1955 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team

The 1955 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team represented Western Illinois University as a member of the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 1955 college football season. Led by second-year head coach Wes Stevens, the Leathernecks finished the season with an overall record of 6–3–1 and a mark of 3–2–1 in conference play, placing fourth in the IIAC.^[1] Western Illinois later forfeited its win over Illinois State Normal, dropping its season record to 5–4–1 overall and 2–3–1 in the IIAC, putting the team into a fourth-place tie with Illinois State.^[2] The forfeit came as a result of Western Illinois using an ineligible player, quarterback Sam Esposito; while Esposito also played in other games for the team, Illinois State Normal was the only school to protest their result.^[3]

1955 Western Illinois Leathernecks football
Corn Bowl, L 20–24 vs. Luther
Conference	Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Record	5–4–1, 1 win forfeited (2–3–1 IIAC, 1 win forfeited)
Head coach	Wes Stevens (2nd season)
Home stadium	Hanson Field
Seasons ← 1954 1956 →

1955 Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Central Michigan +	5	–	1	–	0			8	–	1	–	0
Michigan State Normal +	5	–	1	–	0			7	–	2	–	0
Southern Illinois	4	–	1	–	1			4	–	4	–	2
Western Illinois	2	–	3	–	1			5	–	4	–	1
Illinois State Normal	2	–	3	–	1			3	–	4	–	2
Eastern Illinois	1	–	5	–	0			3	–	6	–	0
Northern Illinois State	0	–	5	–	1			0	–	8	–	1
+ – Conference co-champions

Western Illinois back Don Lashmet was selected by the Associated Press as a first-team player on the 1955 All-Interstate Conference football team.^[4] Lashmet led the conference in pass receiving with 16 catches for 299 yards and two touchdowns. As a team, Western Illinois led the conference with 40 pass completions for 611 yards. Bill Vandermerkt was credited with 30 of the team's completed passes.^[5]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 17		at Loras*	Dubuque, IA	W 15–0		^[6]
September 29		Bradley*	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	W 25–6		^[7]
October 7		Michigan State Normal	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	L 2–6		^[8]
October 15		at Central Michigan	Alumni Field Mount Pleasant, MI	L 0–20	6,400	^[9]
October 22		at Northern Illinois State	Glidden Field Dekalb, IL	W 39–6		^[10]
October 29		Southern Illinois	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	T 13–13	8,000	^[11]
November 4		at Illinois State Normal	Normal, IL	L 32–13 (forfeit)		^[12]
November 11		St. Ambrose*	Hanson Field Macomb, IL	W 19–13		^[13]
November 19	1:30 p.m.	at Eastern Illinois	Charleston, IL	W 13–7		^[14]^[15]
November 24		Luther*	Hanson Field Macomb, IL (Corn Bowl)	L 20–24	5,000	^[16]
*Non-conference game Homecoming All times are in Central time

^[17]

References

1. "SIU Defeats Northern, 20-0". Alton Evening Telegraph. Alton, Illinois. Associated Press. November 21, 1955. p. 6. Retrieved September 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com  .
2. "Western Illinois Football Record Book" (PDF). Macomb, Illinois: Western Illinois University. September 2021. p. 69. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
3. "Western Illinois Forfeits Football Game to Normal". The Rock Island Argus. Associated Press. December 6, 1955. p. 37. Retrieved October 21, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Williams First Team IIAC End". Southern Illinoisan. December 2, 1955. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Central Tops in Statistics". The Daily Chronicle. December 2, 1955. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Western Has Romp; Whips Loras, 29-0". The Rock Island Argus. September 19, 1955. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Teachers Win From Bradley For 1st Time". Quad City Times. September 30, 1955. p. 22 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Michigan Normal Beats Western". Belleville News-Democrat. United Press. October 8, 1952. p. 8. Retrieved February 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Central Michigan Wins, 20 to 0". Lansing State Journal. October 16, 1955 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Huskies Find Leathernecks Mighty Tough; Lose 39-6". The DeKalb Daily Chronicle. October 24, 1955. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Salukis Fight Back, Tie Western 13-13". The Southern Illinoisan. October 31, 1955. p. 7. Retrieved January 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
12. Young, Fred (November 5, 1955). "Western Defeats State Normal". The Pantagraph. Bloomington, Illinois. p. 9. Retrieved September 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com  .
13. "Bees Lose In Thriller, 19 To 13". The Daily Times. November 12, 1955. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "EICS Host To Western Today". Decatur Herald. Decatur, Illinois. November 19, 1955. p. 9. Retrieved September 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com  .
15. "Western TopS Easter, 13-7". Decatur Sunday Herald and Review. Decatur, Illinois. November 20, 1955. p. 18. Retrieved September 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com  .
16. "Luther Nips Western in 'Corn' Bowl'". The Rock Island Argus. Rock Island, Illinois. November 25, 1955. p. 20. Retrieved September 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com  .
17. "Brief Summary of Cumulative Football Statistics". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved December 10, 2022.