The Illibuck Trophy is made of wood and is carved in the form of a turtle. This trophy is presented to the winners of the Illinois-Ohio State rivalries. The Illinois Fighting Illini of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the Ohio State Buckeyes of Ohio State University compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). Both of these teams have also been a member of the Big Ten Conference and have competed against each other 103 times in their careers so far.
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What is the name of the rivalry between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Ohio State Buckeyes?
The Illibuck Trophy was first introduced in 1925 as a live turtle to present to the winners of the rivalries between Illinois and Ohio State. Although this was done due to long lifespans of turtles, the living turtle passed away a year later. This resulted in a wooden carved turtle being introduced as the trophy in 1926 and has since then being presented to the winners of the rivalries. Notably, the trophy has the scores of the most recent games inscribed on its shell. The annual rivalry continued until 2015. However, the inclusion of Maryland and Rutgers in the Big Ten Conference prevented their rivalry from taking place annually. As a result, it was agreed that both teams would meet once in four years. The teams last faced off in 2017, following which the 2020 game was canceled due to Covid-19. These teams are scheduled to face off again for the Illibuck Trophy in 2025.
The Illibuck Trophy Winners Year by Year
The Illinois Fighting Illini and the Ohio State Buckeyes have faced each other 103 times, as of 2024. They first encountered each other on November 15, 1902, when the game resulted in a tie with a 0-0. However, Illinois was the first to taste victory in this rivalry by defeating Ohio State 46-0 on November 5, 1904. However, Ohio State got their first victory in this rivalry by defeating Illinois 7-6 on October 21, 1916. Illinois was also the first to receive the Illibuck Trophy in 1925 while Ohio State earned the trophy a year later in 1926. In their last encounter on November 18, 2017, Ohio State defeated Illinois 52-14. As of 2024, Ohio State leads against their rivals with a record of 68-30-4. The following table displays the winners of the Illibuck Trophy as well as the winners of the Illinois-Ohio State rivalry over the years-
| No. | Date | Location | Winner | Score |
| 1 | November 15, 1902 | Columbus | Tie | 0–0 |
| 2 | November 5, 1904 | Columbus | Illinois | 46–0 |
| 3 | October 17, 1914 | Champaign | Illinois | 37–0 |
| 4 | October 16, 1915 | Columbus | Tie | 3–3 |
| 5 | October 21, 1916 | Champaign | Ohio State | 7–6 |
| 6 | November 17, 1917 | Columbus | Ohio State | 13–0 |
| 7 | November 16, 1918 | Champaign | Illinois | 13–0 |
| 8 | November 22, 1919 | Columbus | Illinois | 9–7 |
| 9 | November 20, 1920 | Champaign | Ohio State | 7–0 |
| 10 | November 19, 1921 | Columbus | Illinois | 7–0 |
| 11 | November 25, 1922 | Champaign | Ohio State | 6–3 |
| 12 | November 24, 1923 | Columbus | Illinois | 9–0 |
| 13 | November 22, 1924 | Champaign | Illinois | 7–0 |
| 14 | November 21, 1925 | Columbus | Illinois | 14–9 |
| 15 | November 20, 1926 | Champaign | Ohio State | 7–6 |
| 16 | November 19, 1927 | Columbus | Illinois | 13–0 |
| 17 | November 24, 1928 | Champaign | Illinois | 8–0 |
| 18 | November 23, 1929 | Columbus | Illinois | 27–0 |
| 19 | November 22, 1930 | Champaign | Ohio State | 12–9 |
| 20 | November 21, 1931 | Columbus | Ohio State | 40–0 |
| 21 | November 19, 1932 | Champaign | Ohio State | 3–0 |
| 22 | November 25, 1933 | Columbus | Ohio State | 7–6 |
| 23 | October 13, 1934 | Champaign | Illinois | 14–13 |
| 24 | November 16, 1935 | Columbus | Ohio State | 6–0 |
| 25 | November 14, 1936 | Champaign | Ohio State | 13–0 |
| 26 | November 13, 1937 | Columbus | Ohio State | 19–0 |
| 27 | November 12, 1938 | Champaign | Ohio State | 32–14 |
| 28 | November 18, 1939 | Columbus | Ohio State | 21–0 |
| 29 | November 16, 1940 | Urbana, Illinois | Ohio State | 14–6 |
| 30 | November 15, 1941 | Columbus | Ohio State | 12–7 |
| 31 | November 14, 1942 | Cleveland, Ohio | Ohio State | 44–20 |
| 32 | November 13, 1943 | Columbus | Ohio State | 29–26 |
| 33 | November 18, 1944 | Cleveland, Ohio | Ohio State | 26–12 |
| 34 | November 17, 1945 | Columbus | Ohio State | 27–2 |
| 35 | November 16, 1946 | Champaign | Illinois | 16–7 |
| 36 | November 15, 1947 | Columbus | Illinois | 28–7 |
| 37 | November 13, 1948 | Champaign | Ohio State | 34–7 |
| 38 | November 12, 1949 | Columbus | Ohio State | 30–17 |
| 39 | November 18, 1950 | Champaign | Illinois | 14–7 |
| 40 | November 17, 1951 | Columbus | Tie | 0–0 |
| 41 | November 15, 1952 | Champaign | Ohio State | 27–7 |
| 42 | October 10, 1953 | Columbus | Illinois | 41–20 |
| 43 | October 9, 1954 | Champaign | Ohio State | 40–7 |
| 44 | October 8, 1955 | Columbus | Ohio State | 27–12 |
| 45 | October 13, 1956 | Champaign | Ohio State | 26–6 |
| 46 | October 12, 1957 | Columbus | Ohio State | 21–7 |
| 47 | October 11, 1958 | Champaign | Ohio State | 19–13 |
| 48 | October 10, 1959 | Columbus | Illinois | 9–0 |
| 49 | October 8, 1960 | Champaign | Ohio State | 34–7 |
| 50 | October 14, 1961 | Columbus | Ohio State | 44–0 |
| 51 | October 13, 1962 | Champaign | Ohio State | 51–15 |
| 52 | October 12, 1963 | Columbus | Tie | 20–20 |
| 53 | October 10, 1964 | Champaign | Ohio State | 26–0 |
| 54 | October 9, 1965 | Columbus | Ohio State | 28–14 |
| 55 | October 8, 1966 | Champaign | Illinois | 10–9 |
| 56 | October 28, 1967 | Columbus | Illinois | 17–13 |
| 57 | October 26, 1968 | Champaign | Ohio State | 31–24 |
| 58 | October 25, 1969 | Columbus | Ohio State | 41–0 |
| 59 | October 24, 1970 | Champaign | Ohio State | 48–29 |
| 60 | October 9, 1971 | Champaign | Ohio State | 24–10 |
| 61 | October 14, 1972 | Columbus | Ohio State | 26–7 |
| 62 | November 3, 1973 | Champaign | Ohio State | 30–0 |
| 63 | November 2, 1974 | Columbus | Ohio State | 49–7 |
| 64 | November 8, 1975 | Champaign | Ohio State | 40–3 |
| 65 | November 6, 1976 | Columbus | Ohio State | 42–10 |
| 66 | November 5, 1977 | Champaign | Ohio State | 35–0 |
| 67 | November 11, 1978 | Columbus | Ohio State | 45–7 |
| 68 | November 3, 1979 | Champaign | Ohio State | 44–7 |
| 69 | November 8, 1980 | Columbus | Ohio State | 49–42 |
| 70 | October 17, 1981 | Columbus | Ohio State | 34–27 |
| 71 | October 16, 1982 | Champaign | Ohio State | 26–21 |
| 72 | October 15, 1983 | Champaign | Illinois | 17–13 |
| 73 | October 13, 1984 | Columbus | Ohio State | 45–38 |
| 74 | October 5, 1985 | Champaign | Illinois | 31–28 |
| 75 | October 4, 1986 | Columbus | Ohio State | 14–0 |
| 76 | October 3, 1987 | Champaign | Ohio State | 10–6 |
| 77 | October 1, 1988 | Columbus | Illinois | 31–12 |
| 78 | October 7, 1989 | Champaign | Illinois | 34–14 |
| 79 | October 6, 1990 | Columbus | Illinois | 31–20 |
| 80 | October 12, 1991 | Champaign | Illinois | 10–7 |
| 81 | October 10, 1992 | Columbus | Illinois | 18–16 |
| 82 | October 9, 1993 | Champaign | Ohio State | 20–12 |
| 83 | October 8, 1994 | Columbus | Illinois | 24–10 |
| 84 | November 11, 1995 | Columbus | Ohio State | 41–3 |
| 85 | November 9, 1996 | Champaign | Ohio State | 48–0 |
| 86 | November 15, 1997 | Columbus | Ohio State | 41–6 |
| 87 | October 10, 1998 | Champaign | Ohio State | 41–0 |
| 88 | November 13, 1999 | Columbus | Illinois | 46–20 |
| 89 | November 11, 2000 | Champaign | Ohio State | 24–21 |
| 90 | November 17, 2001 | Columbus | Illinois | 34–22 |
| 91 | November 16, 2002 | Champaign | Ohio State | 23–16 |
| 92 | November 5, 2005 | Columbus | Ohio State | 40–2 |
| 93 | November 4, 2006 | Champaign | Ohio State | 17–10 |
| 94 | November 10, 2007 | Columbus | Illinois | 28–21 |
| 95 | November 15, 2008 | Champaign | Ohio State | 30–20 |
| 96 | September 26, 2009 | Columbus | Ohio State | 30–0 |
| 97 | October 2, 2010 | Champaign | #Ohio State | 24–13 |
| 98 | October 15, 2011 | Champaign | Ohio State | 17–7 |
| 99 | November 3, 2012 | Columbus | Ohio State | 52–22 |
| 100 | November 16, 2013 | Champaign | Ohio State | 60–35 |
| 101 | November 1, 2014 | Columbus | Ohio State | 55–14 |
| 102 | November 14, 2015 | Champaign | Ohio State | 28–3 |
| 103 | November 18, 2017 | Columbus | Ohio State | 52–14 |
FAQs on Illibuck Trophy Winners
A. The Illibuck Trophy is awarded to the winner of the college football rivalry game between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Ohio State Buckeyes.
A. Illinois Fighting Illini and Ohio State Buckeyes: these two teams have played each other in 103 games.
A. Ohio State holds a lead in the historical series with 68 wins, 30 losses, and 4 ties.
A. The Illibuck Trophy is a carved wooden turtle given to the game's victor and is one of the Big Ten's oldest rivalry trophies.
A. The Illibuck Trophy tradition started in 1925, originally with a live turtle symbolizing the rivalry's projected long life. It's now a carved wooden turtle.
