1981 Big Ten Conference football season
| 1981 Big Ten Conference football season | |
|---|---|
| League | NCAA Division I-A |
| Sport | Football |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Top draft pick | Art Schlichter |
| Co-champions | Iowa, Ohio State |
| Runners-up | Michigan, Illinois |
| Season MVP | Art Schlichter |
| Top scorer | Bob Atha |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 15 Ohio State + | 6 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 18 Iowa + | 6 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12 Michigan | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 0 | – | 9 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 11 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1981 Big Ten Conference football season was the 86th season of college football played by the member schools of the Big Ten Conference and was a part of the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season.
The 1981 Big Ten co-champions were Iowa and Ohio State. In an odd twist of fate, the Hawkeyes and Buckeyes did not play each other, while all other conference teams played a full round-robin. Due to this, Iowa was awarded the Rose Bowl berth since its last appearance was in 1959; by comparison, Ohio State went to Pasadena seven times between 1969 and 1980.
Season overview
[edit]Results and team statistics
[edit]| Conf. Rank | Team | Head coach | AP final | AP high | Overall record | Conf. record | PPG | PAG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (tie) | Ohio State | Earle Bruce | 15 | 7 | 9–3 | 6–2 | 32.2 | 21.1 |
| 1 (tie) | Iowa | Hayden Fry | 18 | 6 | 8–4 | 6–2 | 21.7 | 13.3 |
| 3 (tie) | Michigan | Bo Schembechler | 12 | 1 | 9–3 | 6–3 | 29.6 | 13.5 |
| 3 (tie) | Illinois | Mike White | NR | NR | 7–4 | 6–3 | 26.1 | 26.2 |
| 3 (tie) | Wisconsin | Dave McClain | NR | 14 | 7–5 | 6–3 | 22.3 | 18.2 |
| 6 (tie) | Minnesota | Joe Salem | NR | NR | 6–5 | 4–5 | 24.9 | 24.0 |
| 6 (tie) | Michigan State | Muddy Waters | NR | NR | 5–6 | 4–5 | 23.9 | 22.6 |
| 8 (tie) | Purdue | Jim Young | NR | NR | 5–6 | 3–6 | 22.0 | 21.9 |
| 8 (tie) | Indiana | Lee Corso | NR | NR | 3–8 | 3–6 | 13.1 | 26.6 |
| 10 | Northwestern | Dennis Green | NR | NR | 0–11 | 0–9 | 7.5 | 45.9 |
Key
AP final = Team's rank in the final AP Poll of the 1981 season[1]
AP high = Team's highest rank in the AP Poll throughout the 1981 season[1]
PPG = Average of points scored per game[1]
PAG = Average of points allowed per game[1]
Bowl games
[edit]Four Big Ten teams played in bowl games at the end of the 1981 season.
| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 1, 1982 | Washington | Iowa | Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl) | NBC | L 0–28 | 105,611 | ||
| December 31, 1981 | 8 p.m. | Navy | Ohio State | Liberty Bowl • Memphis, TN (Liberty Bowl) | USA Network | W 31–28 | 43,216 | |
| December 31, 1981 | UCLA | Michigan | Houston Astrodome • Houston, TX (Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl) | Mizlou | W 33–14 | 50,107 | ||
| December 13, 1981 | Tennessee | Wisconsin | Giants Stadium • East Rutherford, NJ (Garden State Bowl) | Mizlou | L 21–28 | 38,782 | ||
| #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Eastern Standard Time. | ||||||||
Statistical leaders
[edit]The Big Ten's individual statistical leaders include the following:[1]
Passing yards[edit]1. Tony Eason, Illinois (3,360) Rushing yards[edit]1. Butch Woolfolk, Michigan (1,459) Receiving yards[edit]1. Chester Cooper, Minnesota (1,012) Total offense[edit]1. Tony Eason, Illinois (3,331) |
Passing efficiency rating[edit]1. Tony Eason, Illinois (140.0) Rushing yards per attempt[edit]1. Butch Woolfolk, Michigan (5.8) Yards per reception[edit]1. Duane Gunn, Indiana (21.2) Points scored[edit]1. Bob Atha, Ohio State (88) |
All-conference players
[edit]All-Americans
[edit]The NCAA recognizes four selectors as "official" for the 1980 season.[2] They are (1) the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), (2) the Associated Press (AP), (3) the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), and (4) the United Press International (UPI).
Consensus All-Americans
[edit]- Anthony Carter, wide receiver, Michigan (AFCA, AP, FWAA, UPI)
- Ed Muransky, offensive tackle, Michigan (AP, UPI)
- Kurt Becker, offensive guard, Michigan (AFCA, AP)
- Tim Krumrie, middle guard, Wisconsin (AP, UPI)
- Reggie Roby, punter, Iowa (AP, UPI)
1982 NFL Draft
[edit]The following Big Ten players were selected in the first six rounds of the draft:[3]
| Name | Position | Team | Round | Overall pick |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Art Schlichter | Quarterback | Ohio State | 1 | 4 |
| Butch Woolfolk | Running back | Michigan | 1 | 18 |
| Ron Hallstrom | Guard | Iowa | 1 | 22 |
| Bubba Paris | Offensive tackle | Michigan | 2 | 29 |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "1981 Big Ten Conference Year Summary". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 2, 2016.
- ^ "2014 NCAA Football Records: Consensus All-America Selections" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2014. pp. 3, 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 26, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
- ^ "1982 NFL Draft: Full Draft". NFL.com. National Football League. Retrieved November 2, 2016.