OCBucksFan
I won a math debate
Rex was on Jim Rome just a few minutes ago, one of those guys that everytime I hear or read him just makes me smile. Such a great guy.
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zincfinger
Gert Frobe-approved
Yep. I especially liked the photo of the 1970 Heisman finalists: Kern, Plunkett (winner), Theisman, and Manning. Probably one of the stronger Heisman finalist groups there's been.BB73;2150412; said:
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
HOW FRED TAYLOR PLAYED A ROLE IN RECRUITING REX KERN, ONE OF THE CORNERSTONES OF OHIO STATE'S 1967 RECRUITING CLASS
Before he was a national champion and All-American quarterback at Ohio State, Rex Kern was a high school three-sport star in Lancaster, Ohio.
Kern's talent on the hardwood especially stood out. He fielded recruiting calls from the likes of John Wooden and Dean Smith, but ultimately, Kern wanted to be a Buckeye.
"I had always wanted to go to Ohio State to play basketball for Fred Taylor. I grew up when Jerry Lucas, John Havlicek and those guys won a national championship," Kern told Eleven Warriors. "I was probably in the fourth grade at that point and had my heart set on playing for Ohio State basketball."
After watching the Buckeyes win a national title in 1960, playing for Taylor was a dream of Kern's. He also wanted to play football, however Woody Hayes did not enter the picture until midway through his senior year of high school.
His high school basketball coach at Lancaster High School eventually approached Kern and asked him where he wanted to go to school. Kern expressed his concerns about playing both sports at Ohio State, which prompted his coach to place calls to both legendary OSU coaches.
"He went in and picked up the phone and said, 'Hey Fred, if you guys want him, he wants to play both basketball and football,' and Fred said that would be great with him," Kern said. "Woody did likewise and I think the next night Ohio State was having a home basketball game and we were off to the races then."
Kern then played both freshman football and basketball at Ohio State (freshmen were not allowed to play varsity football or basketball until 1972-73). After finishing the 1967 season with the freshman Buckeyes, Kern became a starting guard on Taylor's freshman basketball squad alongside Jim Cleamons.
After playing for both freshman teams, Kern said he began to notice a problem with his hamstring as he entered spring football. Before long it was evident that the injury was more than just a hamstring.
"About the end of May, I couldn't get out of bed. I eventually found out I had a ruptured disk and I was looking at back surgery," Kern said. "In June of 1968 after spring football, I went in to have back surgery. I can still remember Woody saying to my mom and dad, 'If Rex never plays a down for us, he will continue to get his scholarship and he will graduate from Ohio State.'"
As everyone now knows, Kern was able to return to the football field at Ohio State. As Kern tells it, he was back on the field 45 days after surgery to play quarterback for the Buckeyes. He then beat out returning starter Bill Long for the starting job, and led the 1968 team to an undefeated season and a national championship, putting a stamp on what is arguably the greatest campaign in OSU history.
However, prior to defeating Southern California in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, 1969 to complete the title season, Kern nearly saw his career come to a screeching halt again during bowl prep.
Entire article: https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio...n-one-of-the-cornerstones-of-ohio-states-1967
Before he was a national champion and All-American quarterback at Ohio State, Rex Kern was a high school three-sport star in Lancaster, Ohio.
Kern's talent on the hardwood especially stood out. He fielded recruiting calls from the likes of John Wooden and Dean Smith, but ultimately, Kern wanted to be a Buckeye.
"I had always wanted to go to Ohio State to play basketball for Fred Taylor. I grew up when Jerry Lucas, John Havlicek and those guys won a national championship," Kern told Eleven Warriors. "I was probably in the fourth grade at that point and had my heart set on playing for Ohio State basketball."
After watching the Buckeyes win a national title in 1960, playing for Taylor was a dream of Kern's. He also wanted to play football, however Woody Hayes did not enter the picture until midway through his senior year of high school.
His high school basketball coach at Lancaster High School eventually approached Kern and asked him where he wanted to go to school. Kern expressed his concerns about playing both sports at Ohio State, which prompted his coach to place calls to both legendary OSU coaches.
"He went in and picked up the phone and said, 'Hey Fred, if you guys want him, he wants to play both basketball and football,' and Fred said that would be great with him," Kern said. "Woody did likewise and I think the next night Ohio State was having a home basketball game and we were off to the races then."
Kern then played both freshman football and basketball at Ohio State (freshmen were not allowed to play varsity football or basketball until 1972-73). After finishing the 1967 season with the freshman Buckeyes, Kern became a starting guard on Taylor's freshman basketball squad alongside Jim Cleamons.
After playing for both freshman teams, Kern said he began to notice a problem with his hamstring as he entered spring football. Before long it was evident that the injury was more than just a hamstring.
"About the end of May, I couldn't get out of bed. I eventually found out I had a ruptured disk and I was looking at back surgery," Kern said. "In June of 1968 after spring football, I went in to have back surgery. I can still remember Woody saying to my mom and dad, 'If Rex never plays a down for us, he will continue to get his scholarship and he will graduate from Ohio State.'"
As everyone now knows, Kern was able to return to the football field at Ohio State. As Kern tells it, he was back on the field 45 days after surgery to play quarterback for the Buckeyes. He then beat out returning starter Bill Long for the starting job, and led the 1968 team to an undefeated season and a national championship, putting a stamp on what is arguably the greatest campaign in OSU history.
However, prior to defeating Southern California in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, 1969 to complete the title season, Kern nearly saw his career come to a screeching halt again during bowl prep.
Entire article: https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio...n-one-of-the-cornerstones-of-ohio-states-1967
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Three Lancaster boys teams — 1966, 1991 and 2006 — made it to the final four
The 1966 team (19-6) consisted of Paul Callahan, Paul Kendrick, Rex Kern, Rick Torrence, Michael Baughman, Bill Grein, Frank Kluz, Steve Macioci, Fritz Reed, Warren Ticknor, Terry Webb and Dan Williams. The head coach was George Hill and the assistant coach was Corky Sparks.
https://www.lancastereaglegazette.c...s/2016/01/06/high-school-basketball/78369252/
Just sayin': Rex Kern was a prety good basketball player, his Junior year (which was my Senior year) Lancaster made it to the state finals. Rex and Terry Webb were the starting guards. They got beat by Toledo Libby in the semifinal game.
The story I remember about his recruitment to Ohio State was during Rex Kern's Senior year Woody would drive to Lancaster every week just to have his hair cut. Rex Kern's father was the barber.......
The 1966 team (19-6) consisted of Paul Callahan, Paul Kendrick, Rex Kern, Rick Torrence, Michael Baughman, Bill Grein, Frank Kluz, Steve Macioci, Fritz Reed, Warren Ticknor, Terry Webb and Dan Williams. The head coach was George Hill and the assistant coach was Corky Sparks.
https://www.lancastereaglegazette.c...s/2016/01/06/high-school-basketball/78369252/
Just sayin': Rex Kern was a prety good basketball player, his Junior year (which was my Senior year) Lancaster made it to the state finals. Rex and Terry Webb were the starting guards. They got beat by Toledo Libby in the semifinal game.
The story I remember about his recruitment to Ohio State was during Rex Kern's Senior year Woody would drive to Lancaster every week just to have his hair cut. Rex Kern's father was the barber.......
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
REX KERN COMPARES OHIO STATE'S 1968-69 FOOTBALL TEAMS WITH THE 2014-15 BUCKEYES
When Ohio State won the national championship in 1968, it appeared as though the Buckeyes were set up to win three straight, as the Super Sophomores ran through their schedule.
As diehard Ohio State and Michigan fans well know, the hopes of a second title were derailed in the 1969 edition of The Game, as Bo Schembechler's first Wolverine team knocked off the No. 1-ranked Buckeyes, 24-12.
Years later, the Buckeyes were on a similar trajectory. Despite losing a game early in the 2014 campaign, Ohio State ran the table with a group of young stars and won the first national title of the playoff era. The majority of the 2014 team returned in 2015, but the Buckeyes were upset at home in the penultimate game of the regular season against Michigan State.
Had either team been able to repeat, there is a good chance the respective teams would have been considered the best in their era. Instead, all that remains are the questions of what happened and what could have been.
Former Ohio State quarterback Rex Kern, one of the Super Sophomores and an All-American, spoke with Eleven Warriors about both teams and their successes and downfalls. He said ultimately, Michigan and Michigan State were simply the better teams on Nov. 22, 1969 and Nov. 21, 2015, respectively.
"We played two better teams those days. That's just one of those things. When we went up to That School Up North in '69, that particular day they were a better football team than we were," Kern said. "I think the same thing happened with our Buckeyes against Michigan State.
"Just like we were waiting for Purdue (in 1968), everyone was waiting in the wings for us (in 1969)."
Kern added, though, that he and his teammates knew Ohio State would be in for a challenge against Michigan before the 1969 season began. While the Buckeyes were in Pasadena, Calif. to play for the 1968 national title, Schembechler was announced as the head coach of the Wolverines back in Ann Arbor.
It was at that moment Kern said he knew Michigan would give the Buckeyes some problems.
"We are our at the Rose Bowl and we hear that the School Up North hired a new football coach named Bo Schembechler," Kern said. "Bo was a good friend of mine and had recruited me at Miami of Ohio, and we thought, 'Uh oh,' this might be a different ball game."
While it is difficult to compare different generations of football, the 1968 team and the 2014 Ohio State teams are often looked at as two of the best – if not the top two – teams in school history.
The 1968 Buckeyes played in a generation where passing the ball was rare, while by 2014, it was more than an integral part of the offense. To compare, Kern attempted 364 passes in his three-year varsity career for Ohio State. During the 2014 season alone, J.T. Barrett attempted 314 passes in 12 games.
Despite Kern throwing the ball just 135 times in 1969, the Buckeyes were one of the most prolific offenses in school history. Ohio State averaged 46.4 points per game in the eight games prior to the loss to Michigan in 1969, beating its opponents by an average of 37.8 points per game.
We can never know for sure, but Kern believes if you put the likes of him, John Brockington, Larry Zelina, Jim Otis and others of the Super Sophomores into Urban Meyer's offense, the Ohio State recruiting class of 1967 might have never lost a game.
"I think our team, given what the game of football looks like today, we may have gone 29-0. We had so much talent, but more than that, we had great chemistry, especially on the '68 team," Kern said. "We had great chemistry, great leadership and we were so multi-talented. We were overloaded with talent.
Entire article: https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio...8-69-football-teams-with-the-2014-15-editions
When Ohio State won the national championship in 1968, it appeared as though the Buckeyes were set up to win three straight, as the Super Sophomores ran through their schedule.
As diehard Ohio State and Michigan fans well know, the hopes of a second title were derailed in the 1969 edition of The Game, as Bo Schembechler's first Wolverine team knocked off the No. 1-ranked Buckeyes, 24-12.
Years later, the Buckeyes were on a similar trajectory. Despite losing a game early in the 2014 campaign, Ohio State ran the table with a group of young stars and won the first national title of the playoff era. The majority of the 2014 team returned in 2015, but the Buckeyes were upset at home in the penultimate game of the regular season against Michigan State.
Had either team been able to repeat, there is a good chance the respective teams would have been considered the best in their era. Instead, all that remains are the questions of what happened and what could have been.
Former Ohio State quarterback Rex Kern, one of the Super Sophomores and an All-American, spoke with Eleven Warriors about both teams and their successes and downfalls. He said ultimately, Michigan and Michigan State were simply the better teams on Nov. 22, 1969 and Nov. 21, 2015, respectively.
"We played two better teams those days. That's just one of those things. When we went up to That School Up North in '69, that particular day they were a better football team than we were," Kern said. "I think the same thing happened with our Buckeyes against Michigan State.
"Just like we were waiting for Purdue (in 1968), everyone was waiting in the wings for us (in 1969)."
Kern added, though, that he and his teammates knew Ohio State would be in for a challenge against Michigan before the 1969 season began. While the Buckeyes were in Pasadena, Calif. to play for the 1968 national title, Schembechler was announced as the head coach of the Wolverines back in Ann Arbor.
It was at that moment Kern said he knew Michigan would give the Buckeyes some problems.
"We are our at the Rose Bowl and we hear that the School Up North hired a new football coach named Bo Schembechler," Kern said. "Bo was a good friend of mine and had recruited me at Miami of Ohio, and we thought, 'Uh oh,' this might be a different ball game."
While it is difficult to compare different generations of football, the 1968 team and the 2014 Ohio State teams are often looked at as two of the best – if not the top two – teams in school history.
The 1968 Buckeyes played in a generation where passing the ball was rare, while by 2014, it was more than an integral part of the offense. To compare, Kern attempted 364 passes in his three-year varsity career for Ohio State. During the 2014 season alone, J.T. Barrett attempted 314 passes in 12 games.
Despite Kern throwing the ball just 135 times in 1969, the Buckeyes were one of the most prolific offenses in school history. Ohio State averaged 46.4 points per game in the eight games prior to the loss to Michigan in 1969, beating its opponents by an average of 37.8 points per game.
We can never know for sure, but Kern believes if you put the likes of him, John Brockington, Larry Zelina, Jim Otis and others of the Super Sophomores into Urban Meyer's offense, the Ohio State recruiting class of 1967 might have never lost a game.
"I think our team, given what the game of football looks like today, we may have gone 29-0. We had so much talent, but more than that, we had great chemistry, especially on the '68 team," Kern said. "We had great chemistry, great leadership and we were so multi-talented. We were overloaded with talent.
Entire article: https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio...8-69-football-teams-with-the-2014-15-editions
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