American college football season
The 1979 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented Ohio State University in the 1979 Big Ten Conference football season . The Buckeyes compiled an 11–1 record, including the 1980 Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California , where they lost, 17–16, to the USC Trojans .
Schedule
Date Time Opponent Rank Site TV Result Attendance Source September 8 1:30 p.m. Syracuse * W 31–886,205 [ 1] September 15 2:30 p.m. at Minnesota No. 15 W 21–1743,926 [ 2] September 22 1:30 p.m. Washington State * No. 16 W 45–2987,495 [ 3] September 29 4:00 p.m. at No. 17 UCLA * No. 14 ABC W 17–1347,228 [ 4] October 6 1:30 p.m. Northwestern No. 8 W 16–787,406 [ 5] October 13 1:30 p.m. Indiana No. 8 W 47–687,521 [ 6] October 20 1:30 p.m. Wisconsin No. 6 W 59–087,585 [ 7] October 27 1:30 p.m. Michigan State No. 4 W 42–087,747 [ 8] November 3 2:00 p.m. at Illinois No. 5 W 44–741,870 [ 9] November 10 1:00 p.m. Iowa No. 3 W 34–787,835 [ 10] November 17 12:30 p.m. at No. 13 Michigan No. 2 ABC W 18–15106,255 [ 11] January 1, 1980 5:00 p.m. vs. No. 3 USC * No. 1 NBC L 16–17105,526 [ 12] *Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time
[ 13]
Roster
1979 Ohio State Buckeyes football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Defense
Special teams
Head coach Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain(S) Suspended(I) IneligibleRoster
Depth chart
Defense
CB
Mike Guess
Doyle Lewis
⋅
DE
NT
DE
Jerome Foster
Tim Sawicki
Luther Henson
Reggie Echols
Mark Sullivan
Gary Dulin
⋅
⋅
⋅
Offense
SE
Gary Williams
Chuck Hunter
⋅
LT
LG
C
RG
RT
Tim Burke
Ernie Andria
Tom Waugh
Ken Fritz
Joe Lukens
Tom Levenick
Scott Burris
Jim DeLeone
Joe Smith
Tom Levenick
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
TE
Brad Dwelle
Bill Jaco
Ron Barwig
FB
Ricardo Volley
Paul Campbell
Cliff Belmer
[ 14]
Coaching staff
Earle Bruce - Head Coach (1st year)Pete Carroll - Defensive Backs (1st year)Dennis Fryzel - Defensive Coordinator (1st year)Glen Mason - Offensive Line / Defensive Inside Linebackers (2nd year)Bill Myles - Offensive Line (3rd year)Wayne Stanley - Running Backs (1st year)
Steve Szabo - Defensive Line (1st year)Bob Tucker - Defensive Outside Linebackers (1st year)
Fred Zechman - Quarterbacks/Receivers (1st year)[ 15]
Game summaries
Syracuse
1
2 3 4 Total
Syracuse
0
0 8 0
8
• Ohio St
7
14 3 7
31
Date: September 8Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:46Game attendance: 86,205Game weather: Partly cloudy; 67 °F (19 °C); wind 10–15 mph (16–24 km/h) N
[ 16]
Minnesota
1
2 3 4 Total
• Ohio St
7
0 6 8
21
Minnesota
14
3 0 0
17
Date: September 15Location: Memorial Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:36Game attendance: 43,926Game weather: Sunny; 68 °F (20 °C); wind 8 mph (13 km/h) SEReferee: Otho Kertz
[ 17]
Washington State
1
2 3 4 Total
Wash St
3
0 10 16
29
• Ohio St
7
17 7 14
45
Date: September 22Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:46Game attendance: 87,495Game weather: Overcast; 64 °F (18 °C); wind 10–20 mph (16–32 km/h) NE
[ 18]
The longest pass in school history to date, an 86-yard bomb from Art Schlichter to Calvin Murray , helped propel Ohio State to a 45-29 win over Washington State. The previous record was an 80-yard pass from Joe Sparma to Bob Klein in 1961 versus Michigan.[ 19]
UCLA
1
2 3 4 Total
• Ohio St
0
7 3 7
17
UCLA
10
0 0 3
13
Date: September 29Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Game start: 1:00 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:46Game attendance: 47,228Game weather: Cloudy; 71 °F (22 °C); light wind SWReferee: Bill Love
[ 20]
Northwestern
1
2 3 4 Total
Northwestern
0
0 0 7
7
• Ohio St
10
3 0 3
16
Date: October 6Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:41Game attendance: 87,406Game weather: Partly cloudy; 58 °F (14 °C); wind 10–20 mph (16–32 km/h) SW
[ 21]
[ 22]
Indiana
1
2 3 4 Total
Indiana
0
0 6 0
6
• Ohio St
9
17 14 7
47
Date: October 13Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:48Game attendance: 87,251Game weather: Cloudy; 44 °F (7 °C); wind 15 mph (24 km/h) NW
[ 23]
Wisconsin
1
2 3 4 Total
Wisconsin
0
0 0 0
0
• Ohio St
14
14 10 21
59
Date: October 20Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:48Game attendance: 87,585Game weather: Sunny; 77 °F (25 °C); wind 15–20 mph (24–32 km/h) S
[ 24]
Michigan State
1
2 3 4 Total
Michigan St
0
0 0 0
0
• Ohio St
14
14 7 7
42
Date: October 27Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:35Game attendance: 87,747Game weather: Mostly sunny; 53 °F (12 °C); wind 10–15 mph (16–24 km/h) S
[ 25]
Illinois
1
2 3 4 Total
• Ohio St
3
14 10 17
44
Illinois
0
0 7 0
7
Date: November 3Location: Memorial Stadium Game attendance: 41,870Game weather: Clear; 51 °F (11 °C); wind 9 mph (14 km/h) NW
[ 26]
Iowa
1
2 3 4 Total
Iowa
0
0 0 7
7
• Ohio St
13
14 0 7
34
Date: November 10Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. Elapsed time: 2:51Game attendance: 87,835Game weather: Cloudy; 41 °F (5 °C); wind 10–20 mph (16–32 km/h) NW
[ 27]
At Michigan
Ohio State clinched the Big Ten title and a trip to the Rose Bowl with an 18-15 victory over their archrivals. The Buckeyes had not beaten nor scored a touchdown against Michigan since 1975, the last time they had gone to Pasadena .[ 28]
Scoring summary
Quarter
Time
Drive
Team
Scoring information
Score
Plays
Yards
TOP
OSU
MICH
2
3:48
Ohio St
23-yard field goal by Janakievski
3
0
2
1:30
Michigan
Carter 59-yard touchdown reception from Wangler , Virgil kick good
3
7
2
0:08
Ohio St
25-yard field goal by Janakievski
6
7
3
7:19
Ohio St
Hunter 18-yard touchdown reception from Schlichter , 2-point pass failed/incomplete
12
7
3
3:58
Michigan
Smith 1-yard touchdown run, 2-point run good
12
15
4
11:21
Ohio St
Blocked punt returned 18 yards for touchdown by Bell , Janakievski kick failed
18
15
"TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football .
18
15
Rose Bowl
1980 Rose Bowl
1
2 3 4 Total
• USC
3
7 0 7
17
Ohio St
0
10 3 3
16
Date: January 1Location: Rose Bowl Game start: 2:00 p.m. Game attendance: 105,526TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg, Merlin Olsen, O.J. Simpson
[ 29]
References
^ "Buckeyes make Bruce's debut a happy one" . The Lima News . September 9, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Buck-passer Schlichter spoils Gopher ambush" . The Cincinnati Enquirer . September 16, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Easy win for Ohio State" . The Pantagraph . September 23, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Schlichter rallies Ohio St. past UCLA" . Staten Island Advance . September 30, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Ohio State survives Northwestern scare" . Journal and Courier . October 7, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Ohio State quarterback leads romp over Indiana" . The Pantagraph . October 14, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Ohio State tramples Wisconsin in Big Ten" . The Pantagraph . October 21, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Ohio State rolls by Spartans 42–0" . The Tampa Tribune-Times . October 28, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Buckeyes storm past Illini, 44–7" . Detroit Free Press . November 4, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Buckeyes rout Iowa 34–7" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . November 11, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Bucks edge Wolves, 18–15; Clinch title" . The Times Recorder . November 18, 1979. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "White carries Southern Cal over Ohio State" . The Pittsburgh Press . January 2, 1980. Retrieved October 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com .^ "1979 Ohio State Buckeyes Schedule and Results" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 27, 2024 .^ 1980 Ohio State Football Media Guide
^ "1980 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com" . Pro-Football-Reference.com the original on December 22, 2007.^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2015-Aug-14.^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2014-09-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2015-Aug-14.^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine .^ Ocala Star-Banner. 1979 Sept 23.
^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2014-09-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2015-Aug-16.^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2015-Aug-23.^ "Buckeyes Win in Struggle." Palm Beach Post. 1979 Oct 7.
^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2015-Aug-23.^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2015-Aug-23.^ "1979-08-Michigan State" (PDF) . Ohio State Official Athletic Site . Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 23, 2015 .^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2015-Aug-23.^ Ohio State Official Athletic Site - Football - Archives Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 2015-Aug-23.^ "Woody's successor takes Bucks to Pasadena." Eugene Register-Guard. 1979 Nov 18. ^ "Ohio State Spring Football Media Guide" (PDF) . 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 28, 2020.
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