The Agony of Defeat: My 5 Worst OSU Losses
By Adam
Bear with me, as this post will begin with women’s soccer and transform into sports that you’d actually like to read about, I promise. Don’t get me wrong, World Cup time, if only for a couple of weeks, transforms Americans into soccer fans because we can cheer for Team USA and show everyone why we are the best country in the world. This year’s Team USA appeared to be poised for greatness and ready to bring home the World Cup Trophy. The women had overcome the greatest of odds in an amazing victory against Brazil, by scoring a tying goal in the last possible moments, and then winning the game by penalty kicks. Then, in the championship game, it seemed to be happening again. Regulation ended with the favored US team tied with Japan, and when Abby Wambach scored in the 102nd minute of the game, the trophy was all but ours. And then it happened…the soccer gods smiled upon a broken and tragedy struck country, and Japan did exactly what the US had done just days ago. They scored a tying goal, and then dominated penalty kicks to become world champions. The heartbreaking upset was clearly gut-wrenching for the women on the team and their fans, and although they weren’t on a global scale, this game reminded me of a few Buckeye moments. Here are the top 5 worst OSU losses in my lifetime…
5. M*chigan 1995 (23-31)
Tshimanga Biakabutuka… The undefeated Buckeyes couldn’t stop him…at all. He rushed for 313 yards on the day, still a record for one player against OSU, but it felt like roughly 2000. Even with such awful stats on defense, OSU was still in a position to tie the game late in the 4th quarter, when Charles freakin Woodson grabbed his 2nd interception of the day and sealed OSU’s fate. Pat Fitzgerald probably still sends Woodson a Christmas card every year, since that interception gave his Northwestern Wildcats their first Rose Bowl appearance in 46 years. Unfortunately, this is not the last time that a John Cooper coached team will appear on this list.
4. Florida 2007 (75-84) – Basketball National Championship
The ONLY reason that this isn’t higher on my list is that Florida won the 2006 National Championship in basketball and then did the unthinkable and returned all 5 starters for the 2007 season. OSU had tremendous talent with phenom freshmen Greg Oden, Mike Conley, Daequan Cook, and David Lighty (and Mark Titus), and had returning playmakers in Jamar Butler, Ivan Harris, Othello Hunter and Ron Lewis. Despite the talent, Ohio State simply couldn’t get the job done against the Gators, as they became the first and only team to win consecutive championships with the same starters.
3. M*chigan 1996 (9-13)
Ohio State entered this game undefeated and ranked #2 in the country, and was the strong favorite to beat the #21 Wolverines and contend for a #1 ranking. And for the first half of the game, it seemed like this would be the case. OSU was up 9-0 at halftime, and appeared to be headed for a possible national championship, its first since 1968. However, Brian Griese replaced a struggling Scott Dreisbach at quarterback for M*chigan, and was able to lead TTUN to 13 unanswered points and a devastating loss. The loss was made even worse by the fact that the Wolverines’ touchdown came on a simple slant pass in which All-American CB, Shawn Springs slipped on the wet field and lost his man, Tai Streets, long enough for him to make the catch and scamper 68 yards for a TD (I hate this play). The only reason that this game and #2 on my list are in this order is the fact that the Wolverines were ranked and not 6-6 like the Spartans in 1998…
2. Michigan State 1998 (24-28)
Sooo painful to even think about this one, but OSU’s loss to Michigan State in 1998 left me more stunned, heartbroken, and confused than when I first found out in college that Mila Kunis was dating Macaulay Culkin…ZING! In my opinion, this is the worst of the John Cooper horror stories because OSU outscored RANKED opponents 128-56 during the regular season. The Buckeyes were basically on cruise control throughout the year, crushing anything that got in their way and only giving up more than 17 points in a game (guess which one) once during the entire season. Joe Germaine was insane in 1998, throwing for over 3300 yards, 25 TDs, and only 7 INTs, and over a third of those yards and half of the TD passes went to David Boston. The team was unbreakable…until November 7th, when MSU scored 19 straight points in the second half to beat OSU 28-24. To throw salt in the wound, OSU did not play Wisconsin during the season, and had been the most recent Rose Bowl participant between the two, and had to settle for the Sugar Bowl. Oh, and to top it off, their performance, although a win, was not enough to overcome Tennessee’s #1 ranking (stupid Peyton), and the Bucks finished #2.
1. Florida 2007 (14-41) – Football National Championship
Remember that story I told about 15 seconds ago about an unstoppable OSU team that was destined to be #1? Yea, this one’s even worse. Ohio State only scored under 30 points 3 times during the year (17, 24, and 28), before the National Championship, and was really only tested in its last game of the regular season, against Michigan. The Buckeyes entered the big game as 14 point favorites over the Florida Gators and wasted no time showing that they meant business. Ted Ginn Jr. took the opening kickoff to the house and OSU looked ready to make some luggage out of the Gators. And then the party ended. During the touchdown celebration, Ted Ginn’s ankle was fractured and he was unable to provide his normal playmaking difference in the game. Don’t get me wrong, that certainly did not lose the game for OSU, but was just the first sign of things to come. Florida provided a pass rush that the Bucks’ O-Line couldn’t handle, and Heisman Trophy winner, Troy Smith spent most of his night scrambling to survive. The 41-14 loss, on the biggest stage in college football, began a half-decade worth of criticism of OSU football and the talk of “can’t win the big one.”
In short, Team USA, we feel your pain…