I've seen several Buckeye fans, both here and on Twitter, basically saying that yesterday was Ohio State's "worst win ever!" I'm not going to single out anyone in particular, (a) because I realize that it's largely hyperbole, and (b) I partially agree with this sentiment. But let's be real for a moment, Ohio State has had plenty of "bad" wins over the years (if there can be such a thing as a bad win).
The championship season of 2002 had several bad wins:
- Week 4, Cincinnati: Ohio State was down entering the 4th quarter; was outgained 415 to 292; and needed a Will Allen INT in the end zone with 32 seconds left to seal a 23-19 victory against a non-Power5 team that finished the season with a 7-7 record.
- Week 11, Purdue: Ohio State was outgained 341-267 and needed Holy Buckeye! to eke out a 10-6 win against a team that finished the season with a 7-6 record.
- Week 12, Illinois: Ohio State needed overtime to beat a 5-7 team by the score of 23-16.
- Week 13, Michigan: We remember this as a classic victory over a hated rival, but it was in fact a very ugly game, as Michigan outgained Ohio State 368 to 264; had 26 first downs to 13 for Ohio State; led in time of possession 35 minutes to 25 minutes; and converted 14 of 24 on 3rd and 4th down. Yet despite getting out-everythinged on the stat sheet, Ohio State somehow managed to win The Game, 14-9.
With their best offensive player (Maurice Clarett) sitting out the season, 2003 saw even more "bad" wins for the Buckeyes:
- Week 2, San Diego State: The Aztecs (final record of 6-6) outgained the Buckeyes 216 to 196 in yards and 20 to 10 in first downs. Ohio State's only touchdown in the 16-13 victory came on a 100-yard INT return from Will Allen.
- Week 4, Bowling Green: The post-Urban Falcons outgained the Buckeyes 366 to 323 in yards, and 21 to 17 in first downs, but Ohio State held on for a 24-17 victory.
- Week 7, Iowa: Yes, Iowa was a good team in 2003 (10-3 final record, #8 final poll ranking), but Ohio State delivered one of its worst offensive performances in memory, with just 185 total yards, 11 first downs, and 3 points (courtesy of a Mike Nugent 53-yard field goal). The balance of the Buckeyes' points in the 19-10 victory came from a Michael Jenkins punt return, a Donte Whitner blocked punt, and a safety.
- Week 9, Penn State: Isn't any win against Penn State a good win? Not when it's a 21-20 win over a Nittany Lions team that finished the season with a record of 3-9.
- Week 11, Purdue: Purdue was another good team in 2003 (9-4 final record, #18 final poll ranking), but this was another awful offensive showing from Ohio State, whose points came from three FGs and a Mike Kudla fumble recovery; final score, in overtime: Ohio State 16, Purdue 13.
2004 will best be remembered as a season of bad losses, in particular a 33-7 loss to Iowa where the Buckeyes were outgained 448 to 177 and managed to rush for only 27 yards on 29 carries (0.9 average). But there was at least one really bad win that season, namely a Week 2 nail biter against Marshall (final record of 6-6) that Ohio State won 24-21 on a 55-yard Mike Nugent FG as time expired.
Although the Buckeyes managed a perfect regular season in 2006, the Week 10 against Illinois was an ominous sign of things to come. Ohio State managed just 17 points and 224 total yards against an Illinois squad that finished the season with an abysmal 2-10 record. Big Ten analyst J Leman was a one-man wrecking crew for the otherwise hapless Illini, as he finished the game with 19 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, a sack, and a forced fumble. The Buckeyes held on to win, 17-10.
With a QB controversy brewing in 2008 (Todd Boeckman vs Terrelle Pryor), the Buckeyes suffered through some bad wins (not to mention one of their worst losses ever, 35-3 to Southern Cal):
- Week 2, Ohio: Todd Boeckman's last win as the Buckeye starting QB saw the team down 14-12 in the 4th quarter to a MAC squad. Despite gaining only 272 yards of offense, the Buckeyes scored a pair of late TDs (one on a Ray Small punt return) to secure a 26-14 victory. A couple more facts: the Bobcats finished the season with a record of 4-8, and gave up 31 points to VMI (an FCS school).
- Week 7, Purdue: The Boilermakers outgained the Buckeyes 298 to 222 in yards and 18 to 14 in first downs, but three FGs and a TD on a blocked punt were enough to secure a 16-3 win over a team that finished the season with a 4-8 record.
- Week 11, Illinois: Ohio State was outgained 455 to 354 in yards and 25 to 16 in first downs, and managed only 49 yards of passing, but were able to hold off a 5-7 team by the score of 30-20.
In the opening game of the 2009 season, Navy scored a TD with 2:23 left in the game to cut Ohio State's lead to 29-27. On the ensuing 2-point conversion attempt, linebacker Brian Rolle intercepted the pass and returned it 99 yards to give the Buckeyes two points and secure a 31-27 victory.
2011 was the worst season in memory, with 7 losses (we have seen only 12 Buckeye losses since then), but also one very bad win. In Week 2, Ohio State was actually trailing Toledo after the first quarter by the score of 15 to 7. The Buckeyes needed a Chris Fields punt return TD to finally take the lead at the end of the first half. Toledo regained the lead in the 3rd quarter, but Ohio State managed to come back for the thrilling 27-22 victory.
Since Urban Meyer took over the helm at Ohio State and ditched Tresselball, the Buckeyes have had less "bad" losses ... but maybe a few more than you might want to remember:
- 2012, Week 7, Indiana: In an absolutely wild contest, Ohio State held on for a 52-49 victory over an Indiana team that finished 4-8 for the season; the Hoosiers racked up 481 yards of total offense in the loss.
- 2012, Week 8, Purdue: With Kenny Guiton subbing for an injured Braxton Miller, Ohio State needed a last-second TD and 2-point conversion to tie the score before eventually winning 29-22 in overtime; Purdue finished the season with a record of 6-7.
- 2013, Week 12, Michigan: Yes, it's a rivalry game, but the Buckeyes had no business giving up 41 points and 603 yards (!) to a mediocre Michigan team (7-6 final record). Tyvis Powell secured the 42-41 win with an interception of a 2-point conversion attempt with 32 seconds left on the clock.
- 2014, Week 10, Minnesota: Ohio State jumped out to an early 14-0 lead, then the Buckeyes began shooting themselves repeatedly in the foot en route to an unimpressive 31-24 victory that wasn't finally decided until Ohio State recovered an onside kick with 1:19 left in the game.
- 2014, Week 11, Indiana: After a Tevin Coleman 90-yard TD run, Ohio State found themselves down 20-14 midway through the 3rd quarter. Then Jalin Marshall, who was almost the goat (not GOAT) against Minnesota the previous week, scored four straight TDs to put the game away, 42-27. Indiana finished the season with a record of 4-8.
- 2015, Week 3, Northern Illinois: Ohio State managed only 298 yards of offense and 14 first downs, and needed a Darron Lee 41-yard interception return to beat a MAC team by the score of 20-13.
- 2015, Week 5, Indiana: Despite 274 yards of rushing and 3 TDs (55, 65, 75 yards) from Ezekiel Elliott to lead Ohio State, Indiana was 9 yards away from sending the game into overtime when time expired. Final score: Ohio State 34, Indiana 27
- 2016, Week 11, Michigan State: After bad losses to MSU in 2013 and 2015 killed OSU's national title hopes, any win against the Spartans had to be viewed as a good thing. But a 17-16 win over a 3-9 Sparty squad? That's pretty damned bad.
- 2018, Week 11, Maryland: The Buckeyes needed a TD with 40 seconds left on the clock just to send the game into overtime, then needed a failed 2-point conversion attempt to eke out a 52-51 victory over a 5-7 team; Terp RB Anthony McFarland had 298 yards of rushing in the loss.
- 2020, Week 3, Rutgers: Some Buckeye fans qualified their hyperbole by saying that the Tulsa victory was the "worst three touchdown win" in Ohio State history. Might I remind those people of last year's Rutgers game, which the Buckeyes won by the score of 49 to 27. As I stated in my recap of that unimpressive victory, Rutgers left 11 points on the field thanks to four failed 2-point conversions and a fumble on 1st-and-goal; the final score could easily have been 49-38, and that's what the game felt like watching it live.
- 2020, Week 4, Indiana: The Hoosiers were a fairly good team last year, but the Ohio State defense allowed Indiana QB Michael Penix to throw for 491 yards and 5 touchdowns, including 33 yards, 56 yards, and 63 yards to wide receiver Ty Fryfogle (7 receptions, 218 yards, 3 TDs). The Buckeyes needed a Shaun Wade pick six to seal the 42-35 win.
By my count, that's 27 really bad wins over the past two decades alone, some of which were clearly worse (even way worse) than yesterday's "debacle": Cincinnati 2002 ... San Diego State 2003 ... Marshall 2004 ... Illinois 2006 ... Ohio 2008 ... Toledo 2011 ... Northern Illinois 2015 ... Maryland 2018. I'm not saying that Buckeye fans should be overjoyed with beating lowly Tulsa by merely three touchdowns, but I am saying that we need some perspective here.
