1973 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

The 1973 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented the Ohio State University in the 1973 Big Ten Conference football season. The Buckeyes compiled a 10–0–1 record, including the 1974 Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, where they won, 42–21, against the USC Trojans.

1973 Ohio State Buckeyes football
Big Ten co-champion Rose Bowl champion
Rose Bowl, W 42–21 vs. USC
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 3
AP	No. 2
1973 record	10–0–1 (7–0–1 Big Ten)
Head coach	Woody Hayes (23rd season)
MVP	Archie Griffin
Captains	Greg Hare Rick Middleton
Home stadium	Ohio Stadium (Capacity: 82,567)

1973 Big Ten Conference football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 2 Ohio State +	7	–	0	–	1			10	–	0	–	1
No. 6 Michigan +	7	–	0	–	1			10	–	0	–	1
Minnesota	6	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Illinois	4	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Michigan State	4	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Purdue	4	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Northwestern	4	–	4	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Wisconsin	3	–	5	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Indiana	0	–	8	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
Iowa	0	–	8	–	0			0	–	11	–	0
+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 15	1:30 p.m.	Minnesota	No. 3	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 56–7	86,005
September 29	1:30 p.m.	TCU*	No. 3	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 37–3	87,439
October 6	1:30 p.m.	Washington State*	No. 1	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 27–3	87,425
October 13	2:00 p.m.	at Wisconsin	No. 1	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI		W 24–0	77,413
October 20	1:30 p.m.	at Indiana	No. 1	Memorial Stadium Bloomington, IN		W 37–7	53,183
October 27	1:30 p.m.	Northwestern	No. 1	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 60–0	87,453
November 3	2:00 p.m.	at Illinois	No. 1	Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (Illibuck Trophy)		W 30–0	60,707
November 10	1:30 p.m.	Michigan State	No. 1	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (rivalry)		W 35–0	87,600
November 17	1:30 p.m.	Iowa	No. 1	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 55–13	87,447
November 24	12:30 p.m.	at No. 4 Michigan	No. 1	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (The Game)	ABC	T 10–10	105,223
January 1, 1974	5:00 p.m.	vs. No. 7 USC*	No. 4	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl)	NBC	W 42–21	105,267
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Roster

1973 Ohio State Buckeyes Roster
Quarterbacks 7 Cornelius Greene 9 Kenneth Thompson 14 Gary McCutcheon 15 James Pacenta 17 Steven Morrison 18 Greg Hare 19 David Purdy Running backs 2 Larry Molls 4 Randal Keith 13 Morris Bradshaw 22 Richard Gales 27 Tim Holycross 33 Pete Johnson 34 Dan Bembry 35 David Mazeroski 38 Champ Henson 41 Woodrow Roach 44 John Hughes 45 Archie Griffin 47 Elmer Lippert 48 Brian Baschnagel Wide receivers 8 Bill Ezzo 9 Robert Murphy 82 Dave Hazel 87 Michael Bartoszek Tight ends 80 Fred Pagac 85 John Smurda 89 Ted Powell		Offensive linemen 50 Michael Datish 51 Gary Lillvis 52 Steve Myers 55 Dwight King 56 Stephen Koegel 57 Mark Straka 58 Charles Baxter 59 Ronald Ayers 60 Thomas Swank 61 John Husband 63 James Kregel 64 William Lukens 65 Barney Renard 66 Larry Graf 68 Louis Petrini 69 Richard Mack 70 Robert Willard 72 Kurt Schumacher 73 Scott Dannelley 74 John Hicks 76 Dan Scott 77 Doug France Defensive linemen 14 Robert Kelly 49 Larry Kain 67 Dan Cutillo 71 Pete Cusick 75 Nick Buonamici 78 Robert Coan 79 Craig Nemitz 81 Thomas Marendt 83 Louis Williott 84 Robert Brudzinski 88 Van DeCree 90 Patrick Curto 91 James Cope 92 Marvin Battle 93 Edward Trepanier 95 Richard Applegate 99 Lawrence O'Rourke		Linebackers 32 Rick Middleton 35 Rocco Rich 36 Bruce Elia 37 Brian Bowers 39 Harold Thornton 42 Arnold Jones 53 Randy Gradishar 54 Kenneth Kuhn 62 Vic Koegel 97 Ted Smith 98 James Cramer Defensive backs 6 Monty Thompson 11 Max Midlam 12 Tim Fox 16 Jeff Davis 20 Neal Colzie 21 Carl Kern 23 Craig Cassady 24 Richard Parsons 25 Robert Gentry 28 Doug Plank 29 Jerome Davis 30 Lou Mathis 43 Bruce Ruhl 46 Steve Luke Special teams 1 Tom Skladany 3 Blair Conway 5 Mike Keeton

[1]

Depth chart

Defense FS 12 Tim Fox 30 Lou Mathis WLB MLB SLB 32 Rick Middleton 62 Vic Koegel 53 Randy Gradishar ⋅ 54 Ken Kuhn ⋅ SS 24 Rich Parsons 43 Bruce Ruhl CB 20 Neal Colzie 29 Jerome Davis DE DT DT DE 91 Jim Cope 71 Pete Cusick 42 Arnie Jones 88 Van DeCree ⋅ ⋅ 67 Dan Cutillo ⋅ CB 46 Steve Luke 26 Doug Plank Offense SE 82 Dave Hazel 87 Mike Bartoszek LT LG C RG RT 72 Kurt Schumacher 63 Jim Kregel 52 Steve Myers 69 Dick Mack 74 John Hicks ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ TE 80 Fred Pagac 85 John Smurda WB 48 Brian Baschnagel 13 Morris Bradshaw QB 7 Cornelius Greene 18 Greg Hare FB 36 Bruce Elia 33 Pete Johnson Special Teams PK 3 Blair Conway P 1 Tom Skladany P 5 Mike Keeton PR 20 Neal Colzie RB 45 Archie Griffin 47 Elmer Lippert

[2]

Coaching staff

• Woody Hayes - head coach (23rd year)
• George Chaump - offense (6th year)
• George Hill - defensive coordinator / linebackers (3rd year)
• Charles Clausen - defense line (3rd year)
• Ed Ferkany - offensive guards, punters (4th year)
• Rudy Hubbard - running backs (6th year)
• John Mummey - special teams / varsity reserve (5th year)
• Esco Sarkkinen - defensive ends / scouting (28th year)
• Ralph Staub - tackles, tight ends, kickers (4th year)
• Dick Walker - defensive backs (5th year)
• Jeff Kaplan - brain coach, Athletic Counselor (1st year)

Game summaries

Minnesota

1 2 3 4 Total Minnesota 0 7 0 0 7 • Ohio St 14 21 7 14 56 Date: September 15 Location: Ohio Stadium Game attendance: 86,005 Game weather: 74°F; wind 7

Scoring summary Q1 10:24 OHST Henson 2 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 7–0 Q1 8:44 OHST Greene 4 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 14–0 Q2 12:59 MINN King 1 yard run (Goldberg kick) OHST 14–7 Q2 12:45 OHST A. Griffin 93 yard kickoff return (Conway kick) OHST 21–7 Q2 :51 OHST Henson 2 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 28–7 Q2 :00 OHST Baschnagel 5 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 35–7 Q3 5:36 OHST Colzie 78 yard punt return (Conway kick) OHST 42–7 Q4 10:39 OHST Henson 1 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 49–7 Q4 1:51 OHST Ezzo 55 yard pass from Hare (Conway kick) OHST 56–7

• Archie Griffin 15 Rush, 129 Yds

[3][4]

TCU

1 2 3 4 Total TCU 0 3 0 0 3 • Ohio St 14 17 0 6 37 Date: September 29 Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Game attendance: 87,439 Game weather: Rain; 78°F; wind gusts

Scoring summary Q1 12:17 OHST A. Griffin 68 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 7–0 Q1 4:42 OHST Henson 1 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 14–0 Q2 9:18 TCU Simmons 23 yard field goal OHST 14–3 Q2 9:02 OHST Greene 72 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 21–3 Q2 2:33 OHST Greene 8 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 28–3 Q2 :00 OHST Conway 37 yard field goal OHST 31–3 Q4 6:25 OHST Pagac 13 yard pass from Hare (kick failed) OHST 37–3

• Archie Griffin 14 Rush, 119 Yds
• Cornelius Greene 15 Rush, 113 Yds

[5]

Washington State

1 2 3 4 Total Washington St 0 3 0 0 3 • Ohio St 0 14 13 0 27 Date: October 6 Location: Ohio Stadium Game attendance: 87,425 Game weather: Sunny; 65°F; wind 12 SSE

Scoring summary Q2 7:14 OHST Elia 17yard run (kick failed) OHST 6–0 Q2 3:20 OHST A. Griffin 6 yard pass from Greene (Pagac pass from Greene) OHST 14–0 Q2 :22 WSU Danelo 41 yard field goal OHST 14–3 Q3 9:21 OHST A. Griffin 26 yard run (kick blocked) OHST 20–3 Q3 5:13 OHST Elia 9 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 27–3

• Archie Griffin 15 Rush, 128 Yds

[6][7]

Wisconsin

See also: 1973 Wisconsin Badgers football team

Ohio State Buckeyes at Wisconsin Badgers

	1	2	3	4	Total
Ohio St	7	0	7	10	24
Wisconsin	0	0	0	0	0

at Camp Randall Stadium • Madison, Wisconsin

• Date: October 13
• Game time: 1:00 p.m.
• Game weather: Sunny • 68 °F (20 °C) • Wind SW 15 miles per hour (24 km/h; 13 kn) to 24 miles per hour (39 km/h; 21 kn)
• Game attendance: 77,413
• Referee: Glenn Fortin
• Ohio State Football Archives

Game information
Ohio State Greene 1/6, 22 Yds, INT A. Griffin 29 Rush, 169 Yds, TD Pagac 1 Rec, 22 Yds Wisconsin Bohlig 9/18, 98 Yds, INT Marek 13 Rush, 49 Yds Sanger 2 Rec, 35 Yds

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP OSU WIS 1 0:18 Ohio St Elia 1-yard touchdown run, Conway kick good 7 0 3 11:29 Ohio St Greene 2-yard touchdown run, Conway kick good 14 0 4 11:12 Ohio St 36-yard field goal by Conway 17 0 4 5:09 Ohio St Elia 1-yard touchdown run, Conway kick good 24 0 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 24 0

Indiana

1 2 3 4 Total • Ohio St 7 17 7 6 37 Indiana 0 0 0 7 7 Date: October 20 Location: Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, Indiana Game start: 1:32p.m. EST Elapsed time: 2:23 Game attendance: 53,183 Game weather: Clear, wind N 15 mph, 65°F

Scoring summary Q1 7:29 OHST Greene 6-yard run (Conway kick) OHST 7–0 Q2 13:05 OHST Conway 37-yard field goal OHST 10–0 Q2 4:26 OHST Greene 11-yard run (Conway kick) OHST 17–0 Q2 0:36 OHST Elia 3-yard run (Conway kick) OHST 24–0 Q3 14:14 OHST Colzie 55-yard interception return (Conway kick) OHST 31–0 Q4 7:50 IND Flanagan 51-yard pass to Smock (Stavroff kick) OHST 31–7 Q4 3:18 OHST Elia 1-yard run (kick failed) OHST 37–7

[8] [9]

Northwestern

1 2 3 4 Total Northwestern 0 0 0 0 0 • Ohio St 0 27 26 7 60 Date: October 27 Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:35p.m. EST Elapsed time: 2:31 Game attendance: 87,453 Game weather: Cloudy, 61°F

Scoring summary 2 9:10 OHST Greene 2 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 7–0 2 6:40 OHST Griffin 18 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 14–0 2 5:21 OHST Fox 20 yard blocked punt return (kick failed) OHST 20–0 2 1:27 OHST Baschnagel 4 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 27–0 3 14:49 OHST Colzie 19 yard interception return (Conway kick) OHST 34–0 3 11:36 OHST Greene 55 yard run (Conway kick) OHST 41–0 3 7:39 OHST Griffin 2 yard run (kick failed) OHST 47–0 3 3:09 OHST Lippert 5 yard run (kick failed) OHST 53–0 4 11:13 OHST Bradshaw 8 yard pass from Hare (Conway kick) OHST 60–0

[10] [11]

Illinois

1 2 3 4 Total • Ohio St 3 0 7 20 30 Illinois 0 0 0 0 0 Date: November 3 Location: Memorial Stadium, Champaign, Illinois Game start: 1:01p.m. CST Elapsed time: 2:24 Game attendance: 60,707 Game weather: 53°F

Scoring summary Q1 7:18 OHST Conway 25-yard field goal OHST 3-0 Q3 5:14 OHST Griffin 1-yard run (Conway kick) OHST 10-0 Q4 14:15 OHST Greene 7-yard run (kick failed) OHST 16-0 Q4 10:36 OHST Greene 1-yard run (Conway kick) OHST 23-0 Q4 5:42 OHST Johnson 2-yard run (Conway kick) OHST 30-0

[12] [13]

Michigan State

1 2 3 4 Total Michigan St 0 0 0 0 0 • Ohio St 7 14 7 7 35 Date: November 10 Location: Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio Game start: 1:32p.m. EST Elapsed time: 2:13 Game attendance: 87,600 Game weather: Wind N 10 mph, 36°F

Scoring summary Q1 3:24 OSU Elia 1-yard run (Conway kick) OSU 7-0 Q2 9:26 OSU Elia 2-yard run (Conway kick) OSU 14-0 Q2 2:08 OSU Colzie 43-yard punt return (Conway kick) OSU 21-0 Q3 8:57 OSU Elia 2-yard run (Conway kick) OSU 28-0 Q4 13:53 OSU Johnson 2-yard run (Conway kick) OSU 35-0

[14] [15]

Iowa

1 2 3 4 Total Iowa 0 0 0 13 13 • Ohio St 14 13 21 7 55 Date: November 17 Location: Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio Game start: 1:31p.m. EST Elapsed time: 2:37 Game attendance: 87,447 Game weather: Clear, 42°F

Scoring summary Q1 10:21 OSU Elia 1 yard run (Conway kick) OSU 7–0 Q1 4:30 OSU Elia 1 yard run (Conway kick) OSU 14–0 Q2 2:27 OSU Greene 1 yard run (kick failed) OSU 20–0 Q2 0:07 OSU Hazel 41 yard pass from Greene (Conway kick) OSU 27–0 Q3 7:38 OSU Elia 3 yard run (Conway kick) OSU 34–0 Q3 2:49 OSU Griffin 8 yard run (Conway kick) OSU 41–0 Q3 0:34 OSU Elia 3 yard run (Conway kick) OSU 48–0 Q4 14:48 IOWA Schultz 78 yard pass from Caldwell (Kokolus kick) OSU 48–7 Q4 8:22 IOWA Wellington 2 yard run (Pass failed) OSU 48–13 Q4 6:44 OSU Lippert 12 yard run (Klaban kick) OSU 55–13

[16] [17]

Statistics

• Rushing: Archie Griffin 246 yards [18]

Michigan

#1 Ohio State at Michigan

1 2 3 4 Total Ohio St 0 10 0 0 10 Michigan 0 0 0 10 10 Date: November 24 Location: Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan Game start: 1:05p.m. EST Elapsed time: 2:25 Game attendance: 105,223 Game weather: Cloudy, 50°F

Scoring summary 2 11:04 OSU Blair Conway 31-yard field goal OSU 3-0 2 0:53 OSU Pete Johnson 5-yard run (Blair Conway kick) OSU 10-0 4 14:23 MICH Mike Lantry 30-yard field goal OSU 10-3 4 9:32 MICH Dennis Franklin 10-yard run (Mike Lantry kick) TIED 10-10

[19] [20]

Rose Bowl

1 2 3 4 Total • Ohio St 7 7 13 15 42 USC 3 11 7 0 21 Date: January 1, 1974 Location: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California Game start: 2:00p.m. PST Game attendance: 105,267 TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy, Al DeRogatis

Scoring summary Q1 USC Limahelu 47 yard field goal USC 3–0 Q1 OSU Johnson 1 yard run (Conway kick) OSU 3–7 Q2 USC Limahelu 42 yard field goal OSU 6–7 Q2 USC McKay 10 yard pass from Davis (McKay pass from Haden) USC 14–7 Q2 OSU Johnson 1 yard run (Conway kick) TIED 14–14 Q3 USC Davis 1 yard run (Limahelu kick) USC 21–14 Q3 OSU Johnson 4 yard run (kick failed) USC 21–20 Q3 OSU Greene 1 yard run (Conway kick) OSU 21–27 Q4 OSU Elia 2 yard run (Greene run) OSU 21–35 Q4 OSU Griffin 47 yard run (Conway kick) OSU 21–42

[21]

1974 NFL draftees

Player	Round	Pick	Position	NFL Club
John Hicks	1	3	Guard	New York Giants
Rick Middleton	1	13	Linebacker	New Orleans Saints
Randy Gradishar	1	14	Linebacker	Denver Broncos
Morris Bradshaw	4	93	Wide Receiver	Oakland Raiders
Gregg Hare	8	203	Quarterback	Buffalo Bills
Dan Scott	9	224	Guard	Cleveland Browns
Jim Kregel	10	243	Guard	Pittsburgh Steelers
Vic Koegel	12	304	Linebacker	Atlanta Falcons

References

1. Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives. Retrieved 2015-Dec-05.
2. 1974 Ohio State Football Media Guide
3. "Ohio State Powers to 56-7 Romp Over Gophers." Palm Beach Post. 1973 Sept 16.
4. Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives. Retrieved 2015-Oct-30.
5. Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives. Retrieved 2015-Oct-30.
6. "Sub Fullback leads Buckeyes to Victory." Palm Beach Post. 1973 Oct 7.
7. Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives. Retrieved 2015-Nov-01.
8. Eugene Register-Guard. 1973 Oct 21.
9. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-28. Retrieved 2016-11-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
10. "Ohio State Hits Quickly." Palm Beach Post. 1973 Oct 28.
11. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-28. Retrieved 2016-11-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
12. Palm Beach Post. 1973 Nov 4.
13. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-28. Retrieved 2016-11-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
14. "Colzie, Griffin Lead Ohio State to Victory." Palm Beach Post. 1973 Nov 11.
15. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-28. Retrieved 2016-11-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
16. Eugene Register-Guard. 1973 Nov 18.
17. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-28. Retrieved 2016-11-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
18. 2012 Ohio State football record book.
19. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=OTJWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=l-cDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6611%2C6074641 Eugene Register-Guard
20. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-28. Retrieved 2016-11-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
21. Palm Beach Post. 1974 Jan 1.

Win/Loss statistics

• Ohio State Historical Scores

Draft data

• Ohio State Drafted Players