Northwestern vs. Illinois Rivalry Underrated in New Ranking

The battle for the Land of Lincoln trophy has been played 118 times in the last 133 seasons.

Northwestern Wildcats cornerback Devin Turner returns an interception for a touchdown against the Illinois Fighting Illini on November 30, 2024. | Photo: Northwestern Athletics

As founding members of the conference, Northwestern and Illinois have one of the oldest football rivalries in the Big Ten. The in-state opponents first met in 1892 — a 16-16 tie in Champaign — and have played 118 times since. It's been a fairly balanced series as well, as Illinois holds a narrow 58-55-5 lead all-time.

The Wildcats and Fighting Illini have played for the Land of Lincoln Trophy, formerly the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk, every year since 1945. However, the rivalry between the two isn't regarded in the same manner that other historic Big Ten matchups are, despite being tightly contested and spanning over a century.

In a ranking of college football's top 100 rivalries, The Athletic's Scott Dochterman listed the series between Northwestern and Illinois as No. 70. It's a far cry from the conference's other well-renowned rivalries like Ohio State-Michigan (No. 1), Wisconsin-Minnesota (No. 10), Michigan-Michigan State (No. 16) or Iowa-Nebraska (No. 44).

"They have played 118 times but are rarely good concurrently," Dochterman said. "It’s a close, competitive series historically and it’s definitely a rivalry, but it doesn’t get circled on the calendar the way other in-state rivalries do."

Overall, the battle for the Land of Lincoln trophy ranks 13th among Big Ten rivalries, excluding the four ex-Pac-12 teams. In addition to the aforementioned games, Northwestern-Illinois trails Ohio State-Penn State (No. 8), Iowa-Wisconsin (No. 22), Minnesota-Iowa (No. 34), Michigan-Penn State (No. 47), Indiana-Purdue (No. 49), Michigan-Minnesota (No. 51), Michigan State-Penn State (No. 65) and Penn State-Iowa (No. 67).

Northwestern has won 11 of the last 15 games in the rivalry, though the Fighting Illini claimed the win in 2024, 38-28. The two are set to face off for the 14th consecutive season in Champaign on November 29.