| Year: | 1961 |
| Team: | Southern Illinois Salukis |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference |
| Short Conf: | IIAC |
| Record: | 7–3 |
| Conf Record: | 5–1 |
| Head Coach: | Carmen Piccone |
| Hc Year: | 3rd |
| Stadium: | McAndrew Stadium |
| Champion: | IIAC champion |
The 1961 Southern Illinois Salukis football team was an American football team that represented Southern Illinois University (now known as Southern Illinois University Carbondale) as a member of the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 1961 college football season. In their third year under head coach Carmen Piccone, the Salukis compiled a 7–3 record (5–1 in conference games) and won the IIAC championship.[1]
The team was led on offense by quarterback Ron Winter and running back Amos Bullocks who broke Southern Illinois' career records for passing yards (Winter, 2,054 yards), total offense (Winter, yards), rushing yards (Bullocks, 2,441 yards) and scoring (Bullocks, 206 points).
The team played its home games at McAndrew Stadium in Carbondale, Illinois.
Senior quarterback Ron Winter led the team with 1,123 yards of total offense. In his three years playing for Southern Illinois, Winter set a new school record with 2,054 passing yards. He also tallied 672 rushing yards to set a new school record with 2,726 yards of total offense.[2]
Amos Bullocks also set new career records at Southern Illinois with 2,441 rushing yards and 206 points scored. He led the team with 875 rushing yards in 1961. The team's other leading rushers were Charles Hamilton (403 yards), Ron Winter (285 yards), Dennis Harley (275 yards), Charles Lerch (272 yards), and Charles Kimbrel (160 yards). [2]
Junior end Charles O'Neill led the team in pass receiving, catching 23 passes for 385 yards.
The team's scoring leaders were Amos Bullocks (60 points), Hamilton (44 points), Winter (36 points), and Lerch (30 points).[2]
Ron Winter was selected by his teammates as the most valuable player on the 1961 Southern Illinois team.[3] Winter missed two early games with a dislocated shoulder, but came in strong in the remaining games. He was one of the lightest players on the team at 175 pounds and was described as "an agile, quick-thinking runner who employs his blockers with tremendous skill."[4]
Seven Southern Illinois players received first-team honors on the 1961 IIAC all-conference football team: Winter at quarterback; Amos Bullocks at back; Sam Silas at offensive tackle; Jim Thompson and Frank Imperiale at defensive tackle; Jim Minton at linebacker; and Denny Harmon at defensive back.[5]