Regulation size autographed Basketball signed by current Illinois Men's Basketball Coach Bruce Webber

Bruce Weber (born October 19, 1956 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is the head coach of the University of Illinois men's basketball team. Weber has led the program to two outright Big Ten Conference championships and four trips to the NCAA Tournament, including an appearance in the championship game of the 2005 NCAA Tournament.

Weber began his coaching career with a brief stint as an assistant coach at Western Kentucky University during the 1979-80 season under head coach Gene Keady. In 1980, Weber moved to Purdue University along with Keady. He would remain an assistant coach at Purdue for eighteen seasons before becoming the head coach at Southern Illinois University in 1998. In his five seasons at Southern Illinois, Weber led the Salukis to consecutive Missouri Valley Conference championships and NCAA tournament appearances, including an NCAA Sweet Sixteen finish in 2002.

In 2003, Roy Williams, after much speculation, left the University of Kansas to take his "dream job" at the University of North Carolina. Subsequently, Bill Self, the head coach at the University of Illinois at the time, departed the Illini to coach the Jayhawks. After a nation-wide search, Illinois Athletic Director Ron Guenther selected the regionally-known Weber to replace Self on April 30, 2003.

The Illini played a tough early season game against North Carolina on December 2nd in Greensboro, and was tied at 69 with just six minutes to go. Illinois eventually lost the game 88-81, but it proved to be a good test for the young team with no seniors in the starting lineup. Weber faced his toughest test after starting the conference schedule with an even 3-3 mark. He changed many doubters' minds by winning the remaining ten games on the conference schedule, winning the Big Ten title outright for the first time since 1952. In post-season play, the Illini finished second, losing to Wisconsin in the championship game. They received a bid for a fifth seed in the 2004 NCAA Tournament, defeating Murray State and Cincinnati in the first two rounds. A 72-62 loss to top-seeded Duke ended their tournament run, but capped a solid first season for coach Weber.