2001 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team

2001 Western Illinois Leathernecks football
ConferenceGateway Football Conference
Record5–5 (4–3 Gateway)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorMark Hendrickson (3rd season)
Home stadiumHanson Field
2001 Gateway Football Conference standings
Conf. Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 4 Northern Iowa $^   6 1     11 3  
No. 12 Western Kentucky ^   5 2     8 4  
No. 15 Youngstown State   5 2     8 3  
Western Illinois   4 3     5 5  
Southwest Missouri State   3 4     6 5  
Indiana State   2 5     3 8  
Illinois State   2 5     2 9  
Southern Illinois   1 6     1 10  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 2001 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team represented Western Illinois University as a member of the Gateway Football Conference during the 2001 NCAA Division I-AA football season. They were led by third-year head coach Don Patterson and played their home games at Hanson Field in Macomb, Illinois. The Leathernecks finished the season with a 5–5 record overall and a 4–3 record in conference play. Western Illinois played a ten-game schedule instead of the typical eleven-game schedule in Division I-AA, as they were unable to schedule an eleventh opponent before the season began.