Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 2022
Football • 1957-59
Bill Burrell finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting and was a Consensus All-American as a senior linebacker in 1959 at only 6-0 and 215 pounds. He was the first Black captain of the Illini football team as a senior. Burrell was a three-time First-Team All-Big Ten selection and was the 1959 Big Ten Silver Football Award winner. He also earned All-America honors in 1958. Burrell was drafted in 1960 by the AFL Buffalo Bills and in the fifth round (50th overall) in the NFL Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He played five seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL) for the Saskatchewan Roughriders as a linebacker and offensive guard and was the team’s nominee for the Schenley Award as Outstanding Lineman in 1960. In 1990, Burrell was named to the Illinois All-Century Football Team. The football field at Clifton Central (IL) HS is named Bill Burrell Field. Burrell died in 1998 at the age of 61.