Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame | Photos
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Football legend Dick Butkus was inducted into the inaugural class of the Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame Saturday at State Farm Center.
Butkus is regarded by many as the greatest linebacker in football history. He is one of four Illinois players in history to earn consensus All-America honors in two seasons. Butkus played center on offense and linebacker on defense for Coach Pete Elliott, leading the Illini to the 1963 Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl victory over Washington. He is a member of both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame.
Butkus was two-time consensus All-American, three-time All-Big Ten and the 1963 Silver Football Award winner. He finished third in the 1964 Heisman Trophy balloting and went on to a nine-year Hall of Fame career with the NFL's Chicago Bears. Butkus' Illinois jersey, No. 50, was retired in 1986 and he was named to the Walter Camp Foundation All-Century team in 1989. The nation's top linebacker receives the "Butkus Award" each season.
