Here it is... the entire 'Memorable 25' list compiled by Leatherneck Athletics and highlights submitted by fans. Western will celebrate the first 1,000 games played in program history on Saturday (Sept. 13) when the Leathernecks will play host to Drake. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Hanson Field.

The first 1,500 fans to the game will receive a commerative 1,000 games pennant.

Tickets for Saturday's game (and all remaining five home football games) can be purchased by calling the ticket office at (309) 298-1190. Enjoy reliving the memories, and Go Leathernecks.
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Number 1 – First Games in Program History
The inaugural season of WIU football consisted of four games during the 1902 season and Western went 2-2 that year. In the Fall of 1903, the Athletic Association was formed in order that the various athletic games and contests might be conducted properly and for the best interest of the school.
 
Number 2 – The 1939 Season
During the 1939 season under legendary head coach Ray "Rock" Hanson, Western captured the Little 19 Conference title going 2-0-1 in league play.
Western finished the season 5-1-1 overall. The season was capped with a win over rival Carthage. Western fans tore down the goal posts and on the following Monday the entire student body took the day to celebrate with WGN Radio and a victory banquet.
 
Number 3 – The 1942 Season
    Under the leadership of coach Wix Garner, the 1942 Leathernecks became the first undefeated team in school history.
    The squad held four of its seven opponents scoreless, including a 26-0 Homecoming win over Southern Illinois and a 45-0 victory over Eastern Illinois the following week. In fact, no team scored more than 14 points on the Leathernecks that season.
 
Number 4 – Winning the 1949 Corn Bowl
    The first postseason game in the Western Illinois history books, the Corn Bowl was played in Bloomington, Ill., on Thanksgiving Day. Western defeated Wheaton 13-0 to cap a 9-1 season. The 1949 Leathernecks finished one of the toughest schedules to date with five consecutive shutouts.
 
Number 5 – The Field Dedication and Opener at Hanson Field in 1950
            On September 23, 1950, Western Illinois opened the season at home against Central Michigan. That game marked the dedication of Hanson Field. A plaque of the event is located on the southwest corner of the stands. Western won the game 28-7.

Number 6 – Winning the 1953 Corn Bowl
    Vince DiFrancesca's second Corn Bowl victory in as many appearances capped an 8-2 season and marked his last game as head coach of the Leathernecks. Western defeated Iowa Wesleyan 32-0. DiFrancesca's 1953 team led the entire nation in total offense among small colleges, averaging 473.6 yards per game.
 
Number 7 – An Undefeated 1959 season
    The 1959 Leathernecks remain the only undefeated and untied team in school history finishing 9-0. Just three games were decided by less than 20 points, as the Leathernecks out-scored their opponents by an average of 22 points. Western won the IIAC championship with a 6-0 record.
 
Number 8 – Dr. Victory Turns the Program Around, Western Invited to 1969 Mineral Bowl but Declines
            Coach Darrell Mudra is inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame for a reason. Western was coming off a 2-7-1 record in 1968 under Art Dufelmeier then Mudra was hired to take over the program.
Western put together an IIAC championship season in 1969, going 8-2 overall and 3-0 in the final season of the IIAC. Western was invited to the Mineral Bowl in Missouri but turned it down in hopes of a Pecan Bowl bid in Texas. Western finished as the number two choice for the Texas postseason classic. Western was ranked 17th nationally according to the NCAA College Division rankings.
 
Number 9 – October 23, 1973
            Western played host to Central Michigan on Homecoming and a Hanson Field record 19,850 fans were in attendance to watch the Leathernecks win 24-18.
 
Number 10 - September 17, 1988
The Leathernecks scored three touchdowns in the final quarter to overcome what was at one time a 23-point deficit to defeat Missouri State 35-31. Steve Williams caught a 28-yard pass in the end zone from Paul Singer for the game-winner with 1:11 to play to finish the Leathernecks' greatest comeback of all time.

Number 11 – The Longest Win Streak in the Division I Era
            Western rattled off nine consecutive wins (all to start the season) in 1988. That still stands as the longest win streak during the program's Division I era. It was ended on a 16-6 loss at Northern Illinois. The all-time record is 16 covering the final five games of the 1958 season through the first two wins in 1960.
 
Number 12 – 1988 Gateway Conference Championship Season
            Western capped an undefeated Gateway Conference season with a 13-10 win over Illinois State. That marked the program's first-ever Gateway (Missouri Valley Football) Conference championship with Bruce Craddock as the head coach.
 
Number 13 – October 11, 1997
            After watching Northern Iowa score a touchdown in the final minute to go ahead by two points, Western took advantage of a bad snap on the extra point.
Frank Spraggins scooped up the ball and raced down field for a 2-point defensive score to tie the game. To date, that is just the second time ever in WIU history the defense returned an extra point attempt for a score. Western eventually pulled out a 29-22 overtime win over #17 UNI. Western went undefeated in the Gateway Conference that season (6-0).
 
Number 14 - November 29, 1997… Opening Round Playoff Win
     The Leathernecks rallied from a 10-point deficit early in the fourth quarter on a muddy Hanson Field, and advanced to the second round of the I-AA playoffs for the first time in school history with a 31-24 win over Jackson State.
The ROTC fired the cannon to start the game just as the return man for Jackson State was fielding the opening kickoff. This startled the return man and caused him to muff the catch.  
Western Illinois had to scramble in the fourth quarter, and the Leathernecks avoided a first-round upset by scoring the final 10 points. Aaron Stecker set a Leatherneck playoff record with 244 rushing yards on 37 carries. His two fourth-quarter touchdowns provided the difference for WIU, which won its first-ever Division I playoff game.
 
Number 15 – October 3, 1998… Defeating No. 1 Youngstown State
     For the first time (and only time to date) in program history, the Leathernecks knocked off the No. 1 team in the country, shutting out No. 1 Youngstown State 14-0 at Hanson Field. That victory was part of an eight-game win streak during the 1998 campaign, a season in which Western advanced to the NCAA semifinals.

Number 16 – The 1998 Playoff Run
    Western opened the 1998 playoffs as the No. 4 team in the country, and sent a statement with a resounding 52-9 win over Montana in the opening round. Western scored 31 points during the second quarter to blow out the perennial power Griz.
The Leathernecks scored 17 points during the fourth quarter and rallied for a 24-21 quarterfinal win over Florida A&M. Erik Rogers scored all three touchdowns, setting a WIU playoff record.
Western went on the road to top-ranked Georgia Southern but dropped a 42-14 decision to the Eagles. Aaron Stecker recorded an 83-yard TD in the fourth quarter. His 255 all-purpose yards set a WIU single-game playoff record.
No other WIU team has advanced to the semifinals since the 1998 run.
 
Number 17 - November 18, 2000
    Mike Scifres was known for having a great leg as a punter. His first-ever career field goal attempt resulted in a WIU-record 56-yard field goal as time expired in the UNI-Dome giving Western a 44-41 victory. The win improved Western to a championship 5-1 record in the Gateway, giving head coach Don Patterson his first league title.
 
Number 18 – 1998 and 2000 Defensive Honors for Milton and Hartwell
    Following the 1998 season, James Milton received the Buck Buchanan Award, given out by The Sports Network to the nation's best defensive player. Milton recorded 176 total tackles, 22 tackles for a loss, two interceptions, six pass break-ups and forced five fumbles on the season.
    In 2000, Edgerton Hartwell improved on his fifth-place finish in the Buchanan Award voting the previous year to win the honor. Hartwell recorded 191 total tackles, 11 for a loss, five sacks, four fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles on the year. He intercepted a pass and broke up three passes on the year.
    They are the only two Leathernecks to win a Sports Network National Player of the Year Award in program history.
 
Number 19 – November 16, 2002… Mike Scifres and the 70-Yarders
    Mike Scifres already owned the program record for longest punt with an 89-yarder during his sophomore year. But the senior accomplished a feat during the 38-28 win at Southern Utah never done before. He launched two punts for 70-plus yards (75 and 73 yards), the first and only time in WIU history that feat was accomplished.
 
Number 20 - November 30, 2002
     In the opening round of the 2002 NCAA playoffs against in-state rival Eastern Illinois, the Leathernecks reached the end zone on three of their four first-quarter drives and took a 27-2 lead at halftime. The defense limited the Panthers and Walter Payton Award winning quarterback Tony Romo to just one touchdown and crushed the Panthers 48-9 in Romo's final collegiate game. OTHER MEMORABLE HIGHLIGHTS
– November 7, 1986
The Fighting Leathernecks traveled to Northern Illinois and blanked the in-state rival 10-0. It marked the first-ever win over a NCAA Division I-A program, and stands as the first of the six current wins over a Division I-A (FBS) program.
 
- Harrison's Big Defensive Game At Western Kentucky
Rodney Harrison set a Western Illinois record when he made 28 total tackles at Western Kentucky on October 30, 1993.
 
- Mike Scifres 89-yard punt at Missouri State in 2000.
Scifres set a WIU and Missouri Valley Football Conference record with an 89-yard punt at Missouri State.
 
- Gunnard Twyner catching a WIU record four touchdown passes in a 49-7 win over Buffalo on November 12, 1994
 
- Matt Barr accounted for a record seven touchdowns as the Leathernecks routed in-state rival Illinois State 63-38. He threw six touchdowns and ran for another while accumulating 452 passing yards on October 30, 2010. Barr also set a record completing more touchdown passes (6) than incomplete passes (3) as he went 22-for-25 versus the Redbirds.
 
- Every game the Peach Blossoms attend (Fan Submit)
I just wanted to share one of the most memorable moments at WIU Football games for me...
I loved the Peach Blossoms!
If you are not aware of the Peach Blossoms, they were a group of Veterans and they would dress up for the football games. They wore mops for their hair, each had a unique name on the back of their jersey (Cherry, Candy, etc.), shorts with a skirt over the shorts and their combat boots.
In addition, they each carried a plunger, which they used to collect alcohol from the fans. They were very popular and very funny (usually drunk when they arrived) and I remember my parents just got such a laugh out of them arriving at the stadium in a pick up truck.
 
- A successful 2-point conversion pass to tie the game late in the 1991 playoffs versus Marshall (Fan Submit)
 How about the successful two point conversion pass to tie the game late in the '91 playoff OT loss vs. No. #1 Marshall…Simmons #10 to Carlson #87!!!  Check out the catch!
 
- Return to Football in 1919
Western Illinois did not compete in football during the 1918 season due to World War I. Western returned to the gridiron in 1919 posting a 5-2 record under coach Erskine L. Jay.
 
- The Missouri Valley Football Conference Names the 'Coach of the Year' award after former WIU head coach Bruce Craddock, who passed away following the 1989 season.
 


 
 
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