FightingIllini.com

The Official Home of University of Illinois Athletics

    Football

    •   ILLINOIS FOOTBALL HISTORY   •


    Butkus Award

      Kevin Hardy received the Butkus Award in 1995.
    Symbolic of the nation's top collegiate linebacker, the Butkus Award was named after former University of Illinois All-American linebacker Dick Butkus. It was presented annually from 1985-2007 to the nation's top collegiate linebacker by the Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando. In April, 2008, Butkus won a court case removing his name from DACO award and giving him the opportunity to begin his own award program. Beginning in 2008, the award was given out by The Butkus Foundation at a celebration in Chicago, Ill.

    Considered the greatest linebacker in the history of football, Butkus was a two-time All-America selection in 1963 and 1964. He earned the Silver Football Award in 1963 as the Big Ten's Most Valuable Player after leading the Illini to the Big Ten championship. Butkus moved on to a Hall of Fame career with the Chicago Bears, where he was a six-time All-Pro selection. Butkus finished third in the 1964 Heisman Trophy voting and had his number, 50, retired at Illinois in 1986 and his professional jersey, No. 51, retired in Chicago in 1994.

    Butkus helped lead the Illini to a 1964 Rose Bowl victory over Washington and was a two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection as a linebacker and center. He finished his Illinois career with 373 tackles and was the 1964 National Player of the Year, as selected by the American Football Coaches Association.

      Butkus presented the award to Dana Howard in 1994.

    Butkus was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979, the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1995.

    In 1994 and 1995, the Butkus Award returned to its Orange and Blue roots with back-to-back Illini recipients in Dana Howard (1994) and Kevin Hardy (1995). Howard was the Big Ten's leading tackler and a three-time All-Big Ten selection. Hardy exploded onto the national scene as a senior, earning All-America honors in every major publication and All-Big Ten honors for the second consecutive season.

    Butkus Award Recipients
    1985     Brian Bosworth, Oklahoma
    1986     Brian Bosworth, Oklahoma
    1987     Paul McGowan, Florida State
    1988     Derrick Thomas, Alabama
    1989     Percy Snow, Michigan State
    1990     Alfred Williams, Colorado
    1991     Erick Anderson, Michigan
    1992     Marvin Jones, Florida State
    1993     Trev Alberts, Nebraska
    1994     Dana Howard, Illinois
    1995     Kevin Hardy, Illinois
     1996     Matt Russell, Colorado
    1997     Andy Katzenmoyer, Ohio State
    1998     Chris Claiborne, Southern California
    1999     LaVar Arrington, Penn State
    2000     Dan Morgan, Miami
    2001     Rocky Calmus, Oklahoma
    2002     E.J. Henderson, Maryland
    2003     Teddy Lehman, Oklahoma
    2004     Derrick Johnson, Texas
    2005     Paul Posluszny, Penn State
    2006     Patrick Willis, Mississippi
    2007     James Laurinaitis, Ohio State
    2008     Aaron Curry, Wake Forest


    (updated 02/09)

    Illinois Athletics

    Top Videos

    See more videos

    Twitter

    Follow Us On Twitter

    Contact

    University of Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics

    Bielfeldt Athletic Administration Building
    1700 S. Fourth Street, Champaign, IL 61820
    217-333-3630 | E-Mail Us