1990 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

American college football season

1990 Illinois Fighting Illini football

Big Ten co-champion

Hall of Fame Bowl, L 0–30 vs. Clemson

Conference| Big Ten Conference
Ranking
Coaches| No. 24
AP| No. 25
Record| 8–4 (6–2 Big Ten)
Head coach|

* John Mackovic (3rd season)

Offensive coordinator| Gene Dahlquist (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator| Lou Tepper (3rd season)
MVP| Howard Griffith
Captain| Curtis Lovelace, Howard Griffith, Moe Gardner, Darrick Brownlow
Home stadium| Memorial Stadium

Seasons

<- 1989

1991 ->

1990 Big Ten Conference football standings

* v
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| Conf |  |  | Overall

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Team | W |  | L |  | T |  |  | W |  | L |  | T
No. 7 Michigan \+  | 6  | - | 2  | - | 0 |  |  | 9  | - | 3  | - | 0
No. 16 Michigan State \+  | 6  | - | 2  | - | 0 |  |  | 8  | - | 3  | - | 1
No. 25 Illinois \+  | 6  | - | 2  | - | 0 |  |  | 8  | - | 4  | - | 0
No. 18 Iowa \+  | 6  | - | 2  | - | 0 |  |  | 8  | - | 4  | - | 0
Ohio State | 5  | - | 2  | - | 1 |  |  | 7  | - | 4  | - | 1
Minnesota | 5  | - | 3  | - | 0 |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 0
Indiana | 3  | - | 4  | - | 1 |  |  | 6  | - | 5  | - | 1
Northwestern | 1  | - | 7  | - | 0 |  |  | 2  | - | 9  | - | 0
Purdue | 1  | - | 7  | - | 0 |  |  | 2  | - | 9  | - | 0
Wisconsin | 0  | - | 8  | - | 0 |  |  | 1  | - | 10  | - | 0

* \+ - Conference co-champions

Rankings from AP Poll

The 1990 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign during the 1990 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their third year under head coach John Mackovic, the Illini compiled an 8–4 record, finished in a four-way tie for first place in the Big Ten Conference, were ranked No. 25 in the final AP Poll, and lost to Clemson in the 1991 Hall of Fame Bowl.[1]

The team's offensive leader were quarterback Jason Verduzco with 2,567 passing yards, fullback Howard Griffith with 1,115 rushing yards, and Shawn Wax with 863 receiving yards.[2]

## Schedule[edit]

Date| Time| Opponent| Rank| Site| TV| Result| Attendance| Source

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September 8| 8:00 pm| at Arizona*| No. 11|

* Arizona Stadium
* Tucson, AZ

| | L 16–28| 53,330|
September 15| 2:30 pm| No. 9 Colorado*| No. 21|

* Memorial Stadium
* Champaign, IL

| ABC| W 23–22| 64,351|
September 22| 2:30 pm| Southern Illinois*| No. 15|

* Memorial Stadium
* Champaign, IL

| | W 56–21| 64,469| [3]
October 6| 2:30 pm| at No. 20 Ohio State| No. 13|

* Ohio Stadium
* Columbus, OH (Illibuck Trophy)

| ABC| W 31–20| 89,404|
October 13| 12:00 pm| Purdue| No. 11|

* Memorial Stadium
* Champaign, IL (rivalry)

| | W 34–0| 60,604|
October 20| 2:30 pm| No. 24 Michigan State| No. 8|

* Memorial Stadium
* Champaign, IL

| ABC| W 15–13| 70,398|
October 27| 1:00 pm| at Wisconsin| No. 5|

* Camp Randall Stadium
* Madison, WI

| | W 21–3| 67,746|
November 3| 2:30 pm| No. 13 Iowa| No. 5|

* Memorial Stadium
* Champaign, IL

| ABC| L 28–54| 72,714|
November 10| 11:00 am| at No. 19 Michigan| No. 17|

* Michigan Stadium
* Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)

| | L 17–22| 105,343|
November 17| 11:30 am| Indiana| No. 22|

* Memorial Stadium
* Bloomington, IN

| | W 24–10| 44,639|
November 24| 1:00 pm| Northwestern| No. 22|

* Memorial Stadium
* Champaign, IL (rivalry)

| | W 28–23| 32,383|
January 1| 12:00 pm| vs. No. 14 Clemson*| No. 16|

* Tampa Stadium
* Tampa, FL (Hall of Fame Bowl)

| NBC| L 0–30| 63,154| [4]

* *Non-conference game
* Homecoming
* Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
* All times are in Central time

[5]

## Game summaries[edit]

### Colorado[edit]

#9 Colorado at #21 Illinois  |  | 1 | 2| 3| 4| Total

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Buffaloes | 7 | 10| 2| 3 | 22
• Fighting Illini | 3 | 7| 7| 6 | 23

* Date: October 6
* Location: Memorial Stadium, Champaign, IL
* Game attendance: 64,351
* Television network: ABC

| Scoring summary

Q1| | ILL| Doug Higgins 29-yard field goal| ILL 3–0
| COL| George Hemingway 2-yard run (Harper kick)| COL 7–3
Q2| | COL| Harper 54-yard field goal| COL 10–3
| COL| Michael Simmons 32-yard pass from Darian Hagan (Harper kick)| COL 17–3
0:28| ILL| Elbert Turner 8-yard pass from Jason Verduzco (Higgins kick)| COL 17–10
Q3| 2:28| ILL| Shawn Wax 4-yard pass from Jason Verduzco (Higgins kick)| Tied 17–17
| COL| Safety, Greg Biekert tackled Griffith in end zone| COL 19–17
Q4| 12:44| COL| Harper 26-yard field goal| COL 22–17
1:18| ILL| Howard Griffith 1-yard run (conversion failed)| ILL 23–22

See also: 1990 Colorado Buffaloes football team

[6]

### Iowa[edit]

See also: 1990 Iowa Hawkeyes football team

### Michigan[edit]

See also: 1990 Michigan Wolverines football team and Illinois–Michigan football series

### Indiana[edit]

See also: 1990 Indiana Hoosiers football team

### Northwestern[edit]

See also: 1990 Northwestern Wildcats football team and Sweet Sioux Tomahawk

### Clemson (Hall of Fame Bowl)[edit]

Main article: 1991 Hall of Fame Bowl

See also: 1990 Clemson Tigers football team

## Roster[edit]

1990 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster

Players  | Coaches
Offense | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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|
|

RB | `29` | Howard Griffith | Sr
TE | `82` | Frank Hartley | Sr
OT | `79` | Brad Hopkins | So
C | `69` | Tim Simpson | Jr
Defense | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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|

DT | `96` | Mel Agee | Sr
LB | `48` | Darrick Brownlow | Sr
DT | `95` | Moe Gardner | Sr
DB | `33` | Chris Green | Sr
DB | `18` | Henry Jones | Sr
DB | `37` | Steve Nelson | Sr
Special teams | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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Head coach

* John Mackovic

Coordinators/assistant coaches

* * *

Legend

* (C) Team captain
* (S) Suspended
* (I) Ineligible

* Injured
* Redshirt

## Award winners[edit]

* Darrick Brownlow \- linebacker (1st-team All-America pick by Football News; 1st-team all-Big Ten pick by AP)
* Moe Gardner \- defensive lineman (consensus 1st-team All-American; 1st-team all-Big Ten pick by AP)
* Howard Griffith \- fullback (2nd-team all-Big Ten pick by AP)
* Doug Higgins - placekicker (2nd-team all-Big Ten pick by AP)
* Henry Jones \- defensive back (2nd-team all-Big Ten pick by AP)
* Marlon Primous - defensive back (2nd-team all-Big Ten pick by AP)
* Tim Simpson -offensive guard (2nd-team all-Big Ten pick by AP)
* Shawn Wax - receiver (2nd-team all-Big Ten pick by AP)

## References[edit]

1. ^ "1990 Illinois Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
2. ^ "1990 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
3. ^ Batterson, Steve (September 23, 1990). "Griffith levels Salukis". Quad-City Times. p. 1E. Retrieved December 31, 2021 - via Newspapers.com.
4. ^ "Clemson 'D' gains Fame in 30–0 win". The Tampa Tribune. January 2, 1991. Retrieved February 3, 2024 - via Newspapers.com.
5. ^ "1990 Illinois Fighting Illini Schedule and Results". sports-reference.com. Retrieved November 20, 2016.
6. ^ "Illinois 23, Colorado 22". United Press International. September 15, 1990. Retrieved January 1, 2019.

* v
* t
* e

Illinois Fighting Illini football

Venues|

* Illinois Field (1890–1922)
* Memorial Stadium (1923–present)
* Soldier Field (1994–present)

Bowls & rivalries|

* Bowl games
* Michigan
* Missouri
* Northwestern
* Ohio State: Illibuck Trophy
* Purdue

Culture & lore|

* Illinois Loyalty
* "Oskee Wow-Wow"
* Marching Illini
* Gene Honda
* Fighting Illini Sports Network
* Chief Illiniwek
* 1960s slush fund scandal
* 2019 Wisconsin game
* 2021 Penn State game

People|

* Head coaches
* NFL draftees
* Statistical leaders

Seasons|

* 1890
* 1891
* 1892
* 1893
* 1894
* 1895
* 1896
* 1897
* 1898
* 1899
* 1900
* 1901
* 1902
* 1903
* 1904
* 1905
* 1906
* 1907
* 1908
* 1909
* 1910
* 1911
* 1912
* 1913
* 1914
* 1915
* 1916
* 1917
* 1918
* 1919
* 1920
* 1921
* 1922
* 1923
* 1924
* 1925
* 1926
* 1927
* 1928
* 1929
* 1930
* 1931
* 1932
* 1933
* 1934
* 1935
* 1936
* 1937
* 1938
* 1939
* 1940
* 1941
* 1942
* 1943
* 1944
* 1945
* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1965
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1979
* 1980
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024

National championship seasons in bold

* v
* t
* e

Big Ten Conference football champions

Western Conference|

* Wisconsin (1896)
* Wisconsin (1897)
* Michigan (1898)
* Chicago (1899)
* Iowa & Minnesota (1900)
* Michigan & Wisconsin (1901)
* Michigan (1902)
* Michigan, Minnesota, & Northwestern (1903)
* Michigan & Minnesota (1904)
* Chicago (1905)
* Michigan, Minnesota, & Wisconsin (1906)
* Chicago (1907)
* Chicago (1908)
* Minnesota (1909)
* Illinois & Minnesota (1910)
* Minnesota (1911)
* Wisconsin (1912)
* Chicago (1913)
* Illinois (1914)
* Illinois & Minnesota (1915)
* Ohio State (1916)

Big Ten|

* Ohio State (1917)
* Illinois, Michigan, & Purdue (1918)
* Illinois (1919)
* Ohio State (1920)
* Iowa (1921)
* Chicago, Iowa, & Michigan (1922)
* Illinois & Michigan (1923)
* Chicago (1924)
* Michigan (1925)
* Michigan & Northwestern (1926)
* Illinois & Minnesota (1927)
* Illinois (1928)
* Purdue (1929)
* Michigan & Northwestern (1930)
* Purdue, Michigan & Northwestern (1931)
* Michigan & Purdue (1932)
* Michigan & Minnesota (1933)
* Minnesota (1934)
* Minnesota & Ohio State (1935)
* Northwestern (1936)
* Minnesota (1937)
* Minnesota (1938)
* Ohio State (1939)
* Minnesota (1940)
* Minnesota (1941)
* Ohio State (1942)
* Michigan & Purdue (1943)
* Ohio State (1944)
* Indiana (1945)

Big Nine|

* Illinois (1946)
* Michigan (1947)
* Michigan (1948)
* Michigan & Ohio State (1949)

Big Ten|

* Michigan (1950)
* Illinois (1951)
* Purdue & Wisconsin (1952)
* Illinois & Michigan State (1953)
* Ohio State (1954)
* Ohio State (1955)
* Iowa (1956)
* Ohio State (1957)
* Iowa (1958)
* Wisconsin (1959)
* Minnesota & Iowa (1960)
* Ohio State (1961)
* Wisconsin (1962)
* Illinois (1963)
* Michigan (1964)
* Michigan State (1965)
* Michigan State (1966)
* Indiana, Minnesota, Purdue (1967)
* Ohio State (1968)
* Michigan & Ohio State (1969)
* Ohio State (1970)
* Michigan (1971)
* Michigan & Ohio State (1972)
* Michigan & Ohio State (1973)
* Michigan & Ohio State (1974)
* Ohio State (1975)
* Michigan & Ohio State (1976)
* Michigan & Ohio State (1977)
* Michigan & Michigan State (1978)
* Ohio State (1979)
* Michigan (1980)
* Iowa & Ohio State (1981)
* Michigan (1982)
* Illinois (1983)
* Ohio State (1984)
* Iowa (1985)
* Michigan & Ohio State (1986)
* Michigan State (1987)
* Michigan (1988)
* Michigan (1989)
* Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, & Michigan State (1990)
* Michigan (1991)
* Michigan (1992)
* Ohio State & Wisconsin (1993)
* Penn State (1994)
* Northwestern (1995)
* Ohio State & Northwestern (1996)
* Michigan (1997)
* Michigan, Ohio State, & Wisconsin (1998)
* Wisconsin (1999)
* Michigan, Northwestern, & Purdue (2000)
* Illinois (2001)
* Ohio State & Iowa (2002)
* Michigan (2003)
* Iowa & Michigan (2004)
* Ohio State & Penn State (2005)
* Ohio State (2006)
* Ohio State (2007)
* Ohio State & Penn State (2008)
* Ohio State (2009)
* Michigan State & Wisconsin (2010)
* Wisconsin (2011)
* Wisconsin (2012)
* Michigan State (2013)
* Ohio State (2014)
* Michigan State (2015)
* Penn State (2016)
* Ohio State (2017)
* Ohio State (2018)
* Ohio State (2019)
* Ohio State (2020)
* Michigan (2021)
* Michigan (2022)
* Michigan (2023)

National championships in bold

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*[v]: View this template
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*[Conf]: Conference record
*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[T]: Ties
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