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|[[1948 college football season|1948]] || [[Maynard O’Brien]] || [[Corn Bowl]] || [[Illinois Wesleyan University|Illinois Wesleyan]] || L 0–6 |
|[[1948 college football season|1948]] || [[Maynard O’Brien]] || [[Corn Bowl]] || [[Illinois Wesleyan University|Illinois Wesleyan]] || L 0–6 |
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==Wins over FBS teams== |
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{{CollegePrimaryHeader|team=Eastern Illinois Panthers|Season|Opponent|Result}} |
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| 1989 || [[1989 Akron Zips football team|Akron]]|| 27–17 |
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| 1996 || [[1996 Western Michigan Broncos football team|Western Michigan]]|| 28–20 |
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| [[1998 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team|1998]]|| [[1998 Northern Illinois Huskies football team|Northern Illinois]]|| 24–10 |
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| [[2004 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team|2004]]|| [[2004 Eastern Michigan Eagles football team|Eastern Michigan]]|| 31–28 |
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| [[2013 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team|2013]]|| [[2013 San Diego State Aztecs football team|San Diego State]]|| 40–19 |
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| [[2016 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team|2016]]|| [[2016 Miami RedHawks football team|Miami Ohio]]|| 21–17 |
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Latest revision as of 01:38, 14 December 2025
Intercollegiate American football team
| Eastern Illinois Panthers football | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| First season | 1899 |
| Athletic director | Tom Michael |
| Head coach | Chris Wilkerson 4th season, 16–30 (.348) |
| Stadium | O’Brien Field (capacity: 10,000) |
| Year built | 1970 |
| Location | Charleston, Illinois |
| NCAA division | Division I FCS |
| Conference | OVC–Big South |
| All-time record | 559–552–42 (.503) |
| Bowl record | 0–1 (.000) |
| 1 – (Div. II): 1978 | |
| 19 1912, 1913, 1914, 1928, 1948, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2012, 2013 |
|
| Rivalries | Illinois State (rivalry) |
| Colors | Blue and gray[1]    |
| Fight song | Eastern State March |
| Mascot | Billy the Panther |
| Marching band | Panther Marching Band |
| Outfitter | Nike |
| Website | eiupanthers.com |
The Eastern Illinois Panthers football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and is a member of the OVC–Big South Football Association. The school’s first football team was fielded in 1899. The team plays its home games at the 10,000 seat O’Brien Field, which is named after former head coach Maynard O’Brien. The school’s most well-known player is former quarterback Tony Romo, who is the only Eastern Illinois player to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame (2021).
![[icon]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} |
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2018)
|
The inaugural football team took the field only three weeks after the first students arrived on campus in 1899.[2]
Conference memberships
[edit]
National championships
[edit]
Eastern Illinois has won one national championship, doing so in 1978. They also made an appearance in the Division II National Championship Game in 1980, losing 13–21 to Cal Poly.
Conference championships
[edit]
†Co-champion
Playoff appearances
[edit]
NCAA Division I-AA/FCS playoffs
[edit]
- NCAA Division I Football Championship playoff appearances: 1982, 1983, 1986, 1989, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2015
- All time playoff results [1]
NCAA Division II playoffs
[edit]
The Panthers made two appearances in the Division II playoffs, with a combined record of 5-1.
Eastern Illinois has participated in one bowl game, going 0–1.
Wins over FBS teams
[edit]
All-time record vs. current OVC-Big South teams
[edit]
Official record (including any NCAA imposed vacates and forfeits) against all current OVC opponents as of the completion of the 2024 season.[4]
The Mid-America Classic is the rivalry game between Illinois State and Eastern Illinois. The rivalry began in 1901 and is the second oldest in the state of Illinois. For the 100th game in the series, representatives from both schools met and developed the Mid-America Classic renaming for the rivalry. The two schools also collaborated on a traveling trophy, which holds plaques with the results of the previous 100 games in the series and has room for results of future games in the series.[5] The two teams have played 113 times in total, with Illinois State holding a 61–43–9 advantage in the all-time series as of the end of the 2025 game.
# Interim head coach
Individual accomplishments
[edit]
1st Team All Americans
[edit]
Selectors: AP-Associated Press, AFCA-American Football Coaches Association, FBG-FB Gazette, SN-Sports Network, WC-Walter Camp Football Foundation[6]
| Player | Year | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Nate Anderson | 1972 | AFCA |
| Ted Petersen | 1976 | AP |
| James Warring | 1978 | AP, AFCA |
| Pete Catan | 1979, 1980 | AP, AFCA |
| Poke Cobb | 1979 | AP, AFCA |
| Kevin Gray | 1981 | AFCA |
| Robert Williams | 1982, 1983 | AP, AFCA |
| Bob Norris | 1982 | AP |
| Chris Nicholson | 1983 | AP |
| Jerry Wright | 1984 | AFCA |
| Roy Banks | 1986 | AP, AFCA |
| John Jurkovic | 1988, 1989 | AP, AFCA, SN |
| Tim Lance | 1990 | AP, SN, WC |
| Dan Dee | 1992 | WC, SN |
| Tim Carver | 1995 | FBG |
| Willie High | 1995 | FBG |
| J.R. Taylor | 2002 | AP, FBG, SN, WC |
| Nick Ricks | 2002 | AP, FBG, SN |
| Kevin Hill | 2002 | FBG, SN, WC |
| Tony Romo | 2002 | AP, AFCA, SN, WC |
| Clint Sellers | 2005 | AFCA, FBG |
| Tristan Burge | 2006 | AFCA |
| Erik Lora[7] | 2012, 2013 | AP, AFCA, SN, WC |
| Jimmy Garoppolo | 2013 | AP, AFCA, SN, WC |
| Collin Seibert[8] | 2013, 2014 | AP, AFCA, SN, WC |
| Dino Fanti[9] | 2015 | AFCA |
- Walter Payton Award
- Tony Romo – 2002
- Jimmy Garoppolo – 2013
- Walter Payton Award finalists
- Tim Lance – 1990…3rd
- Willie High – 1994…15th
- Tony Romo – 2000…11th
- Tony Romo – 2001…10th
- Jimmy Garoppolo – 2012…10th
- Erik Lora – 2012…4th
- Erik Lora – 2013…7th
- Alexander Hollins – 2018…21st
Eastern Illinois has two inductees in the College Football Hall of Fame as of 2021.
| Eastern Illinois Panthers retired numbers | |||||
| No. | Player | Pos. | Tenure | Date retired | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Tony Romo | QB | 1999–2002 | October 17, 2009 | [12] |
| 18 | Sean Payton | QB | 1983–1986 | September 11, 2010 | [13] |
Future non-conference opponents
[edit]
Announced schedules as of December 11, 2025.[14]
Notable former players
[edit]
Notable alumni include the following.
- ^ “EIU BRANDING, MARKETING & LOGOS”. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
- ^ “Football – Eastern Illinois Athletics” (PDF). EIU FOOTBALL HISTORY. Eastern Illinois University Athletics. Retrieved February 28, 2025.
- ^ “2017 NCAA FCS Records” (PDF).
- ^ “2024 EIU Record book page 44” (PDF).
- ^ “Illinois State, Eastern Illinois unveil Mid America Classic trophy – WJBC – the Voice of Central Illinois”. Archived from the original on October 13, 2011. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
- ^ “Division I EIU All Anericans” (PDF). p. 71.
- ^ “Five OVC Players Named to College Sporting News FCS Fabulous Fifty All-American Team”. ovcsports.com.
- ^ “Seibert, Drake named AP All-Americans | Eastern | jg-tc.com”. jg-tc.com.
- ^ “JSU’s Dunn, EIU’s Fanti Named to AFCA FCS All-American Team”. ovcsports.com.
- ^ “Darrell Mudra (2000) – Hall of Fame”. National Football Foundation.
- ^ “Tony Romo Selected for College Football Hall of Fame’s 2021 Class ✔. January 11, 2021.
- ^ “EIU Retired Numbers – Eastern Illinois University Athletics”.
- ^ Kilhoffer, Kevin. “Sean Payton Jersey Retirement”. JG-TC.com.
- ^ “Eastern Illinois Panthers Football Schedules and Future Schedules”. Retrieved December 11, 2025.
