2000 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team

2000 Eastern Illinois Panthers football
ConferenceOhio Valley Conference
Ranking
Sports NetworkNo. 17
Record8–4 (6–1 OVC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorRoy Wittke (11th season)
Defensive coordinatorKim Dameron (1st season)
Home stadiumO'Brien Stadium
Seasons
← 1999
2001 →
2000 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 5 Western Kentucky $^   7 0     11 2  
No. 17 Eastern Illinois ^   6 1     8 4  
No. 22 Tennessee Tech   5 2     8 3  
Murray State   4 3     6 5  
Eastern Kentucky   3 4     6 5  
Tennessee State   2 5     3 8  
Southeast Missouri State   1 6     3 8  
Tennessee–Martin   0 7     2 9  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 2000 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2000 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by 14th-year head coach Bob Spoo, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 8–4, finishing second in OVC with a conference mark of 6–1. Eastern Illinois was invited to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they lost in the first round to Montana. The Bobcats were ranked 17th in the final Sports Network poll. Their starting quarterback, Tony Romo, went on to play 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL).

Schedule

[edit]
DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
August 31at Indiana State*W 42–24[1]
September 9Kentucky Wesleyan*W 72–0[2]
September 16at Toledo*L 26–31[3]
September 23at Tennessee–MartinW 42–7[4]
October 7Tennessee State
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
W 33–19[5]
October 14Murray State
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
W 48–7[6]
October 21at Tennessee TechNo. 24W 27–16[7]
October 28at No. 9 Western KentuckyNo. 19L 12–3411,300
November 4Southeast Missouri StateNo. 21
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
W 38–9
November 11at Illinois State*No. 20L 41–44 2OT8,540[8]
November 18Eastern KentuckyNo. 22
  • O'Brien Stadium
  • Charleston, IL
W 49–6
November 25at No. 1 Montana*No. 17MTNL 13–4516,212

[9]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Panthers down Indiana State". The Daily Journal. September 1, 2000 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  2. ^ "Wesleyan hammered by Eastern Illinois". Messenger-Inquirer. September 10, 2000 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ Nielson, Brian (September 18, 2000). "Despite loss, Panthers gain a lot of respect". Journal Gazette – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  4. ^ "E. Illinois 42, Tenn.-Martin 7". Quad-City Times. September 24, 2000 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  5. ^ Kelly, Jeff (October 9, 2000). "Residents come out for festivities despite cold". Journal Gazette – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. ^ "Panthers' Romo earns OVC player on Racers". The Paducah Sun. October 16, 2000 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  7. ^ "Eastern Illinois 27, Tennessee Tech 16". The Courier-Journal. October 22, 2000 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  8. ^ "Redbirds recover for 2 OT victory". The Rock Island Argus. Associated Press. November 12, 2000. p. C2. Retrieved January 22, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "EIU Football Online Guide, 2019" (PDF). Eastern Illinois athletics. Retrieved February 12, 2020.