The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Ray Eliot

Followed Robert Zuppke. Ray Eliot raised Illinois from Regional Program I to Power Program II.

83–73
1942–1959 · 1 stint
Illinois
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Career arc

His real stature score, season by season, across every program he’s coached — so a stretch that stays in one tier the whole way can still climb or sink on the line, not just flatten out. Node color marks the tier reached. Which program a stretch belongs to is carried by the shaded lane behind it.

Stature score reached, by season of his head-coaching careerILLINOISPower Programperennial contenderNational Programrespectable, streakyRegional Programthe building-block levelIllinois, 1942: 6-4, Regional Program I1942Illinois, 1943: 3-7, Regional Program IIIllinois, 1944: 5-4, Regional Program IIllinois, 1945: 2-6, National Program IIIIllinois, 1946: 8-2, National Program IIllinois, 1947: 5-3, National Program IIllinois, 1948: 3-6, National Program IIllinois, 1949: 3-4, National Program IIllinois, 1950: 7-2, National Program IIllinois, 1951: 9-0, Power Program IIIllinois, 1952: 4-5, Power Program IIIIllinois, 1953: 7-1, Power Program IIIllinois, 1954: 1-8, Power Program IIIllinois, 1955: 5-3, Power Program IIIIllinois, 1956: 2-5, Power Program IIIIllinois, 1957: 4-5, Power Program IIIIllinois, 1958: 4-5, Power Program IIIIllinois, 1959: 5-3, Power Program III1959+24.0One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached Power Program in his 10th career season — faster than 7% of the 395 FBS coaches who have ever reached Power Program (rank #356 of 395 by seasons-to-arrival).

Illinois, 18 seasons
+24.0
Regional Program I → Power Program III.

The big-game ledger

How he does in the games that matter most — rivalry record, performance broken out by real opponent tier, one-score games, and his toughest historical matchup.

8–9 against his rivals. Winless in 4 tries against Jack Mollenkopf.

Rivalry record
8–9–1
44.4% · 1 rival
One-score games
28–27–10
43.1% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
1–0
100.0%
Rivalry ledger
Northwestern8–9–144%
The toughest matchup
vs. Jack Mollenkopf0–2–2
4 meetings, 1956–1959
’56 T’57 L’58 L’59 T
0% win rate across a real, 4-meeting series — short of the bar this site uses before badging a series “Nemesis.” Shown here as the toughest matchup on record, not an algorithmic crown.
Performance by opponent class
Dynasty
1–0 100.0%
Blue Blood
7–16 30.4%
Power Program
18–27 40.0%
National Program
33–23 58.9%
Regional Program
17–2 89.5%

Coaching career

1942–1959
Illinoisbuilderborderline
Regional Program I → Power Program II
Ray Eliot raised Illinois from Regional Program I to Power Program II.

1st-best Illinois tenure of 16 by the numbers.

Followed Robert Zuppke (1936–1941) · succeeded by Pete Elliott (1960–1966).

83–73