2002 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team
{{short description|American college football season}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox college sports team season
| year = 2002
| team = Eastern Illinois Panthers
| sport = football
| image = Eastern Illinois Panthers wodmark 2000-2015.png
| image_size= 200
| conference = Ohio Valley Conference
| short_conf = OVC
| TSNRank = 15
| record = 8–4
| conf_record = 5–1
| head_coach = Bob Spoo
| hc_year = 16th
| off_coach = Roy Wittke
| oc_year = 13th
| off_scheme =
| def_coach = Roc Bellantoni
| dc_year = 1st
| def_scheme =
| captain =
| stadium = O'Brien Stadium
| champion = OVC co-champion
| bowl = NCAA Division I-AA First Round
| bowl_result = L 9–48 vs. Western Illinois
}}
{{2002 Ohio Valley Conference football standings}}
The 2002 Eastern Illinois Panthers represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2002 NCAA Division I-AA football season.{{cite web |title=College Football Statistics |url=http://totalfootballstats.com/Team_College.asp?id=1230&Season=2002 |website=www.totalfootballstatistics.com |publisher=Total Football Statistics |accessdate=March 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307074340/http://totalfootballstats.com/Team_College.asp?id=1230&Season=2002 |archive-date=7 March 2016 |url-status=live }} Led by 16th-year head coach Bob Spoo, the Panthers compiling an overall record of 8–4 and shared the OVC title with a mark of 5–1 in conference play. They were invited to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoff, where they lost to Western Illinois in the first round.
Quarterback Tony Romo's efforts earned him the Walter Payton Award given to the most outstanding offensive player in NCAA Division I-AA, now known as NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision. Despite not being selected at the 2003 NFL draft, Romo later signed with the Dallas Cowboys as a free agent, eventually landing the starting job in 2006 season, and earned four Pro Bowl selections before his retirement in 2016.
Schedule
{{CFB schedule
| rankyear = 2002
| rankdivision = NCAA Division I-AA
| poll = The Sports Network
| timezone = Central
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = August 31
| time = 10:00 p.m.
| w/l = l
| nonconf = y
| away = y
| rank = 4
| opponent = Hawaii
| site_stadium = Aloha Stadium
| site_cityst = Honolulu, HI
| tv =
| score = 36–61
| attend = 39,958
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = September 14
| time = 1:10 p.m.
| w/l = l
| nonconf = y
| away = y
| rank = 8
| opponent = Kansas State
| site_stadium = KSU Stadium
| site_cityst = Manhattan, KS
| tv =
| score = 13–63
| attend = 45,642
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = September 21
| time =
| w/l = w
| rank = 13
| opponent = Indiana State
| site_stadium = O'Brien Stadium
| site_cityst = Charleston, IL
| tv =
| score = 26–19
| attend = 8,340
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = September 28
| time =
| w/l = w
| rank = 13
| opponent = Illinois State
| site_stadium = O'Brien Stadium
| site_cityst = Charleston, IL
| gamename = rivalry
| tv =
| score = 45–10
| attend = 10,731
| source = {{cite news |title=Panthers dominate Redbirds in record win |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114234072/herald-and-review/ |access-date=December 7, 2022 |work=Herald & Review |date=September 29, 2002 |page=C7 |via=Newspapers.com}}
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = October 5
| time =
| w/l = w
| away = y
| rank = 13
| opponent = {{cfb link|year=2002|team=Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles|title=Tennessee Tech}}
| site_stadium = Tucker Stadium
| site_cityst = Cookeville, TN
| tv =
| score = 35–28
| attend = 10,850
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = October 12
| time =
| w/l = w
| rank = 9
| opponent = {{cfb link|year=2002|team=Eastern Kentucky Colonels|title=Eastern Kentucky}}
| opprank = 19
| site_stadium = O'Brien Stadium
| site_cityst = Charleston, IL
| tv =
| score = 25–24
| attend = 8,397
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = October 19
| time =
| w/l = w
| away = y
| rank = 7
| opponent = {{cfb link|year=2002|team=Southeast Missouri State Redhawks|title=Southeast Missouri State}}
| site_stadium = Houck Stadium
| site_cityst = Cape Girardeau, MO
| tv =
| score = 44–27
| attend = 9,178
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = November 2
| time =
| w/l = w
| away = y
| rank = 6
| opponent = Tennessee State
| site_stadium = The Coliseum
| site_cityst = Nashville, TN
| tv =
| score = 54–48
| attend = 7,216
| source = {{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/herald-and-review-eastern-wins-despite-t/142581150/|title=Eastern wins despite Tennessee State's 675 yards|newspaper=Herald and Review|date=November 3, 2002|accessdate=March 3, 2024|via=Newspapers.com}}
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = November 9
| time =
| w/l = w
| rank = 6
| opponent = {{cfb link|year=2002|team=Tennessee–Martin Skyhawks|title=Tennessee–Martin}}
| site_stadium = O'Brien Stadium
| site_cityst = Charleston, IL
| tv =
| score = 55–43
| attend = 3,822
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = November 16
| time =
| w/l = w
| nonconf = y
| rank = 3
| opponent = Florida Atlantic
| site_stadium = O'Brien Stadium
| site_cityst = Charleston, IL
| tv =
| score = 47–6
| attend = 3,740
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = November 23
| time =
| w/l = l
| away = y
| rank = 2
| opponent = {{cfb link|year=2002|team=Murray State Racers|title=Murray State}}
| site_stadium = Roy Stewart Stadium
| site_cityst = Murray, KY
| tv =
| score = 35–37
| attend = 6,112
}}
|{{CFB schedule entry
| date = November 30
| time =
| w/l = l
| nonconf = y
| away = y
| rank = 10
| opponent = Western Illinois
| opprank = 3
| site_stadium = Hanson Field
| site_cityst = Macomb, IL
| gamename = NCAA Division I-AA First Round
| tv =
| score = 9–48
| attend = 2,429
| source = {{cite news |title=WIU storms Eastern |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/88050281/ |access-date=October 30, 2021 |work=Quad-City Times |date=December 1, 2002 |page=D3 |via=Newspapers.com}}
}}
}}
Roster
{{American football roster/Header
| year = 2002
| team = Eastern Illinois Panthers
| teamcolors = f
| offensive_players=
{{American football roster/Player|num=17|class=Sr|first=Tony|last=Romo|pos=QB|link=y}}
{{American football roster/Player|num=22|class=Sr|first=J. R.|last=Taylor|pos=RB}}
| defensive_players=
{{American football roster/Player|num=8|class=So|first=Nick|last=Allison|pos=CB}}
{{American football roster/Player|num=99|class=Sr|first=Lance|last=Thompson|pos=LB}}
| special_teams_players=
}}
{{American football roster/Footer|roster_url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021216144845/http://www.eiu.edu:80/~sprtinfo/sports/football/roster.htm
| head_coach = *Bob Spoo
| asst_coach =
| accessdate= 2002-12-16
}}
Game summaries
=At Kansas State=
{{Linescore Amfootball|
|Road=Panthers
|R1=13
|R2=0
|R3=0
|R4=0
|Home=Wildcats
|H1=15
|H2=28
|H3=13
|H4=7
}}
{{see also|2002 Kansas State Wildcats football team}}
Tony Romo was 13-14 for 120 yards and a TD in the first quarter, but Kansas State grabbed control and cruised to the 50-point win.{{cite news |title=Kansas State Rout Is a Dunn Deal |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-sep-15-sp-kstate15-story.html |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=September 15, 2002 |access-date=September 9, 2019}}
{{Clear}}
Team players in the NFL
No Eastern Illinois players were selected in the 2003 NFL draft.
The following finished their college career in 2002, were not drafted, but played in the NFL.
| class="wikitable" width="65%" | ||
| align="center" style="background:#042F8C;color:#FFFFFF;"
| Player | Position | First NFL team |
| align="center" bgcolor="" | Quarterback | Dallas Cowboys |
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Eastern Illinois Panthers football navbox}}
{{Ohio Valley Conference football champions}}
Category:Eastern Illinois Panthers football seasons