By Woodrow Carroll
The University of Illinois football program won their 10th game of the 2024 season, by defeating South Carolina, 21-17 at the Citrus Bowl, December 31.
With it’s 10 victories, the 2024 Illinois team was the fifth in program history and joins the 1902, 1983, 1989, and 2001 teams.
But, with the most recent Illinois bowl appearance in the books, what about the first?
In 1946, Illinois’ first bowl game appearance was one for the ages. Illinois expected to field a strong team. And, with a final regular-season record of 8-2-0, the Fighting Illini did just that. But, there was an added bonus that season.
The Rose Bowl had just finalized an agreement to match the winner of the Pacific Conference and the Big Nine. (Michigan State was not a full member of what soon came to know as the Big Ten in case you are wondering about the number of conference teams at that point.)
Illinois’ foe for the 1947 Rose Bowl was UCLA. The Bruins sported a 10-0 record and many, especially those on the west coast, felt Army would have made a far more attractive Rose Bowl opponent for UCLA. However, the agreement was in place between the two conferences and the game was on.
Illinois finished strong in 1946 after suffering early losses to Notre Dame and Indiana.
Time to wander off base! Notre Dame and Illinois have faced each other 12 times down through the years. Notre Dame’s record versus Illinois is 11-0-1.
Northern Illinois and Illinois have faced each other four times down through the years. And, Illinois was the victor each time!)
Illinois shocked UCLA, 45-14, in the 1947 Rose Bowl. The UCLA Bruins were up 7-6 at the end of the first quarter.
Illinois went on a scoring spree, aided by Illinois halfback, Paul Patterson, an East Aurora High School product. Patterson scored on a four-yard run in the second quarter to increase Illinois’ advantage to 19-7.
Just before the half, Illinois was up 25-7. However, UCLA’s Al Hoisch, returned a kickoff for 103 yards to score just before the halftime break to make the score 25-14.
Illinois then added another 20 unanswered points in the forth quarter for good measure.
Illinois’ kicking game was about the only negative aspect to come out of the 1947 Rose Bowl. Don Maechtle had extra point duties for Illinois in Pasadena and he was off on four of his seven kicks. Of course, when you are racking up touchdowns the extra point matters little.
Illinois’ big victory in the 1947 Rose Bowl set in motion Big Ten domination for more than a decade.
From 1947-1959, the Big Ten representative emerged victorious in 12 of 13 meetings with their west coast counterpart in Rose Bowl action. Only Wisconsin, which dropped a 7-0 decision to Southern California in the 1953 contest, failed to do the Big Ten proud during that period.
While it won’t be the most overpowering statistic, the first Rose Bowl not to be played on January 1st was in 1922. A bit of mental acuity quickly brings us to the conclusion that the game was played on a Monday. January 1st in 1922 was a Sunday. No Rose Bowl on Sunday was to be played! So, the contest took place the following day January 2, 1922. For a long time if you saw the Rose Bowl as being listed as a Monday contest, it was held on January second.
The 1922 Rose Bowl ended in a scoreless tie between favored California and Washington & Jefferson, a school located in Washington, Penn..
The Washington & Jefferson Presidents were coached by Earle “Greasy” Neale who was one of the Cincinnati Reds leading hitters in the 1919 World Series. A World Series best remembered for the Black Sox Scandal on the part of a number of Chicago White Sox players.
In time, Neale took his coaching ability to the NFL where he won championships in 1948 and 1949.