Illini 411: Remember when goal posts were made of wood?
A: Based on your graduation year, I bet you remember the 1964 Rose Bowl—a 17-7 victory over the University of Washington—where Illini fans “gathered in the end zones in the
Illini 411: What’s the coldest day ever recorded on campus?
A: Get out your toboggans, friends! And your down vests and long underwear and hand warmers and all that other cold weather razzamatazz. Or, better yet, just stay inside beside
Illini 411: Why’s the U of I in Urbana?
A: Because of backroom deals so brazen, they could even make a politician blush! The credit goes to Clark Robinson Griggs, a state representative and former Urbana mayor, who in
Illini 411: I read that the “land” of “land-grant” universities was stolen from Indigenous tribes. Is that true of Illinois?
A: Yes, unfortunately. The Morrill Act of 1862, which created the land-grant university system, gave each U.S. state an allotment of “public lands” that it could lease or sell to
Illini 411: Did Richard Nixon campaign on campus in 1960?
When Nixon was Eisenhower’s vice president (1953–61), he visited Champaign-Urbana for campaign stops in 1954 and 1956. During his own 1960 presidential campaign, Nixon visited the small Illinois town of
Illini 411: Following my great-grandfather’s death during World War I, the University planted a memorial tree on campus in his honor. Is the tree still alive and, if so, where is it?
A: In 1920, the University planted 173 World War I memorial trees around the perimeter of the Armory, and extending down Sixth Street and up Pennsylvania Avenue. Unfortunately, some of
Illini 411: Why’s there a cow buried on campus?
A: Because she was the greatest cow of all time. Illini Nellie (1927–1940), a Brown Swiss, became legen-dairy in the 1930s, setting records for milk and milk fat production 12
Illini 411: Who started the Morrow Plots, the oldest experimental field in America?
A: If you guessed Mr. Morrow, guess again. The field’s namesake, Dean of Agriculture George E. Morrow, eventually oversaw its research and made the plots famous by publishing his findings.
Illini 411: What’s the weirdest thing you’ve seen a campus squirrel eat?
A: Where do I start?!? There was the squirrel in the sycamore tree by the Main Library, eating a full-size slice of pepperoni pizza. There was the one on the
Illini 411: I heard that students used to play a real-life version of Hunt the Wumpus down in the steam tunnels. Did they ever catch anything?
A: When I was a kid, my teenage cousin took me snipe hunting in our neighborhood. It wasn’t as glamorous or inherently dangerous as wumpus hunting in the steam tunnels,
