Top 10 Illinois football quarterbacks of all time
No. 9 Tom O’Connell
It is really hard to find numbers on some of the athletes from pre-1957. Illinois football had the most success in program history in the early 1900s, but there weren’t a lot of great numbers.
I have to tip my hat to Tom O’Connell, though. A name that most Illini fans don’t know and sports fans surely won’t know, O’Connell helped lead Illinois to some incredible moments in program history.
O’Connell came out of the Chicago area, much like Johnny Johnson. He attended South Shore High School where he was a star athlete in the 1940s. O’Connell originally committed and suited up for Notre Dame, but due to playing time, he transferred out and ended up landing with Illinois.
The first season under O’Connell was incredibly successful. Illinois ended up going 9-0-1 with the only blemish a 0-0 tie with Ohio State. That season, O’Connell helped the Illini in beating No. 20 Washington and No. 15 Michigan. In the game against the Wolverines, O’Connell threw the game-winning touchdown pass with under two minutes left in a snowstorm to win 7-0.
Illinois didn’t just win the Big Ten in 1951, but we also made the Rose Bowl and beat No. 7 Stanford 40-7. In that game, the Illini were down 7-6 in the second half before we went on a 34-point unanswered run to win the game. This victory also helped Illinois clinch our fifth and most recent national championship.
The following season wasn’t nearly as successful, as the Illini went 4-5 overall despite getting as high as No. 2 in the country. O’Connell still has some great moments throughout his career, though.
O’Connell’s great quarterback play earned him double-digit Big Ten records at the time, and he held Illinois’ single-season and career passing yardage records for 28 years and 20 years, respectively.
In the Illinois record book, you will still find O’Connell’s name today. His three touchdown passes in the first quarter against Washington in 1952 rank No. 2 all-time for the Illini. He had five touchdowns in the first half of that game, which is the most by any Illinois quarterback ever. These are just a couple of the records he has etched his name in.
O’Connell was a great quarterback who helped Illinois to our most recent national championship. He also held multiple Illinois records for multiple decades. He belongs in the top 10.