Mills (1941–1966) Leslie Bryan (1966–1967) Gene Vance (1967–1972) Charles E. Flynn (1972) Cecil Coleman (1972–1979) Ray Eliot (1979) Neale Stoner (1980–1988) Ron Guenther (1988) Karol A. Kahrs (1988) John Mackovic (1988–1991) Robert Todd (1991–1992) Ron Guenther (1992–2011) Mike Thomas (2011–2015) Paul Kowalczyk (2015) Josh Whitman (2016–present) Notable alumni The university has a number of notable alumni and administrators in the world of athletics. In football, notable Alumni include Dick Butkus, Red Grange, Jeff George, Simeon Rice, Ray Nitschke and George Halas. Famous basketball alumni include Dee Brown, Deron Williams, Luther Head, Derek Harper, Nick Anderson, Chuck Carney, Brian Cook, Kendall Gill, Steve Bardo, Jerry Colangelo, and Johnny Orr. Notable athletes in baseball include Lou Boudreau, Hoot Evers and Ken Holtzman. The university has also a number of Olympic athletes that include George Kerr, Don Laz, Daniel Kinsey, Harold Osborn, Bob Richards, and Justin Spring, Mascot controversy From 1926 to 2007, Chief Illiniwek was the symbol for the Fighting Illini. Chief Illiniwek was a Native American symbol portrayed by a white student. Chief Illiniwek symbolized the Illini, a confederation of indigenous tribes who historically had inhabited much of present-day Illinois; however the clothing and regalia for the symbol was from the Sioux nation. Chief Illiniwek would perform during halftime at Illinois football and basketball games, wearing a feathered headdress and buckskin clothes, and dancing while the marching band played "Three in One", an arrangement of three original songs. It was customary for Illinois fans and attendees to raise their arms at the end of the halftime proceedings and, in unison, yell 'chief.' In 2005, the Chief was one of 18 mascots (though Illiniwek was considered a symbol and not a mascot) cited as "hostile or abusive" by the NCAA in a policy that banned schools from full participation in postseason activities as long as they continued to use such mascots. The University of Illinois retired Chief Illiniwek in 2007. Debate about the Chief has continued to this day. The university chancellor appointed a Commission on Native Imagery to recommend ways "to provide closure, healing and reconciliation... to facilitate the establishment of new traditions... [and] to honor and partner with the Native Nations for whom Illinois is their ancestral home." The Fighting Illini are one of three Big Ten programs that do not have a mascot. (The other two are the Wolverines and the Hoosiers.) In the 2020 student elections, the student