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)
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
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	L 21–70	105,570
November 14	Indiana	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	W 35–14
November 21	at Northwestern	Dyche Stadium Evanston, IL (rivalry)	W 49–12
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1981 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 3 Tony Eason Jr C 55 Adam Lingner Jr FB 42 Calvin Thomas Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class 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

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.