1962 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

1962 Illinois Fighting Illini football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 18
Record2–7 (2–5 Big Ten)
Head coach
MVPKen Zimmerman
Captains
  • Bob Scharbert
  • Ken Zimmerman
Home stadiumMemorial Stadium
1962 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 2 Wisconsin $ 6 1 0 8 2 0
No. 10 Minnesota 5 2 0 6 2 1
Northwestern 4 2 0 7 2 0
Ohio State 4 2 0 6 3 0
Michigan State 3 3 0 5 4 0
Purdue 3 3 0 4 4 1
Iowa 3 3 0 4 5 0
Illinois 2 5 0 2 7 0
Indiana 1 5 0 3 6 0
Michigan 1 6 0 2 7 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1962 Illinois Fighting Illini football team was an American football team that represented the University of Illinois as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1962 Big Ten season. In their third year under head coach Pete Elliott, the Fighting Illini compiled a 2–7 record (2–5 in conference games), finished in eighth place in the Big Ten, and were outscored by a total of 234 to 75.

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Mike Taliaferro (1,139 passing yards, 37.7% completion percentage), halfback Ken Zimmerman (225 rushing yards, 4.1 yards per carry), and wide receiver Thurman Walker (240 receiving yars). Zimmerman was selected as the team's most valuable player. Center Dick Butkus was selected by the UPI as a second-team player on the 1962 All-Big Ten Conference football team.

The team played its home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.