Fifty-nine years of dormancy will come to an end Sept. 6, 2003 when Illinois and Illinois State meet for a football game in Champaign.
A one-game contract between the Redbirds and Illini means the teams will meet on the football field for the first time since Sept. 16, 1944.
Illinois State athletics director Perk Weisenburger is excited about what the game says about Redbird football.
This is certainly a great opportunity for us, said Weisenburger. Its a convenient trip for our team, our fans and the entire university community. We continue to seek ways we can build our program and we are excited about playing Big Ten competition.
Of course, playing the Big Ten has become more common lately for the Redbirds. The 1999 team played at Minnesota and the 2002 club has an Aug. 31 date at Purdue.
Coach
Denver Johnson understands the challenge.
It presents a daunting task for our program, said Johnson, whose current team is preparing for an Aug. 30 opener at Division I-A Western Michigan. This Illinois game is meaningful on so many fronts for us, but it has special significance for our Illinois-bred players.
Johnson knows the game will shine a bright light on his program, which has faced at least one NCAA Division I-A team in 20 of the last 21 seasons.
Identity is an important thing for any program and this game gives us excellent visibility, said Johnson. Sometimes, youre judged by the company you keep and thats another reason why we like games of this stature.
Illinois associate athletics director
Larry Lyons, who has degrees from both Illinois and Illinois State, engineered the game contract, working with Illinois associate A.D. Dana Brenner.
They were receptive from the start, said Lyons. We talked about ways to co-promote the game because we will be able to accommodate our fans. Were getting a good-sized ticket consignment from Illinois.
The Redbirds and Illini already are schedule to play mens basketball (Dec. 18) and womens basketball (Dec. 6) in the 2001-2002 season at the Assembly Hall.
