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Illinois Opens Memorial Stadium Centennial Season Against EIU

CHAMPAIGN, Illinois – Illinois opens the Memorial Stadium 100th Anniversary season with an in-state showdown against Eastern Illinois. Kickoff is scheduled for Thursday at 8 p.m. CT.

Head coach Bret Bielema enters Year 4 at the helm of the program looking for his fourth straight season opener with the Orange and Blue. The Illini have won their season opener in each of Bielema’s first three seasons — a 30-22 win over Nebraska in 2021, a 38-6 triumph over Wyoming in 2022 and a 30-28 win over Toledo in 2023.

Bielema’s 2024 team features a mix of new faces and returning talent on both sides of the ball, and the Illini named six captains who will represent the team throughout the year. Illinois was among the best in the Big Ten in improving its roster in the transfer portal with three four-star transfers, tied for sixth among the 18-team Big Ten.

Eastern Illinois finished the 2023 season with an 8-3 record, while the Panthers closed the campaign with four straight wins. EIU earned votes in the first AFCA FCS Coaches Top 25 poll of the year and was projected to finish second in the Big South-OVC preseason poll.

The Illini and Panthers face each other for the third time on Thursday in their first game since 2008. Illinois leads the all-time series 2-0, after winning 42-17 in 2006 and 47-21 in 2008. Both games were played at Memorial Stadium.

Mark Followill (play-by-play), former Illini All-American linebacker J Leman (analyst) and Kylen Mills (reporter) will have the national television broadcast on the Big Ten Network. The Busey Bank Illini Sports Network will have the radio call with Brian Barnhart, Carey Davis and Michael Martin.

Press conference

Matchday at Memorial Stadium

Warning for parking on Thursday evening: With the Illinois football team hosting Eastern Illinois on Thursday night at Memorial Stadium, several updates to parking and tailgating are being enforced. Click here to read the advisory. For information on Memorial Stadium, visit the Gameday Guide.

Air raid siren: New for 2024: An Illini celebrity will sound the Illini air raid siren just prior to kickoff to get the crowd pumped up for the Fighting Illini football team. Former Illini basketball star and recent NBA Draft pick Terrence Shannon Jr. is expected to be the first Illini celebrity to sound the siren at the home game against Eastern Illinois on Aug. 29.

Illini hour: The popular Illini Hour returns to Memorial Stadium in 2024. From 90 minutes to 30 minutes before kickoff, all hot dogs, nonalcoholic beverages (except souvenir cups), and Carbliss and Nutrl seltzers are just $3, while 24-ounce domestic beers are $7. This week’s Illini Hour runs from 6:30-7:30 p.m. CT, leading up to an 8 p.m. CT kickoff.

Blazing Fast 77 Yard Dash: “The Galloping Ghost” returns to Memorial Stadium for the second year of The Freaky Fast 77 Yard Dash presented by Jimmy John’s. Between the third and fourth quarters, an Illinois student will race Red Grange in the hashes at Zuppke Field in Memorial Stadium. The student who races the modern-day version of Red will have a chance to win free Jimmy John’s for a year. Fans can interact and take photos with Red Grange in Grange Grove on game days beginning three hours before kickoff.

100th anniversary museum: Illinois has installed a free pop-up museum celebrating the history of Memorial Stadium in Great West Hall. The museum features images and artifacts from the greatest moments in Memorial Stadium’s history.

$4 Hot Dogs: Hot dogs at Memorial Stadium snack stands are now available for $4, up from $6 last season.

I FUND, Season Ticket Holder and ICON Concessions Discount: Fans who purchased or renewed their football season tickets before April 1 received 10% off concessions at all home games during the Memorial Stadium 100th Anniversary season, while I FUND members get an additional 5% savings for 15% off at Memorial Stadium concession stands. ICON members get 15% off at Memorial Stadium concession stands.

ICON experience on the field: The ICON Pregame Party, made popular at the State Farm Center Beer Cave, is now at Memorial Stadium. ICON members at The Quad level and above ($1,000+) are invited to the field level in the south end zone during pregame warmups.

Buy tickets

F24 Season Tickets Helmets Schedule

Notes

Illinois to open 2024 season against Eastern Illinois
• Illinois hopes to improve season opener record to 4-0 under head coach Bret BielemaIn Bielema’s first three seasons, Illinois defeated Nebraska (2021), Wyoming (2022) and Toledo (2023) in the opening games of the season, all at Memorial Stadium.

2024 Fighting Illini roster notes
• Illinois hopes to improve season opener record to 4-0 under head coach Bret Bielema. In Bielema’s first three seasons, Illinois has defeated Nebraska (2021), Wyoming (2022) and Toledo (2023) in their opening games of the season, all at Memorial Stadium. 2024 Fighting Illini Roster Notes
• Illinois was one of the best in the Big Ten at improving its roster in the transfer portal. According to CBS research of 247Sports ratings, the Illini roster had a net rating gain of +2.78 from transfer in to transfer out, the sixth-best mark in the Big Ten, and that was before Illinois added WR Zakhari FranklinFranklin is the active leader in college football in receptions (266), receiving yards (3,386) and receiving touchdowns (38).
• Illinois signed three four-star transfers, ranking sixth among the 18-team Big Ten (CB Terrance BrooksOL JC DavisWR Zakhari Franklin).
• Illinois’ transfer class had an average star rating of 3.18, according to Rivals. The Illini’s average rating ranked 14th in the nation and fifth in the Big Ten, behind only Ohio State, Oregon, Michigan and Washington.
• Illinois has 17 players on its roster who have started 10 or more football games at four-year schools, including nine who enter this season as transfers. Franklin leads the way with 43 career starts, followed by DL Soft hunt (25), Davis (24) and CB Torrie Cox Jr. (23).
• Illinois is one of just 32 teams in the country to get back its head coach, offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator, strength coach and starting quarterback, according to FootballScoop. The Illini are one of just three Big Ten teams to get all five key positions back, along with Nebraska and Purdue.
• Illinois has 14 players on its 2024 roster in their final season of eligibility, tied for the lowest total in the Power 4 with Iowa State. In all of FBS football, only Troy (12) has fewer players in their final season of eligibility.
• Illinois has one of the most experienced offensive line rooms in the Big Ten. The Illini offensive linemen have a combined 96 career starts in Division I football. Transfers JC Davis (24, New Mexico), Melvin Priestly (19, Grambling), and Kevin Wigenton II (6, Michigan State) has 49 career starts. The offensive line room has played 168 career games through 2024. The line has three returning starters from 2023: Josh Kreutz, She CrislerAnd Josh Gesky.
• Illinois’ 96 career starts by the offensive line ranks fourth in the Big Ten, trailing only Iowa (165), Nebraska (153) and Oregon (144). The 96 starts rank 22nd in the nation.

Memorial Stadium’s 100th Anniversary Season
• Illinois will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the dedication of Memorial Stadium for a year. The Memorial Stadium Dedication Game took place against Michigan on Oct. 18, 1924, when Illini legend Red Grange made national headlines after scoring four touchdowns in the first 12 minutes to defeat the undefeated Wolverines.
• Illinois will honor the history of Memorial Stadium with a number of elements during the 2024 season. Highlights include a free pop-up museum in the Great West Hall, the Memorial Stadium 100th Anniversary logo painted on the 25-yard lines throughout the season and seven commemorative trophies sold at concessions that match the eras the Illini helmets celebrated before each game.
• Illinois will host Michigan on Saturday, October 19, 100 years and one day after Grange’s historic feat. The game will be marked as Memorial Stadium’s “Rededication Game” with a year-long 100th anniversary celebration. Illinois will hold a rededication ceremony, free and open to the public, in Grange Grove at 4:00 p.m. CT on Friday, October 18. A 100th anniversary gala will be held in the Colonnades Club at Memorial Stadium at 5:30 p.m. CT on Friday, October 18.

The Illinois-EIU Series
• Thursday’s game will be the third meeting between Illinois and Eastern Illinois.
• Illinois leads the all-time series 2-0, with wins in 2006 and 2008.
• Illinois’ Memorial Stadium and Eastern Illinois’ O’Brien Field are only 46 miles apart.
• Thursday analyst for Big Ten Network, J Leman, played for the Illini in the two programs’ first-ever meeting in 2006. The 2006 Illinois-Eastern Illinois game was Leman’s first of 25 games as a team captain for the Illini during his junior and senior seasons (2006-07). Leman had five tackles in the season-opening win over EIU in 2006.

Illinois-EIU Connections
• Eastern Illinois Director of Athletics Tom Michael earned both his bachelor’s degree (1993) and master’s degree (1994) from Illinois. He played four years for the Fighting Illini basketball program from 1991-94, helping the team reach the NCAA tournament twice. After his tenure, Michael worked in his family’s business before coming to Illinois in 1996. He worked in administration for 12 years, serving as both associate athletic director and assistant athletic director for student services.
• Fighting Illini offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Barry Lunney Jr. and Eastern Illinois head coach Chris Wilkerson have long been friends and colleagues since their time together as assistant coaches at San Jose State during the 2003 and 2004 seasons. Lunney served as the Spartans’ OC/QB coach, while Wilkerson – who started at SJSU the year before – coached both defense and special teams, including serving as defensive coordinator for the 2003 season. Lunney is godfather to Wilkerson’s oldest son Peyton, a redshirt freshman defensive lineman for the Panthers.
• One of EIU’s most notable former football players, Sean Payton, was an assistant coach for the Fighting Illini in 1996. Payton was the head coach of the New Orleans Saints from 2006-2021, culminating in winning Super Bowl XLIV, and is now the head coach of the Denver Broncos.
• Former Illinois pitcher Jason Anderson, who was the Big Ten Pitcher of the Year in 2000 and pitched in 32 major league games, is the head baseball coach at Eastern Illinois.

COMPLETE GAME NOTES (PDF)