Eastern Illinois is most commonly called “that one school Tony Romo played for”. Maybe after this weekend it will be known as “the school that Romo and those NFL coaches went to”.
If you are like me then you probably know very little about Eastern Illinois University. So here’s the quick facts about EIU:
Don't let the castle fool you. This school is a NFL Head Coach Factory
Quick Facts
- Location: Charleston, IL (pop. 21,039)
- Established: 1895
- Enrollment: 11,651
- Conference Affiliation: Ohio Valley
- Colors: Blue & Grey
- Interesting Fact: Only NCAA Division I Women’s Rugby team in the nation. (I had no idea that Rugby even existed in this country)
- Notable Alumni: Jim Edgar, John Malkovich, Larry Smith, Jimmy John, Kevin Duckworth, Dan Steele, Matt Hughes, Matt Painter, Jeff Gossett, Tony Romo, Mike Shanahan, Brad Childress, Sean Payton.
I just couldn't resist posting a picture of women's rugby
Note the last 3 on that alumni list. Mike Shanahan(technically I think he only coached there), Brad Childress and Sean Payton. 3 not only relevant but good NFL coaches. Shanahan has already won a Superbowl and this weekend another EIU alumn will be one step closer to get a ring of their own. It just seems crazy to me that a FCS football program could produce this kind of NFL talent.
Being a basketball fanatic, I also find it very interesting that Purdue Basketball Head Coach, Matt Painter graduated and coached at EIU.
It’s a Friday night so I don’t feel like doing any major research tonight. So I’ll just end this post by saying:
Eastern Illinois University: The Pub salutes you.
(Perhaps I’ll touch this post up tomorrow)
Filed under: Miscellaneous, NFL Tagged: | Brad Childress, Eastern Illinois, Matt Hughes, Matt Painter, Mike Shanahan, Ohio Valley, Purdue, Saints, Sean Payton, Tony Romo, Vikings, Women's Rugby
