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Who Is the Greatest Buckeye Tailback?

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Who Is the Greatest Buckeye Tailback? (Please vote for TWO)

  • Keith Byars

    Votes: 24 15.4%

  • Howard "Hopalong" Cassady

    Votes: 22 14.1%

  • Maurice Clarett

    Votes: 24 15.4%

  • Eddie George

    Votes: 82 52.6%

  • Archie Griffin

    Votes: 114 73.1%

  • Robert Smith

    Votes: 3 1.9%

  • Tim Spencer

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Other

    Votes: 3 1.9%
  • Total voters
    156
  • Poll closed .
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Archie and Keith. Very difficult choice. The only thing keeping Byers from being a Heisman winner is one stupid pass on a rainy night in Miami, and that just aint right. Keith was incredible.... Take away the Flutie pass, have Byers healthy for his senior season and it's entirely possible OSU would have 2 2 time Heisman winners.


I love watching Eddie run as well, but in the end, I had to go with Byers. I felt like a vote for Hop wouldn't be an honest vote on my part as I never saw him play. No question he meant a great deal to his teams and was a great back, though. Maurice could have been the greatest, but things didn't work out that way.
 
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Nice list but you did forget the Greatest Buckeye of all time - Chic Harley.

Without Chic we would not have the legacy that we have today. He was the one responsible for Ohio Stadium. He brought such enormous crowds to old Ohio Field (approximately where Arps Hall is today) that they knew they need a larger facility. This is what caused Ohio State to think and start plans for Ohio Stadium. For a long time they thought of renaming Ohio Stadium or Ohio Field after Chic.

I remember reading one time that he and Jim Thorpe were considered the two best running backs for the first 50 years of the 20th century in college ball. He was considered a better player than Red Grange.

I must admit that he was way before my time but growing up in Columbus all we ever heard was how instrumental he was to Ohio State and how much he was loved.

If you remember the old movie house across from Arps Hall (McDonald's today), the likeness of the football player kicking the football is Chic Harley.

For most of us Ohio State fans, out memory seems to only go back to the 60's and sometimes the 50's. A prime example of this is one Bill Willis. If my memory serves me right he was one of the first to be in both the college football hall of fame as well as the pro football hall of fame. He played back in the 40's.

I just think any list without Chic is just incomplete. I know many never heard of him or know what he did. But to me he will be always Ohio State's Greatest Buckeye regardless of position. Of all the players that played at Ohio State he is the only one to have his number retired that never won a heisman.
 
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WHO'S HOUSE IS THIS ! ! !
314 yards

ED-DIE ED-DIE

offensive6.jpg
 
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Where The Hell Is Scottie Graham?
Click to expand...
Fullback.

Re Chic Harley: In my initial post on this thread, I stated that all pre-Woody players would be in the "old-timers" category. It's just too difficult to judge a talent from 1916-1919 with any of the "modern day" players like Archie, Eddie, MoC, etc. However, if you feel like voting for an "old-timer" in this (or any other) poll, then feel free to vote for "other" and explain your choice in a post.
 
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though Eddie is my favorite, i voted for Archie, and Other... Archie for reasons that need not be explained, and Other for Chic Harley, Ohio State's first Three Time All American, and for being the driving force behind the public demand for the construction of Ohio Stadium- the House that Harley Built...
 
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This is really a tough call. You have to have Archie based on his career numbers, but if I had to rank a player by his domination in a single season then you have to say:
1. Byars- 1984
2. George-1995
3.Griffin- 1974
Now, it comes down to personal perceptions. To me, I've never seen a more "dominant" back at TOSU than Keith in 1984. He was a wrecking crew that could just take over a game by himself. But, in 1995 Eddie flirted hard with the 2,000 yard mark, and won a Heisman.

So, I'll call Archie the greatest, Keith #2, and wonder how the hell I left Eddie out.
 
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