Ohio Stater football: Mike Wargo, Ohio State’s Rudy

In the fall of 1993, a college football sports movie named Rudy hit the theatres and captured the hearts of sports fans and moviegoers alike. The story of an undersized blue-collar boy who had a dream of one day playing for Notre Dame and not quitting until he received his chance to walk on for the Irish was based on the real-life story of Rudy Ruettiger. This movie has made even the burliest of tough guys fight back tears, but did you know Ohio State football had its own Rudy-like story as well?

Much like Rudy Ruettiger, Mike Wargo was an undersized guy who loved football and wouldn’t let his dream of one day playing Ohio State football die. The offensive lineman grew up in Pennsylvania as a Penn State fan until his family moved to Northeast, Ohio due to his father’s job change. This forced Wargo to be baptized into Buckeye culture. Wargo recalls the first time he took a trip to Columbus for school to compete in a track meet being held at The Ohio State University.

“I went to the track meet and totally fell in love with the place,” Wargo remembered. “I’m walking around the campus, I see Ohio Stadium, and I said, ‘You know what, you only live one time, whatever it takes, I’m going to try and run out onto that field.’”

Mike went from being the last kid chosen in gym class to starting for the first time in football his senior year in Hudson, Ohio. How could someone who couldn’t even start for his high school team until his final year actually play for one of the greatest college football programs in the country?

Much like in the Rudy movie, Wargo not only had to overcome size and missing God-given ability, but he also had to shut out the naysayers. “I got accepted into Ohio State and I kept telling people that I wanted to play for the Ohio State football team. People thought I was crazy and that I got hit on the head too many times.”

Once on campus, Wargo first had to figure out who to even talk to for a tryout. Of course that first year on campus the season had already begun, and so he would have to wait until the off-season even started. In January of 1990, Mike received his first opportunity to walk on when he was given a chance during the winter conditioning tryouts. However, he didn’t pass.

That spring, during spring practices, Wargo’s desire to walk on was renewed once again. After meeting with recruiting coordinator Bill Conley, Wargo was told he could try out again in August but that he would need to get in better shape. “I was working at SeaWorld of Ohio and at night I would run (around the park after closing hours,”) Wargo admitted.

That August Mike tried out again, once again not thinking he had done enough. However, the next day Mike called Coach Conley to see if he had made the team. “He (Bill Conley) gave me this big pep talk about running a background academic check,” Wargo recited. “’If you are going to quit the first day, don’t waste my time. If you want to come down here, give it a shot.’ I’m starting to shake because I was just told that I made the Ohio State Football Team.”

Once again, just like in the Rudy movie, Wargo recalls getting knocked around in that first season. Young men much larger and with much more talent had their way with the little northeast Ohio dreamer. But this didn’t deter Wargo, who kept working harder every practice in 1991….and in 1992……and in 1993.

“I didn’t play my first year,” Wargo admitted. “I didn’t play my second year, and then in my third year, it was looking like I was never going to get into (a game.) At that point, I was really thinking about quitting because it was so hard to stay up for it. One of the greatest things that have ever happened in my life was the Rudy Movie. Rudy came out in (theaters in) October and then the (Columbus) Dispatch wanted to talk to me about why I wanted to do this. That moment reminded me of why I was doing this. It is an honor to run out onto that field. How many people even ever get a chance to do that? Coach (John) Cooper must have read that article or someone must have told him about it because the Penn State game was that week.”

Wargo grew up a Penn State fan until his family moved to northeast Ohio and Mike took that trip to the Ohio State’s campus while in High School. Mike figured if he was ever going to get into a game it would be against a lesser opponent, but the team next on the Ohio State football team’s schedule following that Columbus Dispatch article in which he was interviewed following the release and popularity of the Rudy movie happened to be against that team he grew up watching.

As the closing seconds ticked off of the game clock on October 30, 1993, Ohio State vs Penn State game, the moment that changed Mike Wargo’s life forever happened. “As the game is winding down, everyone starts screaming, ‘Wargo! Wargo! Wargo!’ at me,” Mike recounts. “I’m wondering why everyone is screaming my name and then Coach Cooper yells, ‘Wargo, get up here!’ I’m like, ‘The Coach wants to talk to me?’ Cooper says, ‘I heard you haven’t been in a game yet and we are going to change that right now.’ Can you imagine this moment? This is a nationally televised game and I’m starting to shake. Something crazy is about to happen.”

Wargo admitted that the thought crossed his mind that lining up against Penn State couldn’t be any more difficult than Ohio State’s defensive line who he had been facing in practice for three seasons. Every day Mike faced off against “Big Daddy” Dan Wilkinson, who eventually became the number one pick in the NFL Draft.

Mike ran onto the field for the final play of the game. After a quick huddle, he took his spot on the offensive line at right guard. The rumor is that Rudy was offside. I joked with Wargo that it looked like he might have gotten off the ball a little too quickly, keeping in step with the Rudy theme when I interviewed him on The OHIO Podcast.

“Thank God I didn’t jump offside,” Wargo chuckled. “The ref must have been like, “It’s the last play, who cares?’ I went in motion, I didn’t really jump offside. Everything went perfectly. I blocked two guys and left Ohio State with a 100% blocking grade.”

I’ve personally watched that final play of the 1993 Ohio State vs Penn State game about 100 times as Bobby Hoying takes the game’s final snap, handing off to a young Eddie George, who follows the clean #70 jersey of Mike Wargo for a 7-yard gain in wet snow.

I’m sure at that moment, no one was thinking that that play would go down in history as it has. If Hollywood would have decided to make Wargo instead of Rudy, maybe all of us burly guys would be getting teary-eyed watching the theatrical version of that play instead of the one that took place in South Bend, Indiana.

“I love being the Rudy of Ohio State,” Wargo admitted “I love that movie and with the advent of social media, this grew into that. It’s really incredible and I’m honored.”

You can meet Mike Wargo and get an autograph and picture with him at this year’s Spring Game. He will be the special guest of The OHIO Podcast Listener Appreciation Tailgate which will be located between the two parking lots just outside of The Shoe in the northwest corner. Wargo is scheduled to arrive at the Tailgate at 10 am. The OHIO Podcast is the official Ohio State Podcast of FanSided and The Scarlet & Game website.