Eastern Illinois and head coach Chris Wilkerson will welcome Jon Gruden to campus for the Aug. 28 season opener with the University of Dayton. (Photo by Barry Bottino, PrairieStatePigskin.com)
By Barry Bottino and Dan Verdun
A Super Bowl-winning head coach is coming to Eastern Illinois University for the Panthers’ season opener, but he may not be wearing blue.
Jon Gruden, who led the 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a Super Bowl title, announced on social media Friday that he would be attending the Aug. 28 EIU game against Dayton. The 61-year-old Gruden is a 1986 graduate of the Ohio school.
“I would guess during the game he’ll probably be on the visiting sideline and wearing red, and I understand that,” EIU head coach Chris Wilkerson told Prairie State Pigskin. “But just to have him here is awesome for the game, for the players and certainly for the community.”
Gruden’s visit coincides with a series of videos the former NFL coach and media personality has produced in which he opens boxes shipped to him by college coaches.
In one of those recent videos, Gruden went through a box of gifts sent to him by EIU while sharing various facts about the Panthers. While the box included items such as mini helmets and shirts, it also featured a hand-written invitation from Wilkerson to attend the opener.
“It’s super exciting,” Wilkerson said. “He’s the ultimate football guy, the ultimate football coach. He just loves football. He’s probably having as much fun doing this as he does coaching, but I know he misses coaching.”
The EIU-Dayton game is a 6 p.m. kickoff at O’Brien Field on the Thursday leading into Labor Day weekend.
“We do not have the timetable yet, (but) we’re hoping he comes in Wednesday night and has a chance to meet with the team and talk with the guys. He said he would love to talk to the quarterbacks if he can,” Wilkerson said. “I know he’s talked about wanting to see the facility.”
Gruden’s first full-time coaching job was as passing game coordinator at Southeast Missouri State in 1988. While SEMO – like Eastern – is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference, the two schools were in different conferences during that era and did not play each other that season.
“I’m going to be hanging out with (EIU mascot) Billy the Panther waiting for you guys come out of the tunnel and take on my alma mater, Dayton,” Gruden said in Friday’s video. “I know you guys have had a heckuva camp. Put an exclamation on it.”
Barry Bottino is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin and a 19-year veteran of three Illinois newspapers. He has covered college athletics since 1995.
Dan Verdun is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin. He has written four books: NIU Huskies Football, EIU Panthers Football, ISU Redbirds Football and SIU Salukis Football.
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