Now
Career arc
Bowls and playoffs: 2-6
1970Rose BowlL 17-27USC1972Rose BowlL 17-42USC1973Rose BowlW 42-21USC1974Rose BowlL 17-18
1975Rose BowlL 10-23
1976Orange BowlW 27-10
1977Sugar BowlL 6-35
1978Gator BowlL 15-17Stats
Big games
The big-game ledger
How he does in the games that matter most — rivalry record, performance broken out by real opponent tier, one-score games, and his toughest historical matchup.
18-15 against his rivals. Winless in 3 tries against Rip Engle.
Building the roster
Two numbers on how he actually stocks a roster, from signing day to draft day.
Roster ownership
Roster ownership
This coach's entire tenure (1951-1978) predates 2021, when transfer-portal tracking begins in this database. Portal usage cannot be measured for this tenure at all -- this is not the same as '0% portal'.
“His own” means the player arrived while he was head coach; “inherited” means a predecessor brought him in.
The NFL pipeline
The NFL pipeline
players drafted into the NFL off his teams here (a floor — see the note below). None can be traced to who brought them in — there’s no roster record for these players here. 27 went in the first round.
At least 76 — his 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978 seasons predate the modern 7-round draft, so this table’s pre-1994 pick counts are a floor, not a full count, for those seasons.
| Year | Pick | Player | Pos | NFL team | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | R1.01 | Tom Cousineau | Linebacker |  Buffalo Bills | Estimated |
| 1979 | R5.26 | Ron Springs | Running Back |  Dallas Cowboys | Estimated |
| 1979 | R6.13 | Jim Moore | Offensive Tackle |  Baltimore Colts | Estimated |
| 1978 | R1.04 | Chris Ward | Offensive Tackle |  New York Jets | Estimated |
| 1978 | R2.07 | Ray Griffin | Defensive Back |  Cincinnati Bengals | Estimated |
| 1978 | R7.19 | Herman Jones | Wide Receiver |  Chicago Bears | Estimated |
| 1978 | R7.25 | Jeff Logan | Running Back |  Baltimore Colts | Estimated |
| 1977 | R1.23 | Bob Brudzinski | Linebacker |  Los Angeles Rams | Estimated |
| Year | Pick | Player | Pos | NFL team | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | R2.18 | Tom Skladany | Punter |  Cleveland Browns | Estimated |
| 1977 | R2.21 | Pete Johnson | Running Back | Cincinnati Bengals | Estimated |
| 1976 | R1.21 | Tim Fox | Defensive Back |  New England Patriots | Estimated |
| 1976 | R1.24 | Archie Griffin | Running Back | Cincinnati Bengals | Estimated |
| 1976 | R3.06 | Brian Baschnagel | Wide Receiver | Chicago Bears | Estimated |
| 1976 | R4.26 | Leonard Willis | Wide Receiver |  Minnesota Vikings | Estimated |
| 1976 | R7.23 | Ken Kuhn | Linebacker | Cincinnati Bengals | Estimated |
| 1975 | R1.12 | Kurt Schumacher | Offensive Guard |  New Orleans Saints | Estimated |
| 1975 | R1.20 | Doug France | Offensive Tackle | Los Angeles Rams | Estimated |
| 1975 | R1.24 | Neal Colzie | Defensive Back |  Oakland Raiders | Estimated |
| 1975 | R3.14 | Pete Cusick | Defensive Tackle | New England Patriots | Estimated |
| 1975 | R4.10 | Steve Luke | Defensive Back |  Green Bay Packers | Estimated |
| 1975 | R4.11 | Harold Henson | Running Back | Minnesota Vikings | Estimated |
| 1975 | R4.22 | Bruce Elia | Linebacker |  Miami Dolphins | Estimated |
| 1975 | R5.15 | Jim Cope | Linebacker | Cleveland Browns | Estimated |
| 1974 | R1.03 | John Hicks | Offensive Guard |  New York Giants | Estimated |
| 1974 | R1.13 | Rick Middleton | Linebacker | New Orleans Saints | Estimated |
| 1974 | R1.14 | Randy Gradishar | Linebacker |  Denver Broncos | Estimated |
| 1974 | R4.15 | Morris Bradshaw | Wide Receiver | Oakland Raiders | Estimated |
| 1972 | R5.02 | Tom DeLeone | Center | Cincinnati Bengals | Estimated |
| 1971 | R1.09 | John Brockington | Running Back | Green Bay Packers | Estimated |
| 1971 | R1.19 | Jack Tatum | Defensive Back | Oakland Raiders | Estimated |
| 1971 | R1.23 | Tim Anderson | Defensive Back |  San Francisco 49ers | Estimated |
| 1971 | R1.24 | Leo Hayden | Running Back | Minnesota Vikings | Estimated |
| 1971 | R2.03 | Jan White | Tight End |  Buffalo Bills | Estimated |
| 1971 | R5.20 | Jim Stillwagon | Linebacker | Green Bay Packers | Estimated |
| 1971 | R7.09 | Doug Adams | Linebacker | Denver Broncos | Estimated |
| 1970 | R2.12 | Chuck Hutchison | Offensive Guard |  St. Louis Cardinals | Estimated |
| 1970 | R7.06 | Ted Provost | Defensive Back | Los Angeles Rams | Estimated |
| 1969 | R1.14 | Rufus Mayes | Offensive Tackle | Chicago Bears | Estimated |
| 1969 | R1.26 | Dave Foley | Offensive Tackle |  New York Jets | Estimated |
| 1968 | R3.26 | Richard Himes | Offensive Tackle | Green Bay Packers | Estimated |
| 1967 | R3.05 | Mike Current | Offensive Tackle | Denver Broncos | Estimated |
| 1967 | R7.20 | Bo Rein | Wide Receiver | Baltimore Colts | Estimated |
| 1966 | R3.35 | Estimated | |||
| 1966 | R4.52 | Estimated | |||
| 1965 | R3.31 | Estimated | |||
| 1964 | R1.11 | Estimated | |||
| 1964 | R4.46 | Estimated | |||
| 1963 | R1.05 | Estimated | |||
| 1963 | R1.12 | Estimated | |||
| 1963 | R5.64 | Estimated | |||
| 1963 | R7.88 | Estimated | |||
| 1962 | R1.05 | Estimated | |||
| 1962 | R3.33 | Estimated | |||
| 1962 | R6.79 | Estimated | |||
| 1962 | R7.92 | Estimated | |||
| 1961 | R1.07 | Estimated | |||
| 1960 | R1.08 | Estimated | |||
| 1960 | R4.39 | Estimated | |||
| 1959 | R1.06 | Estimated | |||
| 1959 | R1.07 | Estimated | |||
| 1959 | R2.22 | Estimated | |||
| 1959 | R5.54 | Estimated | |||
| 1958 | R7.75 | Estimated | |||
| 1957 | R1.08 | Estimated | |||
| 1957 | R2.16 | Estimated | |||
| 1956 | R1.03 | Estimated | |||
| 1956 | R4.38 | Estimated | |||
| 1955 | R2.22 | Estimated | |||
| 1955 | R4.45 | Estimated | |||
| 1955 | R7.70 | Estimated | |||
| 1954 | R6.60 | Estimated | |||
| 1953 | R3.32 | Estimated | |||
| 1953 | R3.35 | Estimated | |||
| 1953 | R6.60 | Estimated | |||
| 1952 | R3.30 | Estimated | |||
| 1952 | R7.66 | Estimated |
A pick counts toward his tenure when the player’s final college season was one he coached, a checkable rule rather than a claim about who developed the player. A blank note means the player is on a verified roster and arrived on his watch. “Estimated” means no roster record, so the final season is assumed to be the year before the draft.
Career
Coaching career
The arc of his career is on Now.
Transformer raised the program into the sport's top tier, or higher within it
1st-best Ohio State tenure of 12 by the numbers.
Followed Wesley Fesler (1947–1950) · succeeded by Earle Bruce (1979–1987).
| Season | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record & result | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Record | 4-3-2 | 6-3 | 6-3 | 10-0 | 7-2 | 6-3 | 9-1 | 6-1-2 | 3-5-1 | 7-2 | 8-0-1 | 6-3 | 5-3-1 | 7-2 | 7-2 | 4-5 | 6-3 | 10-0 | 8-1 | 9-1 | 6-4 | 9-2 | 10-0-1 | 10-2 | 11-1 | 9-2-1 | 9-3 | 7-4-1 | |
| Postseason | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | L bowl | — | L bowl | W bowl | L bowl | L bowl | W bowl | L bowl | L bowl | |
| Outcome — opponent-adjusted efficiency percentile | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Offense | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Defense | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Tendencies — play-by-play, neutral script | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1st-down pass% | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Red-zone pass% | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 4th-down go%opp. territory | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Selector agreement
The AP and Coaches’ polls split on the national champion in 2 seasons of this coach’s career — shown as each selector’s own pick, not a single consensus title.
All-time wins
Wins at programs this site tracks, 1936–present — one consistent count for every coach, not each program’s own historically reported total.
2nd-most wins by a Big Ten coach
Was he good?
Only one of the usual three angles is measurable for this era — raised the program.
+22.4 pts at Ohio State · #52 of 1290 · top quarter