The 1963 Northern Illinois Huskies football team was an American football team that represented Northern Illinois University in the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 1963 NCAA College Division football season. In their eighth year under head coach Howard Fletcher, the Huskies compiled a perfect 10–0 record, won the IIAC championship, and outscored opponents by 337 to 97. They appeared in the Mineral Water Bowl, defeating Southwest Missouri State. The Associated Press recognized the team as the 1963 small college national champion.[1] However, the United Press International recognized Delaware as the small college champion. Northern Illinois played home games at the 5,500-seat Glidden Field on the east end of campus in DeKalb, Illinois.
| 1963 Northern Illinois Huskies football | |
|---|---|
AP small college national champion IIAC champion | |
Mineral Water Bowl, W 21–14 vs. Southwest Missouri State | |
| Conference | Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference |
| Ranking | |
| AP | No. 1 |
| Record | 10–0 (4–0 IIAC) |
| Head coach |
|
| MVP | George Bork |
| Captain | Michael Henigan, George Bork |
| Home stadium | Glidden Field |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 1 Northern Illinois $ | 4 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 0 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Illinois | 3 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Central Michigan | 2 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 5 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Illinois | 1 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois State Normal | 0 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Senior quarterback George Bork broke several national passing records, including single-season records for passing yardage (3,077), passing touchdowns (32), passes attempted (374), and completions (244). He also set single-game records for passes attempted (67), completions (43), and passing touchdowns (7). He was voted the team's most valuable player for the second consecutive year.[2]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 14 | Whitewater State* | W 55–7 | 6,000 | [3] | ||
| September 21 | at Winona State* | W 61–0 | 4,000 | [4] | ||
| September 28 | at Northeast Missouri State* |
| W 21–12 | 6,800 | [5] | |
| October 5 | Omaha* |
| W 18–7 | 9,007 | [6] | |
| October 12 | Hillsdale* |
| W 19–13 | 9,103 | [7] | |
| October 19 | Illinois State Normal | No. 1 |
| W 43–0 | 9,767 | [8] |
| October 26 | at Eastern Illinois | No. 1 |
| W 43–0 | 6,803 | [9] |
| November 2 | Western Illinois | No. 1 |
| W 29–22 | 10,177 | [10] |
| November 9 | at Central Michigan | No. 1 | Mount Pleasant, MI | W 27–22 | 11,000–11,164 | [11][12] |
| November 30 | vs. Southwest Missouri State* | No. 1 |
| W 21–14 | 6,500 | [13] |
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