Who is Illinois’ Biggest Rival? Ranking the Illini’s biggest rivals

There is always plenty of debate among Illinois fans about who the university’s biggest rival is. Isaac, Greg, and I discussed the topic and held an Illinois rivalry draft on The Champaign Room Podcast, and the conversation continued across social media. The nine schools we identified as rivals were Northwestern, Purdue, Iowa, Missouri, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State.

The rivalry debate can be subjective depending on where you grew up, where you currently live, and what era you became an Illini fan. Every school has its reasons for being disliked by Illinois fans, but I wanted to provide some history and fun facts to help everyone make an educated decision on who the Illini’s biggest rival really is.

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Northwestern

Northwestern was my first pick and the first overall selection in our draft. Greg, Isaac, and I all agreed we would have taken the Wildcats with the No. 1 pick. Northwestern is the only other Illinois-based school in the Big Ten, and the two campuses are just 150 miles apart.

They are the only conference opponent Illinois plays every year in football and twice every season in basketball. With conference expansion, having this protected rivalry is a major difference-maker in the debate. The Land of Lincoln Trophy is on the line every time these two programs meet in the regular-season football finale during rivalry week.

Illinois and Northwestern first met on the basketball court during the 1907-08 season on March 7, 1908. The Illini won that game on the road, 18-13, beginning a six-game winning streak over the Wildcats. The football rivalry dates back even further, with the first meeting taking place in 1892. The teams tied their first two matchups before Illinois cruised to a 66-0 victory in Champaign in 1894. Illinois has dominated the basketball series over the years, while the football series is much closer, with the Illini holding a narrow 59-55 advantage.

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The history of the matchup combined with the…

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Publish date : 2026-07-03 02:46:00

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