1981 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

1981 Illinois Fighting Illini football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	7–4 (6–3 Big Ten)
Head coach	Mike White (2nd season)
MVP	Tony Eason, Kelvin Atkins, Ron Ferrari, Dan Gregus, Mike Bass
Captain	Greg Boeke, Ron Ferrari, Jack Squirek
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium

1981 Big Ten Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 15 Ohio State +	6	–	2	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
No. 18 Iowa +	6	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
No. 12 Michigan	6	–	3	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
Illinois	6	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Wisconsin	6	–	3	–	0			7	–	5	–	0
Minnesota	4	–	5	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Michigan State	4	–	5	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Purdue	3	–	6	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Indiana	3	–	6	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Northwestern	0	–	9	–	0			0	–	11	–	0
+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 1981 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois during the 1981 Big Ten Conference football season. In their second year under head coach Mike White, the Illini compiled a 7–4 record and finished in three-way tie for third place in the Big Ten Conference.

The team's offensive leaders were quarterback Tony Eason with 3,360 passing yards, running back Calvin Thomas with 390 rushing yards, and wide receiver Oliver Williams with 760 receiving yards. Several Illinois players ranked among the Big Ten leaders, including the following:

• Tony Eason led the conference with 248 pass completions, a 61.1 pass completion percentage, 3,360 passing yards, a 140.0 passing efficiency rating, 20 passing touchdowns, 14 interceptions, and 3,331 total yards.
• Oliver Williams ranked third in the conference with six receiving touchdowns and 20.0 yards per reception and ranked fifth in the conference with 760 receiving yards.
• Kirby Wilson ranked second in the conference with 546 kickoff return yards.
• Mike Bass ranked third in the conference with 33 extra points made, fifth with 10 field goals and a 58.8% field goal percentage, and sixth with 63 points scored.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance
September 5	at No. 8 Pittsburgh*	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	L 6–26	46,022
September 12	at Michigan State	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	W 27–17	54,945
September 19	Syracuse*	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	W 17–14	57,579
October 3	Minnesota	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	W 38–29	63,814
October 10	at Purdue	Ross–Ade Stadium West Lafayette, IN (rivalry)	L 20–44	69,846
October 17	at Ohio State	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (Illibuck Trophy)	L 27–34	87,158
October 24	Wisconsin	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	W 23–21	67,413
October 31	No. 16 Iowa	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	W 24–7	66,877
November 7	at No. 12 Michigan	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	L 21–70	105,570
November 14	Indiana	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	W 35–14	56,143
November 21	at Northwestern	Dyche Stadium Evanston, IL (rivalry)	W 49–12	23,116
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1981 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense 65 Finis, Marty OG 6-2 240 Jr. Palatine, Ill./Fremd 72 Flynn, Dennis OT 6-4 252 Sr. 13 Lopez, John WR 6-2 185 Sr. Elk Grove, Ill./St. Viator 4 Martin, Mike WR 5-10 175 Jr. Washington, D.C./Eastern 86 McAvoy, Tim TE 6-3 232 Sr. 11 Trudeau, Jack QB 6-4.5 195 Fr 44 West, Kevin FB 6-2 210 Jr. Anaheim, Calif./Fullerton JC 17 Williams, Oliver WR 6-3 190 Jr. Pos. # Name Class RB 33 Mitchell Brookins Jr QB 3 Tony Eason Jr C 55 Adam Lingner Jr FB 42 Calvin Thomas Sr QB John Wells Jr	Defense 31 Burgard, Pete OLB 6-4 225 Sr. Ypsilanti, Mich./Ypsilanti 51 Buron, Tom DT 6-4 225 So. St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles 53 Butkus, Mark DT 6-4 235 So. Lansing, Ill./Thornton Fractional 96 Thorp, Don DT 6-4 230 So. Arlington Hts./Buffalo Grove 24 Toney, Mike DB 6-2 210 Jr 94 Tuck, Mark DL 6-5 245 Jr. Charlotte, N.C./Triton JC Varrige, Tom DB 5-9 180 Jr. Park Ridge, Ill./Park Ridge 7 Vengoni, John OLB 6-0 215 Sr. Pos. # Name Class DB 37 Charles Armstead Jr OLB 84 Kelvin Atkins Sr LB 61 Ed Brady So OLB 57 Darryl Byrd Jr LB 29 Ron Ferrari Sr LB 34 Jack Squirek Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Mike White Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster

Season summary

Northwestern

Tony Eason threw three touchdown passes to set the Big Ten single season record. The two teams overall combined to throw 109 passes, breaking the conference mark set earlier in the year by Minnesota and Ohio State.