A historical look at Ohio State Football and Washington

Both Washington and Oregon are considered by many to be the furthest major northwest college football powers in the United States. Now they are proud members of the Big Ten Conference and future opponents of the Ohio State football team, joining fellow former Pac 12 members UCLA and USC as the four west coast schools that now call the Big 10 home.

The Huskies have a pretty long and lustrous history when it comes to their football program. For starters, Washington is the 18th most-winningest program in college football history among Division One schools. The only former Pac-12 school with more W’s attached to their name would be USC.

As for Big Ten schools, only the Buckeyes, That Team Up North, Penn State, and Nebraska can boast more victories. Their winning percentage of .616 is also the 18th best among division one college programs.

As for their record against the current 14 Big Ten schools, The Huskies have a winning record, going 50-47-2 in their 99 games against Big 10 foes. There is one school in the Big 10, however, that Washington has struggled to beat, and that is the Ohio State football team. Ohio State is 9-3 against the Huskies in the 12 previous meetings between the two schools.

Ohio State’s most recent tussle with Washington occurred in the final game of Urban Meyer’s stint as a head coach in college football. In the setting sun over the San Gabriel Mountains in Pasadena, California, Meyer’s accomplished something that he always wanted during his career; a Rose Bowl victory. Ohio State defeated Washington on January 1, 2019, 28-23 to cap off a 13-1 season, giving Urban his 83rd and final win as Ohio State head coach.

That was Ohio State’s fourth win in a row against Washington but was the only time the two schools have met in the postseason. The 11 other contests have all occurred during the regular season. Six times the Buckeyes have traveled to Seattle. As visitors, Ohio State has a record of 4-2. Inside the friendly confines of the Shoe, Ohio State has gone 4-1.

During the John Cooper years, Ohio State played Washington in three consecutive seasons beginning in 1993, which was a 21-12 win. Cooper went 2-1 against the Huskies with his only loss coming in 1994.

Woody Hayes had the most wins against Washington for Ohio States coaches, going 4-1 during his tenure. His largest victory came in the first contest between the two schools by a 35-7 margin in 1957. Ohio State’s worst loss against Washington was in 1986 when Earle Bruce’s Buckeyes lost 40-7.

It is unclear at this time how the Big 10 will rework every team’s schedule now that there are two more schools in the conference. No doubt getting the opportunity to play Washington will be a treat for any Big 10 school. Watching a Buckeye game in the Pacific Northwest has been a bucket list item for me for a long time.

Back in 2020, I had plans to take a vacation to Oregon and watch the Bucks Verse the Ducks. COVID had different plans for me that fall. Whether it’s a trip to Eugene, Oregon, or a trip to Seattle, the next time the Ohio State football team makes a trip to the northwest, I plan to be there.