fighting Illini football | |
|---|---|
 | |
Big Ten co-champion | |
| Conference | Big Ten Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 7 |
| AP | No. 7 |
| Record | 7–1–1 (5–1 Big Ten) |
| Head coach |
|
| MVP | Don Ernst |
| Captain | Robert Lenzini |
| Home stadium | Memorial Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 3 Michigan State + | 5 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 7 Illinois + | 5 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 1 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 15 Wisconsin | 4 | – | 1 | – | 1 | 6 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ohio State | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 3 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 4 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 20 Michigan | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 Iowa | 3 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue | 2 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 1 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 0 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tackle Don Ernst was selected as the team's most valuable player.[2] 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 College Football All-America Team.[3] Guard John Bauer was selected by the Newspaper Enterprise Association as a third-team All-American.[4]
Schedule
edit| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 26 | Nebraska* | T 21–21 | 40,011 | ||
| October 3 | Stanford* |
| W 33–21 | 32,737 | |
| October 10 | at No. 3 Ohio State | W 41–20 | 81,745 | ||
| October 17 | Minnesota | No. 9 |
| W 27–7 | 55,641 |
| October 24 | Syracuse* | No. 7 |
| W 20–13 | 30,076 |
| October 31 | Purdue | No. 4 |
| W 21–0 | 57,210 |
| November 7 | No. 17 Michigan | No. 4 |
| W 19–3 | 69,507 |
| November 14 | at Wisconsin | No. 3 | L 7–34 | 52,887 | |
| November 21 | at Northwestern | No. 7 | W 3–0 | 51,039 | |
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Roster
edit- Head coach: Ray Eliot (12th year at Illinois)
References
edit- ^ "1953 Illinois Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
- ^ "Fighting Illini Football Record Book" (PDF). University of Illinois. 2015. p. 155. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
- ^ "2014 NCAA Football Records: Consensus All-America Selections" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2014. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2014. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
- ^ Harry Grayson (November 29, 1953). "Harry Grayson Picks All-America for 1953". Independent Record. Helena, Montana.
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