1974 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

1974 Illinois Fighting Illini football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record6–4–1 (4–3–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
MVPs
  • Tom Hicks
  • Jeff Hollenbach
Captains
Home stadiumMemorial Stadium
1974 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 3 Michigan + 7 1 0 10 1 0
No. 4 Ohio State + 7 1 0 10 2 0
No. 12 Michigan State 6 1 1 7 3 1
Wisconsin 5 3 0 7 4 0
Illinois 4 3 1 6 4 1
Purdue 3 5 0 4 6 1
Minnesota 2 6 0 4 7 0
Iowa 2 6 0 3 8 0
Northwestern 2 6 0 3 8 0
Indiana 1 7 0 1 10 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1974 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 1974 Big Ten season. In their fourth year under head coach Bob Blackman, the Fighting Illini compiled a 6–4–1 record (4–3–1 in conference games), finished in fifth place in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 210 to 206.

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Jeff Hollenbach (1,037 passing yards, 48.9% completion percentage), running back Chubby Phillips (772 rushing yards, 4.4 yards per carry, nine touchdowns), and wide receiver Joe Smalzer (29 receptions for 525 yards). Hollenbach and linebacker Tom Hicks were selected as the team's most valuable players. Hicks also received first-team honors on the 1974 All-Big Ten Conference football team.

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