The Big Ten era of Washington Husky baseball is going to begin sooner than you’d think it might. We’re almost into February and that means the 2025 college baseball season is just around the corner. As part of that, the Huskies will get to meet up with a bunch of new teams on a regular basis now.
That’s where the Illinois Fighting Illini come in. Illinois, a longtime member of the Big Ten, will get to face off against the Huskies on a few different occasions this season. So, let’s go ahead and familiarize ourselves with the Illinois baseball team.
Here’s a quick rundown of what Washington Husky baseball fans need to know about the Illinois Fighting Illini as we head into the 2025 UW baseball season.
Illinois Fighting Illini baseball history overview
The Fighting Illini have been playing baseball for quite some time. The Illinois baseball program dates back to 1879 and they’ve managed to win a grand total of 30 regular season conference championships in that timeframe.
Along with that, Illinois has managed to make it into the NCAA Tournament on 13 different occasions, including last season under head coach Dan Hartleb.
Overall, Illinois has been pretty consistent. Though they seemingly generally win a fair bit of games, they rarely break through on the national scene. The Fighting Illini have only won one NCAA Regional. That means there’s one Super Regional appearance in program history. No trips to Omaha.
Here’s a quick breakdown:
- 13 NCAA Tournament appearances (1947, 1948, 1962, 1963, 1989, 1990, 1998, 2000, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2019, 2024)
- One NCAA Regional Championship (2015)
- Four Big Ten Tournament Championships (1989, 1990, 2000, 2011)
- 30 Regular Season Conference Championships (that’d be a lot of different years to list)
Who is the current head coach of the Fighting Illini?
Heading into his 20th season as the head coach of the Fighting Illini, Dan Hartleb has managed to accumulate a 567-419-1 (.575) career record throughout his time at Illinois. While leading the Fighting Illini, Hartleb’s teams have won three Big Ten titles (2011, 2015, 2024) and made five NCAA Tournament appearances. Hartleb has delivered consistency and a solid measure of success to this team.
Where does the Illinois Fighting Illini baseball team play?
Dating all the way back to 1988, the Illinois Fighting Illini baseball team has called Illinois Field its home. A grand total of 3,000 fans can show up to Illinois Field thanks to the 1,500 seats and the available lawn seating option.
When will the Washington Huskies face Illinois baseball in 2025?
It’s kind of interesting and is almost certainly a quirk caused by conference realignment. The Washington Huskies and Fighting Illini will meet on two separate occasions (for a total of four games) this season. First will be a neutral site matchup at the Las Vegas Classic on March 1. Later down the stretch of the season, Illinois will visit Seattle for a conference series in Husky Ballpark on April 18 through April 20.