2009 Illinois Fighting Illini football team
Encyclopedia
The 2009 Illinois Fighting Illini football team represented the University of Illinois during the 2009–2010 college football
season. The team's head football coach was Ron Zook
. The Illini played their home games at Memorial Stadium
in Champaign, Illinois
. This was Ron Zook's fifth season as the Illini head coach. The Illini finished the season 3–9 (2–6 Big Ten
). The Illini failed to live up to the lofty preseason expectations, receiving almost enough votes in the AP Poll to be ranked (and were said to be the unofficial #26 ranked team in the AP Poll because of this), and even were considered a dark horse candidate for the Big Ten championship. But after their blowout loss to Missouri, they failed to receive any votes, and failed to show any improvement until the Michigan State game, which followed blowout losses to Penn State and Ohio State, but by late in the season, they were able to upset Michigan and Minnesota while also giving Cincinnati a game.
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
season. The team's head football coach was Ron Zook
Ron Zook
Ron Zook is a former American football coach and former player. He served as the head football coach at the University of Florida from 2002 to 2004 and at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign from 2005 to 2011. Zook is a native of Ohio and an alumnus of Miami University, where he...
. The Illini played their home games at Memorial Stadium
Memorial Stadium (Champaign)
thumb|right|300px|Original plan for Memorial Stadium circa 1921. Caption from [[Popular Mechanics]] Magazine, 1921Memorial Stadium is a football stadium located in Champaign, Illinois, in the United States, on the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The stadium is dedicated as...
in Champaign, Illinois
Champaign, Illinois
Champaign is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, in the United States. The city is located south of Chicago, west of Indianapolis, Indiana, and 178 miles northeast of St. Louis, Missouri. Though surrounded by farm communities, Champaign is notable for sharing the campus of the University of...
. This was Ron Zook's fifth season as the Illini head coach. The Illini finished the season 3–9 (2–6 Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
). The Illini failed to live up to the lofty preseason expectations, receiving almost enough votes in the AP Poll to be ranked (and were said to be the unofficial #26 ranked team in the AP Poll because of this), and even were considered a dark horse candidate for the Big Ten championship. But after their blowout loss to Missouri, they failed to receive any votes, and failed to show any improvement until the Michigan State game, which followed blowout losses to Penn State and Ohio State, but by late in the season, they were able to upset Michigan and Minnesota while also giving Cincinnati a game.