The 1978 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University during the 1978 NCAA Division II football season, and completed the 78th season of Panther football. The Panthers played their home games at O'Brien Stadium in Charleston, Illinois. The 1978 team came off a 1–10 record from the previous season.[1] The 1978 team was led by coach Darrell Mudra. The team finished the regular season with a 9–2 record and made the NCAA Division II playoffs. The Panthers defeated Delaware, 10–9, in the National Championship Game en route to the program's first NCAA Division II Football Championship.[2]
| 1978 Eastern Illinois Panthers football | |
|---|---|
NCAA Division II champion | |
NCAA Division II Championship Game, W 10–9 vs. Delaware | |
| Conference | Association of Mid-Continent Universities |
| Record | 12–2 (3–2 Mid-Con) |
| Head coach |
|
| Offensive coordinator | Mike Shanahan (1st season) |
| Home stadium | O'Brien Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youngstown State $^ | 5 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Akron | 4 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Illinois ^ | 3 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 12 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Michigan | 1 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Illinois | 1 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Iowa | 0 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Schedule
edit| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2 | Central State (OH)* | W 41–16 | 7,000 | ||||
| September 9 | at Butler* | W 42–3 | 4,300 | ||||
| September 16 | Northern Iowa |
| W 38–22 | 8,500 | |||
| September 23 | Northeast Missouri State* |
| W 29–12 | 7,000 | |||
| September 30 | at Akron | No. 4 | L 16–17 | 3,278 | |||
| October 7 | at No. 4 Youngstown State | No. 8 | L 24–40 | 4,360 | |||
| October 21 | at No. 8 Northern Michigan |
| W 42–34 | 8,602 | |||
| October 28 | at Wayne State (MI)* | No. 8 | Detroit, MI | W 42–34 | 1,800 | ||
| November 4 | Illinois State* | No. 9 |
| W 42–7 | 9,000 | [3] | |
| November 11 | Murray State* | No. 7 |
| W 35–14 | 6,500 | [4] | |
| November 18 | at Western Illinois | No. 5 | W 40–12 | 7,850 | |||
| November 25 | 3:00 p.m. | at No. 4 UC Davis* | No. 5 | W 35–31 | 8,500 | [5][6][7] | |
| December 2 | No. 2 Youngstown State* | No. 5 |
| W 26–22 | |||
| December 9 | vs. No. 3 Delaware* | No. 5 |
| W 10–9 | 5,500 | [8] | |
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References
edit- ^ "Eastern Illinois Panthers - College Football (NCAA)". College-football-results.com. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
- ^ DeLassus, David (2016). "Eastern Illinois Yearly Results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on August 27, 2016. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
- ^ "Eastern rips Illinois State". The Decatur Daily Review. November 5, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Murray loses". The State Journal. November 12, 1978. Retrieved September 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Dunning, Bob (November 20, 1978). "Aggies, E. Illinois Meet In Playoffs". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. C2. Retrieved May 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com
.
- ^ Dunning, Bob (November 26, 1978). "Ags Fall Short To EIU, 35-31". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. D1. Retrieved May 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ Dunning, Bob (November 26, 1978). "Aggies (continued)". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. D6. Retrieved May 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ "Late kick off mark, Eastern wins title". The Pantagraph. December 10, 1978. Retrieved November 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Final 1978 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
- ^ "EIU Football Online Guide, 2019" (PDF). Eastern Illinois athletics. Retrieved May 29, 2020.