We’ve reached the end of the road, so to speak, of our recollection of some of Ohio State’s finest hours. And honestly, folks, there was little doubt in my mind how our journey would conclude. In fact, I probably spent more time trying to piece together the bottom portion of our list than the top 5 or so. Each of

“There’s been a lot of kidding that they’re building this new heart hospital at Ohio State just at the right time”- Jim Lachey, color analyst on the Ohio State Football Radio Network, late in the fourth quarter of the 2002 edition of “THE GAME” I remember coming back from Cincinnati on September 21, 2002 with Buckeye 50 staffer Gregg Watson

It’s funny how Ohio State football history repeats itself. The 1975 Buckeyes wouldn’t be lacking for offense, especially with the greatest backfield the school has ever seen returning intact, but the defense had to replace 8 starters, including 3/4th of the secondary, from a 10-2 unit of 1974. And the Scarlet and Gray didn’t have long to get it together-

The buildup for Ohio State’s 2005 football season had been even more off the chart than usual. 18 of the 22 starters who had led the 2004 unit to a 5-1 stretch run were back, including the entire defensive back seven. “Tresselball” had evolved into a more lethal offense in ’04 with several key midseason moves- Troy Smith had taken

Legend has it that Woody Hayes was out on his porch during a Saturday evening in the summer of 1954 while a neighbor was having a gathering. It is lost to history as to whether any of the guests knew that Hayes was within earshot, but the coach overheard someone say, “This is the year we get rid of Woody!”

Buckeye Nation had seen it all before. In their second year under Jim Tressel, the Bucks were 10-0, and although they were third in both major polls, they sat at #2 in the all-important BCS rankings. Two sub-.500 teams stood between them and Michigan in the ‘Shoe. Win all three and a possible January 3rd date in Tempe dangled like

The Ohio State coaching tenures of Paul Brown and Jim Tressel have had many similarities. Both were native Ohioans who brought a detailed, hands-on approach to Columbus. Both had been extremely successful at their previous schools as well. Brown had come from Massillon High School after turning the Tigers into a powerhouse during his stay from 1932-1940. After going 22-7-1

When it was announced that Penn State would be joining the Big Ten beginning with the 1993 football season, Buckeye Nation had already figured that regardless of records, the yearly battle with the Nittany Lions would usually rank second only to the Michigan game. In fact, to this day Penn State and TBGUN remain Ohio State’s two ‘protected’ Big Ten

In his book “The Big One”, a game-by-game history of the Ohio State/Michigan rivalry, author Bill Cromartie felt that only on three occasions from the end of World War II until 1987 had “THE GAME” been upstaged. In 1950, the legendary “Snow Bowl” game was played (although it never should have been) in a blizzard. This didn’t keep over 50,000