Members
Inductee
WHITMAN, JOSH
WHITMAN, JOSH
Born on January 1, 1977
West Lafayette, Indiana
Inducted On
June 22, 2025
Location Inducted
West Lafayette, Indiana
Region Number
4
West Lafayette Harrison
Player
Harrison High School (West Lafayette)
1996
Josh Whitman played four years of football at William Henry Harrison in West Lafayette. Josh was an All-State football player in 1996 and played in the IFCA North-South All-Star game in 1997. Josh played for legendary coach A.J. Rickard and won 22 varsity games as a starter in high school.
University of Illinois
2000
On the gridiron for the Fighting Illini, Whitman played 45 games from 1997-2000, catching 52 career passes and seven touchdowns. he was a two-time First Team Academic All-American and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors his senior season. He then spent parts of four seasons as a player in the National Football League, including stints with the San Diego Chargers, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks and Buffalo Bills.
Josh and his wife Hope, have two children: a daughter Tate and a son, Will.
John was hired as the University of Illinois 14th permanent Director of Athletics on February 17, 2016. In his eighth year, Whitman has infused the Fighting Illini program with energy, strategic direction, and a fierce drive to see the Illini succeed in the competitive arena and in the classroom. Illinois is coming off a successful 2022-23 campaign under Whitman's leadership. In 2025, Illinois was one of just 14 schools to have its football team play in a bowl game and both its men's and women's basketball teams participate in the NCAA Tournament. Of those 14 schools, Whitman is one of only two current athletic directors to have hired all three of the involved head coaches. The Fighting Illini also captured Big Ten championships in both men's and women's golf and had three student-athletes win NCAA Individual titles.
Nowhere has Whitman's influence been more notable than on the gridiron. A former Illini letterman himself, Whitman has helped engineer the football team's return to the national spotlight, highlighted by hiring three-time Big Ten champion head coach Bret Bielema in December of 2020. In Bielema's first season, the Illini won their most conference games in 14 years, including back-to-back road victories at No. 7 Penn State and No. 20 Minnesota.