Former standouts will take part in autograph session and luncheon on July 25
ROSEMONT, Ill. – The Big Ten Conference announced today that College Football Hall of Fame inductees Tom Cousineau of Ohio State and Tim Krumrie of Wisconsin will be in attendance at the 2017 Big Ten Kickoff Luncheon. The former standouts will be available for autographs and take part in a group interview at the 46th annual event, which will be held on Tuesday, July 25, at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago.
The action kicks off at 10 a.m. CT with an opportunity to get autographs from Cousineau, Krumrie and all 14 coaches and hear interviews with the conference’s top returning players. Around 10:50 a.m. CT, fans can get group pictures of the Hall of Famers, all 14 coaches and all 42 players in attendance. The luncheon begins at 11:30 a.m. CT and will feature highlight videos, group interviews with coaches, Cousineau and Krumrie, and much more, including door prizes highlighted by a free trip to the Big Ten Football Championship Game and to the Big Ten’s top bowl game destination.
Individual tickets or full tables to the luncheon are now on sale at bigten.org. Tickets are priced at $110 each, with a table seating 10 for $1,100. All fans, regardless of age, must have a ticket for entry to both the autograph session and the luncheon. More information on the Kickoff Luncheon can be found here.
Cousineau, a linebacker for Ohio State from 1975-78, became the 25th Buckeye player to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2016. During his collegiate career, he was a two-time consensus First Team All-American for the Buckeyes under College Football Hall of Fame coach Woody Hayes. Cousineau still holds six school records, setting marks for single-season tackles and solo tackles during his senior campaign when he was named team MVP. The 1978 team captain led Ohio State to three Big Ten Championships, three top 12 finishes and four bowl berths, earning MVP honors after a win in the 1977 Orange Bowl. A three-time All-Big Ten honoree, Cousineau owns six of the top 10 single-game tackling performances in school history, and he helped the Buckeyes lead the conference in total defense in 1977. Following his senior season, he was invited to play in the Hula Bowl, where he earned Defensive MVP honors.
Krumrie, a defensive tackle for Wisconsin from 1979-82, became the ninth Badger player to enter the College Football Hall of Fame upon his induction in 2016. A consensus First Team All-American in 1981, Krumrie recorded 135 tackles that year, which is still Wisconsin’s single-season record for a defensive lineman. He is currently third on the school’s career tackles list with 444, and he owns the school record with 276 career solo tackles. The three time All-Big Ten selection led the Badgers to two bowl games, including a win in the 1982 Independence Bowl where he earned Defensive MVP honors after posting a then school bowl-record 13 tackles. Krumrie also took them to the 1981 Garden State Bowl, Wisconsin’s first postseason berth since 1962. The senior team captain led the Badgers in tackles in both 1980 and 1981, and he played in the 1982 Hula Bowl.
The Big Ten Kickoff Luncheon annually attracts some of the most talented names in college sports. The event has drawn legendary coaches as well as each of the conference’s Heisman Trophy winners since 1970. In all, approximately 1,000 of the conference’s finest players and 80 head coaches have celebrated the start of a new college football season at the Big Ten Kickoff Luncheon with nearly 54,000 supporters.
Adam Augustine | Director, Communications | Big Ten Conference
Office: 847.696.1010 ext.151 | Cell: 608.215.4391 | Fax: 847.696.1150 | bigten.org