Belated birthday greetings to former Illini NCAA champion Joe Corley, who turned 84 years old on Saturday. A track and field athlete for coach Leo Johnson, the standout athlete from St. Elmo High School won the 1954 NCAA individual title in the 220-yard hurdles in 22.60 seconds.
Corley and his teammates, including classmate and longtime friend Willie Williams, won eight consecutive Big Ten championships from 1951 to ’54. He served as the Illini captain his senior season.
Corley was an ROTC student at the University of Illinois and was a member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.