Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Their Best = Illinois College

Located in the town of Jacksonville, Illinois College is a small college with a big history.  Some of the most vocal & influential abolitionists spoke at the college & Beacher Hall was well known as a stop on the Underground Railroad.  Ralph Waldo Emerson, Oscar Wilde & Mark Twain among other literally legends also visited the college on numerous occasions.  

The school also at one time had a wrestling program & from a practical standpoint it would be an ideal place for a wrestling program today.  MacMurray College, also an NCAA Division III school located in Jacksonville, has both men & women's wrestling.  Illinois College could mirror a schedule & have their biggest rivalry a hair over a mile away. It's comical to think of the wrestling team getting on a bus to go and wrestle them.  

Unsure of what year(s) but I do know that Illinois College won the Midwest Conference title at least once if not on other occasions.  

Jeff Vacca
177 lbs 

Accumulating over 100 victories during his career, Jeff Vacca won two MWC titles for the Blueboys, earning NCAA Division III All American status in 1991 with a sixth place finish. 

Matt Grimm
126 lbs 

A three time MWC champion, Grimm earned a seventh place finish at the NCAA Division III championships in 1993.  

Post college he coached at Chatham Glenwood Middle School where he coached 72 AAU qualifiers. 

Greg Lehman
125 lbs 

Lehman was an All American in 2000 for the Blueboys, earning eighth place honors.