By March 3, 1911, the athletic teams appeared to have earned the Fighting Illini nickname as a formal appellation evidenced in a newspaper report. The term Fighting Illini first appeared in a Janunewspaper article describing the basketball team's effort during a game versus Purdue. The Illinois Confederation, also referred to as the Illiniwek or Illini, lived in the Mississippi River Valley and expanded their tribes in an area that stretched from Lake Michigan to Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, and Arkansas. The Daily Illini and football programs prior to these dates do not extensively cite the term and also used the terms 'Indians,' 'our men,' 'Orange and Blue,' and the 'homecomers'. The term was more widely used in the 1910s especially during the 1914, 1915, and 1916 football seasons. The earliest reference in the Illio yearbook appears to be one mention in the summary of the 1907 football season. The term Illini referring to the university's athletic teams seems to come from secondhand accounts of the athletic teams. Many NCAA and High School mascots bearing reference to first nation people have changed their names, however, the University of Illinois maintains its position that the Illini nickname does not refer to the first nation inhabitants of the same land. During the late 19th century and beginning of the 20th century, it was used to refer to the students, faculty, staff, and alumni of the University, as well as to the campus as a whole. An editorial in the first edition of the renamed newspaper indicated that Illini was a new term. The term 'Illini', in relation to campus activities, appears to be first mentioned in January 1874, when the weekly newspaper changed its name from The Student to The Illini. The Illiniwek, Illinois Confederation, or Illini, were made up of 12 to 13 tribes who lived in the Mississippi River Valley. The University of Illinois official team name is the Fighting Illini. The Fighting Illini lay claim to over 25 National Championships dating back to 1900. The University operates a number of athletic facilities, including Memorial Stadium for football, the State Farm Center for both men's and women's basketball, Illinois Field for baseball, the ARC Pool for women's swimming and diving, the Atkins Tennis Center for men's and women's tennis, Eichelberger Field for softball, Huff Hall for men's and women's gymnastics, women's volleyball and men's wrestling, Demirjian Park for women's soccer and for men's and women's outdoor track and field, the Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois for men's and women's golf, the University of Illinois Arboretum for cross country and the University of Illinois Armory for men's and women's indoor track and field.

The university offers 10 men's and 11 women's varsity sports.

Photos via the University of Illinois and on Twitter.The Illinois Fighting Illini ( / ɪ ˈ l aɪ n aɪ/) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. If adopted, the Belted Kingfisher would not only be unique to college athletics, it would also be the first female mascot in the Big Ten (males do not have an orange belt on their belly as the females do). It’s worth noting a new mascot would not replace the Fighting Illini nickname but would act as a replacement to the Chief Illiniwek mascot banned by the NCAA in 2005. The results of this year’s vote will be shared with university administrators, including chancellor Robert Jones, who would decide if they want to adopt the Belted Kingfisher as the school’s new mascot.

With 7,819 votes, it was the most voted-on item on the ballot this year.Ī similar vote was held last year for a mascot named Alma Otter, but that was defeated by a vote of 3,807 to 3,510. She created a design and posted it online, where it caught the attention of the Illinois Student Government.Ī non-binding referendum asking whether the school should make the Belted Kingfisher its new mascot was then included in the student election ballot, and it passed by a vote of 4,222 to 3,597. The idea originated with senior physics and astronomy student Spencer Hulsey, who recalled seeing the birds near the pond at her childhood home in Kinmundy, Illinois. Students at the University of Illinois last week voted in favor of adopting the Belted Kingfisher, an orange and blue bird native to the state, as the school’s mascot.

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