Ohio State Football: Near Misses In The Past Haunt, Teach

Every new Ohio State football season brings excitement.

Part of the excitement comes from the end of the sports drought that occurs after the NBA finals. Most of the excitement comes from the renewed opportunity to again see the Buckeyes compete for a national championship.

As the season nears though, trepidation creeps in. Anything less than a national championship borders on failure for Buckeye teams consistently loaded with talent. However, the reality of the matter is that national championships are rare.

The 2014 season, which culminated in Ohio State’s incredible playoff run, ended a 12-year stretch since the Buckeyes last ended number one with their improbable Fiesta Bowl victory over Miami. Before that, Buckeye fans experienced 32 years of championship futility since the claimed national title in 1970.

The true statistics on the rates of winning it all are obscured by the number of near misses. Each generation of Ohio State football produced excellent teams that knocked on the door of a national championship only to come up short.

Many of these teams were the best in college football regardless of final ranking.  These instances are painful, but also provide points for fans to reminisce and say “what if”.

Going into the 2017 season with high hopes, the Buckeyes should look at some of the near misses of the past to prepare for future.

Let’s first take a look at the near miss that may have hurt the most, and started the Woody and Bo 10 Year War.