1954 - Woody's First Championship
In the decade between the 1944 civilian national championship season and 1953, the Buckeyes had four head coaches and posted a combined record of 48-27-7 (for a mediocre winning percentage of .628). In fact, Ohio State was becoming known as the graveyard of coaches, and the fourth head coach in the post-Brown era, a relatively young and unknown commodity who had had brief tenures at Denison University and Miami of Ohio before accepting the Buckeyes' post, was already on the hot seat after only three seasons (but an overall record of 16-9-2 will generally earn you a quick ticket out of Columbus). Fortunately for Buckeye fans, that coach got one more season, and he made the most of his final opportunity.
Wayne Woodrow "Woody" Hayes was hired in 1951 to be Ohio State's head football coach when Buckeye legend
Wes Fesler, a three-time All American end (1928-1930), resigned after losing to Michigan in the infamous Snow Bowl. Hayes was not the school's first choice (the hiring committee initially offered the job to Missouri head coach Don Faurot), nor a very popular selection amongst the fans (who wanted Paul Brown to return to Columbus). During his first three years on campus, Hayes did little to endear himself with either group, winning less than sixty percent of his games while suffering two shut-out losses to Michigan in three tries. 1954 was going to be Woody's "make or break" year, and most people were betting heavily on "break", as Ohio State was picked to finish no better than fifth in the Big Ten by most sportswriters and analysts.
The Buckeyes opened the season on a high note with a 28-0 whitewashing of the lowly Indiana Hoosiers. The next week, however, Ohio State barely slipped past a below-average California squad at home, 21-13, and most observers felt that Hayes was headed for yet another three-loss campaign. Ohio State's erratic season continued, as the Buckeyes trounced highly-touted Illinois on the road, 40-7, but then squeaked by Iowa at home, 20-14; smashed second-ranked Wisconsin (led by eventual Heisman winner fullback
Alan Ameche) on Homecoming, 31-14, but eked out a 14-7 victory against a very poor Northwestern team in Evanston. Two solid wins over Pitt and Purdue kept the Buckeyes' undefeated season alive and set up a showdown with a poweful Michigan squad. But the sceptics remained unconvinced, as the Wolverines had been Hayes' nemesis to date. However, Woody put all criticism to rest: With an outright Big Ten championship, a Rose Bowl invitation, and a potential national title on the line, the Buckeyes soundly defeated the Wolverines, 21-7, to finish the regular season a perfect 9-0-0.
1954 was the rare college football season in which two major powers finished with perfect records. One was Ohio State, and the other was UCLA from the Pacific Coast Conference. Under the Rose Bowl contract, the Big Ten champ was obligated to play the PCC champ, so it appeared that the two best teams in the land would meet in the ultimate "winner take all" contest in the 1955 Rose Bowl. However, as luck would have it, the Rose Bowl had a "no repeat" rule in place, and UCLA had been the PCC representative the previous season and was thus barred from participation. Ohio State had to settle for PCC runner-up Southern Cal, and the Buckeyes easily dispatched of the Trojans to remain perfect for only the third time in school history. In voting for their respective champions, the AP and UP split the ballot, with the sportswriters (AP) selecting Ohio State and the coaches (UP) choosing UCLA. Incidentally, the 1954 Bruins squad earned the only football national championship of any kind for UCLA. Today, both schools are deemed "recognized" national champions for the year 1954, but college football historians wonder what would have happened if the two best teams in the land had been able to battle it out on the field of the Rose Bowl.
Ohio State had three All Americans in 1954 - end
Dean Dugger, guard
Jim Reichenbach, and halfback
Howard "Hopalong" Cassady, who would repeat as an All American and also win the
Heisman Trophy the following year. On the season, Cassady rushed for 701 yards and 6 touchdowns, while catching 13 passes for another 148 yards. In addition, Hopalong made the play of the year with a dramatic 88-yard interception return for a touchdown to secure a victory against the previously unbeaten Wisconsin Badgers. As a Heisman winner, Cassady's number 40 jersey has been retired from Ohio State. Howard's son, Craig Cassady, also played for Woody Hayes, lettering from 1973 to 1975.
Lineman
Jim Parker was also a member of the 1954 squad. A three-year starter for the Buckeyes, Parker earned All American honors in both 1955 and 1956, and won the prestigious Outland Trophy after his senior campaign. After graduating from Ohio State, Parker went on to have an excellent career in the NFL (for the Baltimore Colts). He is a member of the Ohio State,
College Football, and
Professional Football Halls of Fame.
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The 1954 Ohio State Buckeyes :osu:
09/25/54: Ohio State 28, Indiana 0
10/02/54: Ohio State 21, California 13
10/09/54: Ohio State 40, Illinois 7
10/16/54: Ohio State 20, Iowa 14
10/23/54: Ohio State 31, Wisconsin 14
10/30/54: Ohio State 14, Northwestern 7
11/06/54: Ohio State 26, Pitt 0
11/13/54: Ohio State 28, Purdue 6
11/20/54: Ohio State 21, Michigan 7
01/01/55: Ohio State 20, Southern Cal 7 (Rose Bowl)
