2003 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

2003 Illinois Fighting Illini football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record1–11 (0–8 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorRon Turner (5th season)
Defensive coordinatorMike Cassity (3rd season)
Home stadiumMemorial Stadium
2003 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 6 Michigan $   7 1     10 3  
No. 4 Ohio State %   6 2     11 2  
No. 18 Purdue   6 2     9 4  
No. 8 Iowa   5 3     10 3  
No. 20 Minnesota   5 3     10 3  
Michigan State   5 3     8 5  
Wisconsin   4 4     7 6  
Northwestern   4 4     6 7  
Penn State   1 7     3 9  
Indiana   1 7     2 10  
  0 8     1 11  
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2003 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their seventh season under Ron Turner, the Illini compiled a 1–11 record (0–8 in conference games), finished in last place in the Big Ten, and were outscored by a total of 398 to 203.[1]

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Jon Beutjer (1,597 passing yards), running back E. B. Halsey (525 rushing yards), wide receiver Kelvin Hayden (52 receptions for 592 yards), and kicker John Gockman (63 points scored, 21 of 21 extra points, 14 of 22 field goals).[2]

The team played its home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
August 3011:00 amvs. Missouri*ABCL 15–2263,576
September 611:00 amIllinois State*ESPN+W 49–2256,304[3]
September 137:00 pmat UCLA*ABCL 3–651,118
September 2011:00 amCalifornia*
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
ESPN+L 24–3158,363
September 275:00 pmWisconsin
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
ESPN2L 20–3858,495
October 411:00 amat No. 23 PurdueESPNL 10–4363,139
October 1111:00 amNo. 21 Michigan State
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
ESPNL 14–4947,509
October 1811:00 amat No. 17 MichiganESPN+L 14–56110,231
October 2511:00 amNo. 24 Minnesotadagger
  • Memorial Stadium
  • Champaign, IL
ESPN+L 10–3646,407
November 111:00 amat No. 13 IowaESPN+L 10–4170,397
November 811:00 amat IndianaESPN+L 14–1724,102
November 2211:00 amNorthwestern
ESPN+L 21–3838,688
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

[4]

Roster

2003 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
QB 7 Jon Beutjer Jr
OL 73 Sean Bubin Sr
FB 24 Carey Davis Sr
FB 34 Jason Davis So
WR 6 Kelvin Hayden Jr
WR 84 Kendrick Jones So
RB 23 Marcus Mason Fr
QB 16 Chris Pazan Fr
C 75 Duke Preston Jr
RB 30 Pierre Thomas Fr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
S 18 Alan Ball Fr
DL 59 Kam Buckner Fr
LB 48 Jeremy Leman Fr
S 42 Kevin Mitchell Fr
CB 5 Christian Morton Sr
DE 66 Brian Schaefering Jr
LB 44 Matt Sinclair Jr
DE 98 Derrick Strong Sr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
P 37 Steve Weatherford So
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Roster

References

  1. ^ "2003 Illinois Fighting Illini Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  2. ^ "2003 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
  3. ^ Batterson, Steve (September 7, 2003). "First win is all that matters to Illini". Quad-City Times. p. D1. Retrieved November 30, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "2003 Archive". University of Illinois at Champaign–Urbana Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on February 10, 2014. Retrieved September 15, 2012.