The Big Ten race was in a three-way tie going into the final week of play. They trailed 18-14 at Indiana before Hayes went into his deep stable of running backs and found another name, Ricky Johnson, who ripped off a 46-yard touchdown run to get the win. Ohio State nearly gave back the opportunity. When Michigan knocked off Purdue, it opened the door for the Buckeyes to control their own destiny for Pasadena. Ohio State was still in the mix for the Rose Bowl. When Ohio State hammered Illinois 45-7, the pollsters returned the Buckeyes to the land of the ranked, at #19. A visit to Wisconsin produced a 49-14 win. Ohio State got back on track with a 31-7 home win over Iowa. The Big Ten was never particularly deep in the 1970s and a soft schedule stretch followed. Ohio State was 2-2-1, unranked and reeling. Ohio State trailed 20-16 in the fourth quarter when a Schlichter interception deep in his own territory set up a Purdue touchdown that sealed the 27-16 loss. The Boilermakers were a good team that would stay in contention for the Big Ten crown into November. The Buckeye defense was carved up by SMU quarterback Mike Ford for 367 passing yards and it was the Mustangs who missed a late field goal that might have won it.Īn optimist could still dismiss the slow start and point out that Ohio State hadn’t yet lost a conference game. But after wins over Minnesota and Baylor, there was no explaining away what happened against SMU.Īgain playing at home, Ohio State was lucky to escape with a 35-35 tie against the Mustangs. You could dismiss that result on the grounds that it was the Buckeyes’ season opener, while a Nittany Lion team that would finish #4 in the country already had a game in. Schlichter threw five interceptions, Ohio State lost 19-0 and quickly fell to #16 in the polls. But a September showdown at the Shoe with fifth-ranked Penn State showed problems. There was no reason to expect anything other than a vintage Ohio State team and the pollsters ranked the Buckeyes #7 in the preseason polls. Cousineau was supported on defense by Kelton Dansler at tackle and Vince Skillings in the secondary. The Buckeye defense was led by linebacker Tom Cousineau, a first-team All-American and soon to be the first overall pick in the NFL draft. The offensive line was anchored by All-Big Ten performers in Ken Fritz at guard and Joe Robinson at tackle. Nobody ran for as many as 600 yards, but Paul Campbell, Ron Springs, Ricardo Volley and Calvin Murray were all viable contributors. Ohio State always relied on the ground game in any case and it was a balanced attack that pushed the offense forward in 1978. His favorite targets were Doug Donley and converted quarterback Rod Gerald. But the young quarterback also showed his youth with 21 interceptions. And he showed his talent in this freshman campaign, throwing for what was then a respectable 1,250 yards on the season. Art Schlichter would have a terrific career at Ohio State, finishing in the top six of the Heisman Trophy voting three times. Hayes was going with a freshman quarterback in 1978. But the 1978 Ohio State football team not only failed to stop the slide, it got worse and culminated with a bizarre Gator Bowl incident that ended the career of head coach Woody Hayes.
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