Western Illinois leaves Camp Randall 2014

The Western Illinois Leathernecks football program is the intercollegiate

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

team for

Western Illinois University Western Illinois University (WIU) is a public university in Macomb, Illinois. It was founded in 1899 as Western Illinois State Normal School. As the normal school grew, it became Western Illinois State Teachers College. History Western Illin ...

located in

Macomb, Illinois Macomb is a city in and the county seat of McDonough County, Illinois, United States. It is situated in western Illinois, southwest of Galesburg. The city is about southwest of Peoria and south of the Quad Cities. A special census held in ...

. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and are members of the

Missouri Valley Football Conference The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), formerly the Gateway Football Conference, is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdivi ...

. The school's first football team was fielded in 1903. The team plays its home games at the 16,368 seat

Hanson Field Hanson Field is a 16,368-seat multi-purpose stadium in Macomb, Illinois, USA. The stadium which opened in 1950 is home to the Western Illinois Leathernecks football team and track and field team. The field is named after former WIU football coach ...

History

Western Illinois had an unofficial football team in 1902, the year the school was established. The team played four games against regional high schools and the Western Illinois Normal & Business Institute. In 1903, the school formed an athletic association for the fall football season, which is considered the official beginning of Western Illinois football by the school. The team adopted its nickname in 1927 when coach Ray Hanson, a decorated officer in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

, asked the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

for permission to use the Corps' Fighting Leathernecks nickname and logo for his team. Western Illinois is the only college which officially takes its nickname from a branch of the U.S. military.

Conference affiliations

Championships

Conference championships

† Co-championship

Playoffs and bowls

Playoffs

*Note: Since 1981, the NCAA Division I-AA/Division I FCS Playoffs Regional Championships were commonly referred to as the Boardwalk Bowl (East Region Championship), Pecan Bowl (Midwest Region Championship), Grantland Rice Bowl (South Region Championship), and Camellia Bowl (West Region Championship).

Bowl games

Head coaches

† Acting head coach first seven games of 2008 season and last eight games of 2009 season.

Records

Stadium

Hanson Field

Hanson Field is a 16,368-seat

multi-purpose stadium A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used by multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy tha ...

, USA. The stadium which opened in 1950 is home to the Western Illinois Leathernecks football team and track and field team. The field is named after former WIU football coach/A.D. and Marine legend Rock Hanson. A unique feature of the facility is an extensive hillside that surrounds the field allowing for additional seating for thousands of spectators. Outside the stadium, a statue of former WIU

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

coach and two time Olympic gold medalist

Lee Calhoun Lee Quincy Calhoun (February 23, 1933 – June 21, 1989) was an American athlete, a double winner of 110 m hurdles at the Olympic Games. Biography Born in Laurel, Mississippi, Lee Calhoun, representing North Carolina Central University, won ...

stands and a bulldog statue is located at the main entrance. Highest-Scoring Game
On September 11, 2004, Western Illinois defeated Division II Cheyney State 98–7.

College Football Hall of Fame members

Coaches

Darrell Mudra Darrell E. Mudra Sr. (January 4, 1929 – September 21, 2022), nicknamed "Dr. Victory", was an American football coach. He served as the head football coach at Adams State College (1959–1962), North Dakota State University (1963–1965), th ...

Notable former players

Notable alumni

Don Beebe Donald Lee Beebe (born December 18, 1964) is an American football former wide receiver and coach who is the head football coach at Aurora University. He previously played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons, primarily with the ...

* David Bowens * Sam Clemons *

Bryan Cox Bryan Keith Cox Sr. (born February 17, 1968) is an American football coach and former player. He is the assistant defensive line coach for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Western Illino ...

Rodney Harrison Rodney Scott Harrison (born December 15, 1972) is an American former football safety who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons with the San Diego Chargers and New England Patriots. He was selected in the fifth round of th ...

* Leroy Jackson * Lance Lenoir * Khalen Saunders * Mike Scifres *

Rich Seubert Richard Thomas Seubert (; born March 30, 1979) is a former American football guard who played his entire career with the New York Giants of the National Football League. High school career Born in Stratford, Wisconsin, Seubert attended Columbus ...

* Aaron Stecker * Brett Taylor * Reggie Waddell * Mike Wagner * Jason Williams * Frank Winters

Western Illinois Leathernecks selected in the NFL Draft

Future non-conference opponents

Announced schedules as of December 9, 2022.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Western Illinois Leathernecks Football American football teams established in 1903 1903 establishments in Illinois