1976 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

1976 Ohio State Buckeyes football
Big Ten co-champion
Orange Bowl champion
Orange Bowl, W 27–10 vs. Colorado
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 5
APNo. 6
Record9–2–1 (7–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorAlex Gibbs (2nd season)
Defensive coordinatorGeorge Hill (6th season)
MVPBob Brudzinski
Captains
Home stadiumOhio Stadium
1976 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 3 Michigan + 7 – 1 – 0 10 – 2 – 0
No. 6 + 7 – 1 – 0 9 – 2 – 1
Minnesota 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Illinois 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Indiana 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Purdue 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Iowa 3 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Wisconsin 3 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Michigan State 3 – 5 – 0 4 – 6 – 1
Northwestern 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 10 – 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1976 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 1976 Big Ten season. In their 26th year under head coach Woody Hayes, the Buckeyes compiled a 9–2–1 record (7–1 in conference games), tied with Michigan for the Big Ten championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 278 to 139. They lost to Michigan in the final game of the regular season and concluded the season with a 27–10 victory over Colorado in the 1977 Orange Bowl. The Buckeyes were ranked No. 6 in the final AP poll.[1]

The Buckeyes gained an average of 235.8 rushing yards and 52.8 passing yards per game. On defense, they held opponents to 144.3 rushing yards and 118.0 passing yards per game.[2] The team's individual statistical leaders included quarterback Jim Pacenta (404 passing yards, 52.8% completion percentage), running back Jeff Logan (1,169 rushing yards, 5.7 yards per carry), and Jim Harrell (12 receptions for 229 yards).[2] Offensive tackle Chris Ward and defensive end Bob Brudzinski won consensus All-America honors.[3] Punter Tom Skladany won first-team All-America honors from College Football News and The Sporting News.[4]

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

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 111:30 p.m.Michigan StateNo. 4
W 49–2186,509
September 183:30 p.m.at No. 7 Penn State*No. 2
ABCW 12–762,503
September 251:30 p.m.Missouri*No. 2
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
L 21–2287,936
October 21:30 p.m.No. 4 UCLA*No. 8
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
ABCT 10–1087,969
October 92:30 p.m.at IowaNo. 10
W 34–1459,170
October 162:30 p.m.at WisconsinNo. 9
W 30–2079,579
October 231:30 p.m.PurdueNo. 9
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 24–387,898
October 302:30 p.m.at IndianaNo. 8
W 47–739,663–49,254[5][6]
November 61:30 p.m.IllinoisNo. 8
W 42–1087,564
November 132:00 p.m.at MinnesotaNo. 8
W 9–353,190
November 2012:30 p.m.No. 4 MichiganNo. 8
ABCL 0–2288,250
January 1, 19777:30 p.m.vs. No. 12 Colorado*No. 11
NBCW 27–1065,537
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

Michigan State

At Penn State

Missouri

Missouri Tigers (1–1) at #2 Ohio State Buckeyes (2–0)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Missouri 0 7 7822
Ohio St 0 21 0021

at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio

  • Date: September 25, 1976
  • Game time: 1:30 p.m.
  • Game weather: Sunny, 70 °F (21 °C)
  • Game attendance: 87,936
Game information

The loss snapped 25-game home win streak

External videos
video icon Game highlights (part 1)
video icon Game highlights (part 2)
video icon Game highlights (part 3)
video icon Game film (silent)

UCLA

Team 1 234Total
UCLA 0 037 10
Ohio St 0 703 10
Scoring summary
2OSUJohnson 4-yard run (Skladany kick)OSU 7-0
3UCLACorral 47-yard field goalOSU 7-3
4UCLADankworth 1-yard run (Corral kick)UCLA 10-7
4OSUSkladany 25-yard field goalTied 10-10

[7]

At Iowa

Team 1 234Total
• Ohio State 21 3100 34
Iowa 0 0014 14
Scoring summary
1OSUGerald 17-yard run (Skladany kick)OSU 7-0
1OSUJohnson 1-yard run (Skladany kick)OSU 14-0
1OSUJohnson 1-yard run (Skladany kick)OSU 21-0
2OSUSkaladany 26-yard field goalOSU 24-0
3OSUSkladany 46-yard field goalOSU 27-0
3OSUJohnson 3-yard run (Skladany kick)OSU 34-0
4IOWASheeler 5-yard run (Quartaro kick)OSU 34-7
4IOWACaldwell 3-yard run (Quartaro kick)OSU 34-14

[8]

At Wisconsin

Purdue

At Indiana

Illinois

At Minnesota

Team 1 234Total
• Ohio St 3 600 9
Minnesota 0 300 3
Scoring summary
1OHSTSkladany 39-yard field goalOhio St 3-0
2MINNRogind 49-yard field goalTie 3-3
2OHSTPacenta 4-yard run (kick blocked)Ohio St 9-3

Ohio State clinches at least a share of Big Ten title for record fifth straight year.[9]

Michigan

Orange Bowl (vs Colorado)

Team 1 234Total
Colorado 10 000 10
• Ohio State 7 1037 27
Scoring summary
1CUZetterberg 26-yard field goalCU 3-0
1CUMorehead 11-yard pass from Knapple (Zetterberg kick)CU 10-0
1OSULogan 36-yard run (Skladany kick)CU 10-7
2OSUSkaldany 28-yard field goalTied 10-10
2OSUJohnson 3-yard run (Skladany kick)OSU 17-10
3OSUSkladany 20-yard field goalOSU 20-10
4OSURod Gerald 4-yard run (Skladany kick)OSU 27-10

[10]

Personnel

Coaching staff

Depth chart

[11]

1977 NFL draftees

Player Round Pick Position NFL club
Bob Brudzinski 1 23 Linebacker Los Angeles Rams
Tom Skladany 2 46 Punter Cleveland Browns
Pete Johnson 2 49 Running back Cincinnati Bengals
Ed Thompson 8 210 Linebacker New York Jets
Nick Buonamici 9 238 Defensive tackle Chicago Bears

References

  1. ^ "1976 Ohio State Buckeyes Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 11, 2025.
  2. ^ a b "1976 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. ^ "Sporting News Picks Three in Big Eight". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. December 12, 1976. p. 2G.
  5. ^ Herman, Steve (October 31, 1976). "Bucks' 2nd Half Caves In On Indiana". The Marion Star. Marion, Ohio. p. 1B. Retrieved December 28, 2023 – via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  6. ^ "Indiana Football 2023 Record Book" (PDF). Indiana University. p. 15. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  7. ^ Palm Beach Post. 1976 Oct 3.
  8. ^ Eugene Register-Guard. 1976 Oct 10.
  9. ^ Palm Beach Post. 1976 Nov 14.
  10. ^ "My Favorite Bowl Games. Retrieved 04-May-2012". Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  11. ^ 1977 Ohio State Football Media Guide
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