1975 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

1975 Ohio State Buckeyes football
Big Ten champion
Rose Bowl, L 10–23 vs. UCLA
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 4
APNo. 4
Record11–1 (8–0 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorAlex Gibbs (1st season)
Defensive coordinatorGeorge Hill (5th season)
MVPCornelius Greene
Captains
Home stadiumOhio Stadium
1975 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 4 $ 8 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0
No. 8 Michigan 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 2 – 2
Michigan State 4 – 4 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Illinois 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Purdue 4 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Wisconsin 3 – 4 – 1 4 – 6 – 1
Minnesota 3 – 5 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Iowa 3 – 5 – 0 3 – 8 – 0
Northwestern 2 – 6 – 0 3 – 8 – 0
Indiana 1 – 6 – 1 2 – 8 – 1
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1975 Ohio State Buckeyes football team was an American football team that represented the Ohio State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1975 Big Ten season. In their 25th year under head coach Woody Hayes, the Buckeyes compiled an 11–1 record (8–0 in conference games), won the Big Ten championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 374 to 79. Against ranked opponents during the regular season, they defeated No. 11 Michigan State, No. 7 Penn State, No. 13 UCLA, and No. 4 Michigan. The Buckeyes concluded the season in a rematch with UCLA, losing by a 23–10 score in the 1976 Rose Bowl. The Buckeyes, who had been ranked No. 1 prior to the Rose Bowl, dropped to No. 4 in the final AP and UPI polls.[1]

The Buckeyes gained an average of 290.0 rushing yards and 83.1 passing yards per game. On defense, they held opponents to 139.8 rushing yards and 90.0 passing yards per game.[2]

Running back Archie Griffin rushed for 1,357 yards (5.5 yards per carry) and won the Heisman Trophy for the second consecutive year, the only repeat winner in Heisman history. Quarterback Cornelius Greene tallied 976 passing yards and 473 rushing yards and won the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the most valuable player in the Big Ten. Fullback Pete Johnson tallied 989 rushing yards and led the team in scoring with 156 points on 26 touchdowns.[2] Three Ohio State players won consensus All-America honors: Griffin; offensive guard Ted Smith; and defensive back Tim Fox.[3] Punter Tom Skladany won first-team All-America honors from the Football Writers Association of America.[4] Eleven Ohio State players received first-team honors on the 1975 All-Big Ten Conference football team.[5][6]

The team played its home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 134:00 p.m.at No. 11 Michigan StateNo. 3
ABCW 21–080,383
September 201:30 p.m.No. 7 Penn State*No. 3
W 17–988,093
September 271:30 p.m.North Carolina*No. 2
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 32–787,750[7]
October 49:00 p.m.at No. 13 UCLA*No. 2
ABCW 41–2055,482
October 111:30 p.m.IowaNo. 1
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 49–087,826
October 181:30 p.m.WisconsinNo. 1
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 56–087,820
October 252:30 p.m.at PurdueNo. 1
W 35–669,405
November 11:30 p.m.IndianaNo. 1
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 24–1487,835
November 82:00 p.m.at IllinoisNo. 1
W 40–367,751
November 151:30 p.m.MinnesotaNo. 1
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 38–687,817
November 221:00 p.m.at No. 4 MichiganNo. 1
ABCW 21–14105,543
January 1, 19765:00 p.m.vs. No. 11 UCLA*No. 1
NBCL 10–23105,464
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

Michigan State

See also: 1975 Michigan State Spartans football team
Ohio State Buckeyes (0–0) at Michigan State Spartans
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ohio St 0 7 7721
Michigan St 0 0 000

at Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, Michigan

  • Date: September 13
  • Game weather: Partly sunny • Mid 50s • Wind W–NW 10 miles per hour (16 km/h; 8.7 kn) to 20 miles per hour (32 km/h; 17 kn)
  • Game attendance: 80,383
  • TV: ABC
Game information

Penn State

Team 1 234Total
Penn St 3 330 9
• Ohio St 10 007 17
  • Date: September 20
  • Location: Ohio Stadium
  • Game attendance: 88,093
Scoring summary
1OHSTJohnson 1 yard run (Klaban kick)Ohio St 7–0
1PSUBahr 55 yard field goalOhio St 7–3
1OHSTKlaban 45 yard field goalOhio St 10–3
2PSUBahr 31 yard field goalOhio St 10–6
3PSUBahr 25 yard field goalOhio St 10–9
45:05OHSTJohnson 11 yard run (Klaban kick)Ohio St 17–9

[8]

UCLA

Team 1 234Total
• Ohio State 7 21103 41
UCLA 7 076 20
Scoring summary
1UCLASarpy 13-yard pass from Sciarra (White kick)UCLA 7-0
1OSUGreene 2-yard run (Klaban kick)Tied 7-7
2OSUJohnson 3-yard run (Klaban kick)OSU 14-7
2OSUJohnson 2-yard run (Klaban kick)OSU 21-7
2OSUGreene 17-yard run (Klaban kick)OSU 28-7
3OSUA. Griffin 17-yard run (Klaban kick)OSU 35-7
3OSUKlaban 34-yard field goalOSU 38-7
3UCLAAyers 2-yard run (White kick)OSU 38-14
4UCLAAyers 1-yard run (kick failed)OSU 38-20
4OSUKlaban 42-yard field goalOSU 41-20

[9]

Purdue

Team 1 234Total
• Ohio State 14 777 35
Purdue 3 300 6
Scoring summary
1OSUPete Johnson 60-yard run (Tom Klaban kick)OSU 7-0
1PURSteve Schmidt 22-yard field goalOSU 7-3
1OSUPete Johnson 3-yard run (Tom Klaban kick)OSU 14-3
2PURSteve Schmidt 27-yard field goalOSU 14-6
2OSUBrian Baschnagel 22-yard pass from Cornelius Greene (Tom Klaban kick)OSU 21-6
3OSULenny Willis 41-yard pass from Cornelius Green (Tom Klaban kick)OSU 28-6
4OSUCornelius Greene 28-yard run (Tom Klaban kick)OSU 35-6

Archie Griffin broke Cornell's Ed Marinaro NCAA career rushing record with a 23-yard run up the middle in the fourth quarter. [10]

Minnesota

Team 1 234Total
Minnesota 0 060 6
• Ohio St 3 14021 38
  • Date: November 15
  • Location: Ohio Stadium
  • Game start: 1:30 p.m. EST
  • Game attendance: 87,817
Scoring summary
Q1OHSTKlaban 29 yard field goalOHST 3–0
Q2OHSTGreene 14 yard run (Klaban kick)OHST 10–0
Q2OHSTGriffin 19 yard run (Klaban kick)OHST 17–0
Q3MINNBarlow 5 yard pass from Dungy (pass failed)OHST 17–6
Q4OHSTJohnson 8 yard run (Klaban kick)OHST 24–6
Q4OHSTGreene 31 yard run (Klaban kick)OHST 31–6
Q4OHSTBaschnagel 21 yard run (Klaban kick)OHST 38–6

[11]

Michigan

See also: 1975 Michigan Wolverines football team and Michigan–Ohio State football rivalry
Ohio State Buckeyes at Michigan Wolverines
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ohio St 7 0 01421
Michigan 0 7 0714

at Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Game information

Personnel

Coaching staff

  • Woody Hayes - Head Coach (25th year)
  • George Chaump - Offense (8th year)
  • George Hill - Defensive Coordinator (5th year)
  • Charles Clausen - Defense (5th year)
  • Alex Gibbs - Offensive Coordinator/ Offensive Line (1st year)
  • Mickey Jackson - (2nd year)
  • John Mummey - Quarterbacks (7th year)
  • Ralph Staub - (6th year)
  • Dick Walker - Defensive Backs (7th year)
  • Jeff Kaplan - 'brain coach' & counselor (3rd year)

Roster

1975 Ohio State Buckeyes football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
QB Cornelius Greene
RB 45 Archie Griffin Sr
FB Pete Johnson
QB 8 Rod Gerald Fr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DB Tim Fox
DB Ray Griffin
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
K Tom Klaban
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Depth chart

[12]

Awards and honors

1976 NFL draftees

Player Round Pick Position NFL club
Tim Fox 1 21 Defensive back New England Patriots
Archie Griffin 1 24 Running back Cincinnati Bengals
Brian Baschnagel 3 66 Wide receiver Chicago Bears
Leonard Willis 4 118 Wide receiver Minnesota Vikings
Ken Kuhn 7 205 Linebacker Cincinnati Bengals
Craig Cassady 8 213 Defensive back New Orleans Saints
Tom Klaban 10 287 Kicker Cincinnati Bengals
Cornelius Greene 11 317 Quarterback Dallas Cowboys
Larry Kain 13 375 Tight end Pittsburgh Steelers
Pat Curto 16 441 Linebacker Atlanta Falcons
Scott Dannelley 17 482 Guard Cincinnati Bengals

References

  1. ^ "1975 Ohio State Buckeyes Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 11, 2025.
  2. ^ a b "1975 Ohio State Buckeyes Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 11, 2025.
  3. ^ "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. pp. 3, 11. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  4. ^ "Leroy Named For Outland". Panama City News-Herald. Associated Press. December 4, 1975. p. 20. Retrieved May 19, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Ohio State, Michigan dominate all-Big Ten selections". Daily Illini. December 3, 1975.
  6. ^ "Buckeyes dominate All-Big Ten squad". The Bryan Times (UPI story). November 25, 1975. p. 8.
  7. ^ "Johnson scores record 5". Dayton Daily News. September 28, 1975. Retrieved January 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "246-Pound Fullback Keys Buckeye Triumph." Palm Beach Post. 1975 Sept 21.
  9. ^ "Griffin Gets 100 Yards in 41-20 Buckeye Win." Palm Beach Post. 1975 Oct 5.
  10. ^ "Griffin tops mark; Illinois stops Sparts." Eugene Register-Guard. 1975 Oct 26.
  11. ^ Palm Beach Post. 1975 Nov 16. Retrieved 2016-Jul-30.
  12. ^ 1976 Ohio State Football Media Guide
  13. ^ "Heisman.com - Heisman Trophy". Archived from the original on April 11, 2007. Retrieved April 16, 2007.
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