2014 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

2014 Illinois Fighting Illini football
2014 Illinois Fighting Illini football
Heart of Dallas Bowl vs. Louisiana Tech, L 18–35
Conference	Big Ten Conference
	West Division
Record	6–7 (3–5 Big Ten)
Head coach	Tim Beckman (3rd season);
Offensive coordinator	Bill Cubit (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Tim Banks (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
	Seasons ← 2013 2015 →

2014 Big Ten Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
No. 1 Ohio State x$#^	8	–	0	14	–	1
No. T–5 Michigan State	7	–	1	11	–	2
Maryland	4	–	4	7	–	6
Rutgers	3	–	5	8	–	5
Michigan	3	–	5	5	–	7
Penn State	2	–	6	7	–	6
Indiana	1	–	7	4	–	8
West Division
No. 13 Wisconsin x	7	–	1	11	–	3
Minnesota	5	–	3	8	–	5
Nebraska	5	–	3	9	–	4
Iowa	4	–	4	7	–	6
Illinois	3	–	5	6	–	7
Northwestern	3	–	5	5	–	7
Purdue	1	–	7	3	–	9
Championship: Ohio State 59, Wisconsin 0
# – College Football Playoff champion ^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 2014 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season. In their third and final season under head coach Tim Beckman, the Fighting Illini compiled a 6–7 record (3–5 in conference games), tied for fifth place out of six teams in the Big Ten's West Division, and were outscored by a total of 442 to 337. They concuded the season with a loss to Louisiana Tech in the Heart of Dallas Bowl.^[1]

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Wes Lunt (1,763 passing yards), running back Josh Ferguson (735 rushing yards, 60 points scored), and wide receiver Mike Dudek (76 receptions for 1,038 yards).^[2]

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

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	11:00 am	No. 24 (FCS) Youngstown State*	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 28–17	36,234
September 6	11:00 am	Western Kentucky*	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	W 42–34	38,561
September 13	3:00 pm	at Washington*	Husky Stadium Seattle, WA	FOX	L 19–44	62,325
September 20	3:00 pm	Texas State*	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	ESPNews	W 42–35	41,019
September 27	8:00 pm	at No. 21 Nebraska	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	BTN	L 14–45	91,255
October 4	11:00 am	Purdue	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (rivalry)	ESPN2	L 27–38	45,046
October 11	11:00 am	at Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	ESPN2	L 28–38	80,341
October 25	11:00 am	Minnesota	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	ESPNU	W 28–24	44,437
November 1	7:00 pm	at No. 13 Ohio State	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (Illibuck Trophy)	ABC	L 14–55	106,961
November 15	11:00 am	Iowa	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	BTN	L 14–30	50,373
November 22	11:00 am	Penn State	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL	ESPN2	W 16–14	35,172
November 29	11:00 am	at Northwestern	Ryan Field Evanston, IL (rivalry)	ESPNU	W 47–33	31,137
December 26	12:00 pm	vs. Louisiana Tech*	Cotton Bowl Dallas, TX (Heart of Dallas Bowl)	ESPN	L 18–35	31,297
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[3]

Personnel

Coaching staff

Name	Position	Consecutive season at Illinois	Alma Mater
Tim Beckman	Head coach	2	Findlay (1988)
Bill Cubit	Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks	1	Delaware (1974)
Mike Bellamy	Wide receivers	2	Illinois (1990)
Tom Brattan	Offensive Line	0	Delaware (1972)
Alex Golesh	Tight ends/Running backs/Fullbacks/recruiting coordinator	2	Ohio State (2006)
Tim Banks	Defensive coordinator/secondary	2	Central Michigan (1995)
Greg Colby	Defensive line	1	Illinois (1974)
Al Seamonson	Outside Linebackers	1	Wisconsin (1982)
Mike Ward	Inside Linebackers	2	Georgetown College (1984)
Tim Salem	Special Teams Coordinator	2	Arizona State (1985)
Reference:^[4]

Roster

2014 Illinois Fighting Illini football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`2`	Tyrin Stone-Davis	So
TE	`3`	Jon Davis	Sr
QB	`4`	Reilly O'Toole	Sr
RB	`5`	Donovonn Young	Jr
RB	`6`	Josh Ferguson	So
QB	`7`	Chayce Crouch	Fr
WR	`8`	Geronimo Allison	Jr
WR	`9`	Martize Barr	Sr
TE	`11`	Matt LaCosse	Sr
QB	`12`	Wes Lunt	So
WR	`13`	Dionte Taylor	So
QB	`15`	Aaron Bailey	So
WR	`16`	Marchie Murdock	Fr
QB	`16`	Man Berg	Fr
WR	`18`	Mike Dudek	Fr
WR	`19`	Justin Hardee	Jr
RB	`23`	Devin Church	So
RB	`25`	Kendrick Foster	Fr
RB	`26`	Cameron Tucker	Jr
RB	`29`	T. J. Moss	Fr
TE	`30`	Jim Nudera	Jr
WR	`31`	Leslie Poole	Jr
TE	`47`	Tim Clary	Jr
OL	`52`	Alex Hill	Sr
OL	`53`	Nick Allegretti	Fr
OL	`55`	Chris Boles	Jr
OL	`57`	Austin Schmidt	So
OL	`60`	Tony Durkin	Jr
OL	`64`	Steve Dumezich	Fr
OL	`66`	Scott McDowell	Jr
OL	`67`	Christian DiLauro	Fr
OL	`68`	Simon Cvijanovic	Sr
OL	`69`	Ted Karras	Jr
OL	`70`	Peter Cvijanovic	Fr
OL	`71`	Joe Spencer	So
OL	`73`	Chris O'Connor	Jr
OL	`74`	Michael Heitz	Sr
OL	`75`	Pat Flavin	Jr
OL	`76`	Jesse Chadwell	Fr
OL	`78`	Harry Black	So
WR	`80`	Jeremey Whitlow	Jr
WR	`81`	Raphael Barr	So
WR	`82`	Kameron Fry	So
TE	`83`	Trevor Kanteman	Fr
WR	`84`	Kenny Knight	Jr
WR	`86`	Malik Turner	Fr
TE	`87`	Tyler White	So
WR	`88`	Zach Grant	Jr
TE	`89`	Dallas Hinkhouse	Jr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DB	`2`	V'Angelo Bentley	Jr
DB	`3`	Taylor Barton	So
DB	`4`	Darwyn Kelly	Fr
STAR	`5`	James Crawford	Fr
LB	`6`	Carroll Phillips	So
DB	`7`	Caleb Day	So
DB	`8`	Dillan Cazley	So
STAR	`9`	Earnest Thomas III	Sr
LB	`10`	B. J. Bello	So
STAR	`14`	Eric Finney	Jr
DB	`15`	Jevaris Little	So
DL	`17`	Jihad Ward	Jr
DB	`20`	Clayton Fejedelem	Jr
DB	`21`	Zane Petty	Sr
LB	`22`	LaKeith Walls	So
DB	`23`	Dennis Thurow	Fr
DB	`24`	Darius Mosely	So
DB	`25`	Sean Arowolaju	So
DB	`26`	Cedric Doxy	So
DB	`27`	Eaton Spencer	Jr
DB	`28`	Jaylen Dunlap	So
STAR	`29`	Nelson Lugo	So
DB	`30`	Julian Hylton	Fr
DB	`31`	Nick North	Jr
DB	`32`	Chris James	Fr
STAR	`33`	Zepheniah Grimes	Jr
LB	`34`	Mike Svetina	Jr
LB	`35`	Sean White	So
LB	`36`	Austin Roberts	Fr
DB	`37`	Davontay Kwaaning	Jr
DB	`38`	Samuel Harlib	Fr
LB	`39`	Nathan Echard	Fr
LB	`42`	Ralph Cooper	Sr
LB	`43`	Mason Monheim	Jr
DL	`44`	Austin Teitsma	Sr
LB	`45`	Henry McGrew	Fr
STAR	`46`	Jason Goldsmith	Fr
LEO	`48`	Tate Gordon	Fr
STAR	`49`	Conner Schmidt	Fr
LB	`52`	T. J. Neal	So
LB	`55`	Tre Watson	Fr
DL	`58`	Kenny Nelson	Jr
DL	`85`	Brandon Roberts	Fr
LEO	`90`	DeJazz Woods	Sr
LEO	`91`	Dawuane Smoot	So
DL	`92`	Abe Cajuste	Sr
DL	`93`	Teko Powell	Jr
DL	`94`	Tito Odenigbo	Fr
DL/FB	`95`	Jake Howe	Sr
DL	`96`	Rob Bain	So
DL	`97`	Paul James III	Fr
DL	`98`	Joe Fotu	Jr
DL	`99`	Jarrod Clements	So

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
PK/P	`13`	Ryan Frain	So
PK	`17`	Taylor Zalewski	Jr
P	`18`	Justin DuBernois	Sr
PK	`38`	David Reisner	So
P	`40`	Ryan Tucker	Fr
P	`41`	Nick Kybruz	Fr
LS	`54`	Zach Hirth	So
LS	`56`	Michael Martin	So
PK	`83`	Brennen VanMieghem	Sr

Head coach

Tim Beckman

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Tim Banks (defensive coordinator / secondary)
Bill Cubit (offensive coordinator / quarterbacks)
Mike Bellamy (wide receivers)
Tom Brattan (offensive line)
Greg Colby (defensive line)
Alex Golesh (tight ends / specialist / recruiting coordinator)
Tim Salem (running backs / special teams coordinator)
Al Seamonson (outside linebackers)
Mike Ward (inside linebackers)
Robert Arnheim (graduate assistant - offense)
Kolby Jackson (graduate assistant - defense)
Tyler Johns (graduate assistant - offense)
LeDominique Williams (graduate assistant - defense)
Nina Baloun (assistant recruiting coordinator)
Trent Chesnut (head football equipment manager)
Dane Chester (director of football game analysis)
Ryan Cubit (director of football student-athlete development)
Aaron Hillmann (head football strength & conditioning coach)
Tim Knox (director of football operations)
Jake Naas (head football athletic trainer)
Eric Streeter (assistant athletic trainer)
Juice Williams (director of alumni and former player relations)
Scott Yielding (director of player personnel)

Legend

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

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: December 3, 2014

Game summaries

Youngstown State

Youngstown State Penguins vs Illinois Fighting Illini – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Youngstown State	3	3	3	8	17
Illinois	0	7	0	21	28

at Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL

Date: August 30, 2014
Game time: 11:00 a.m. CDT
Game weather: Temperature: • Wind: • Weather:
Game attendance:
Referee: Referee: • Umpire: • Linesman: • Line judge: • Back judge: • Field judge: • Side judge:
TV announcers (BTN): Chris Denari (Play-by-play) & Danan Hughes (Color)

Game information

First Quarter

Second Quarter

Third Quarter

Fourth Quarter

Top Passers

YSU –
ILL –

Top Rushers

YSU –
ILL –

Top Receiving

YSU –
ILL –

Top Tackler

YSU –
ILL –

Western Kentucky

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Illinois Fighting Illini – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Western Kentucky	3	14	10	7	34
Illinois	7	7	7	21	42

at Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL

Date: September 6, 2014
Game time: 11:00 a.m. CDT
Game weather: Temperature: • Wind: • Weather:
Game attendance:
Referee: Referee: • Umpire: • Linesman: • Line judge: • Back judge: • Field judge: • Side judge:
TV announcers (BTN): Chris Denari (Play-by-play), J Leman (Color) & Rebecca Haarlow (Sideline)

Game information

First Quarter

Second Quarter

Third Quarter

Fourth Quarter

Top Passers

WKU –
ILL –

Top Rushers

WKU –
ILL –

Top Receiving

WKU –
ILL –

Top Tackler

WKU –
ILL –

Washington

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	3	9	7	0	19
Huskies	21	17	0	6	44

Texas State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	14	7	7	7	35
Fighting Illini	6	7	12	17	42

Nebraska

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	7	7	0	0	14
Cornhuskers	7	24	7	7	45

Purdue

	1	2	3	4	Total
Boilermakers	7	10	14	7	38
Fighting Illini	14	0	13	0	27

Wisconsin

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	14	0	0	14	28
Badgers	7	17	7	7	38

Minnesota

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Gophers	0	3	21	0	24
Fighting Illini	14	0	7	7	28

Ohio State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	0	0	7	7	14
Buckeyes	17	14	17	7	55

Iowa

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hawkeyes	2	7	7	14	30
Fighting Illini	7	0	0	7	14

Penn State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Nittany Lions	7	0	0	7	14
Fighting Illini	0	7	3	6	16

Northwestern

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• Illinois	13	13	7	14	47
Northwestern	0	7	10	16	33

Date: November 29
Location: Ryan Field, Evanston, IL
Game start: 11:00 a.m. CST
TV announcers (ESPNU): Mark Neely (Play-by-play) & Ray Bentley (Color)

Reilly O'Toole passed for 147 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for 147 yards.^[5]

Louisiana Tech–Heart of Dallas Bowl

	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Illini	3	6	6	3	18
Bulldogs	14	7	0	14	35

References

^ "2014 Illinois Fighting Illini Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
^ "2014 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.
^ "2014 Illinois Fighting Illini Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved February 1, 2014.
^ "Coaches". University of Illinois Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
^ Jackson, John (November 29, 2014). "Illinois Bowl Eligible With 47-33 Win". ESPN. Associated Press. Retrieved November 30, 2014.

[1] "2014 Illinois Fighting Illini Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.

[2] "2014 Illinois Fighting Illini Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2025.

[3] "2014 Illinois Fighting Illini Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved February 1, 2014.

[Coaches-4] "Coaches". University of Illinois Department of Athletics. Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved July 29, 2014.

[5] Jackson, John (November 29, 2014). "Illinois Bowl Eligible With 47-33 Win". ESPN. Associated Press. Retrieved November 30, 2014.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]


Q1	1:41	ILL	Turner 10 yard pass from O'Toole (Reisner kick)	ILL 7–0

Q1	:56	ILL	Ferguson 1 yard run (kick failed)	ILL 13–0

Q2	12:26	ILL	Reisner 33 yard field goal	ILL 16–0

Q2	5:39	ILL	Zalewski 33 yard field goal	ILL 19–0

Q2	5:24	NW	Vault 89 yard kickoff return (Mitchell kick)	ILL 19–7

Q2	:47	ILL	Dudek 14 yard pass from O'Toole (Zalewski kick)	ILL 26–7

Q3	12:24	NW	Mitchell 34 yard field goal	ILL 26–10

Q3	7:24	ILL	Barr 9 yard pass from O'Toole (Zalewski kick)	ILL 33–10

Q3	3:56	NW	Jackson 5 yard run (Mitchell kick)	ILL 33–17

Q4	14:05	NW	Jackson 35 yard pass from Oliver (Dickerson pass from Oliver)	ILL 33–25

Q4	12:39	ILL	Ferguson 46 yard run (Zalewski kick)	ILL 40–25

Q4	4:58	ILL	Monheim 49 yard interception return (Zalewski kick)	ILL 47–25

Q4	1:28	NW	Green 4 yard pass from Oliver (Jones pass from Oliver)	ILL 47–33

v t e Illinois Fighting Illini football
Venues	Illinois Field (1890–1922) Memorial Stadium (1923–present) Soldier Field (1994–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Indiana Michigan Missouri Northwestern Ohio State: Illibuck Purdue
Culture & lore	Illinois Loyalty "Oskee Wow-Wow" Marching Illini Gene Honda Fighting Illini Sports Network Chief Illiniwek 1960s slush fund scandal 2021 Penn State game
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
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National championship seasons in bold