Champaign's Charlie Finn is one of those individuals who easily qualifies as an Illini "Super Fan," but the man who's celebrating his 85th birthday today has always taken his pride a couple of inches further than most.
A four-year manager for coach Ray Eliot's Illinois football teams and the squad's senior manager in 1954, the Gibson City native directed a student staff of 18 individuals who served 140 players. They executed a wide variety of responsibilities, assisting the coaches and equipment staff with the organization of practices and games. During Finn's years at Illinois, the Illini won the Big Ten and national championships in 1951, registered a 40-7 victory over Stanford in the '52 Rose Bowl and claimed another conference title in '53.