The 1954 Ohio State Buckeyes football team was led by QB Dave Leggett

Dave Leggett

William David "Dave" Leggett is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League. He played collegiately at Ohio State University from 1952–1954. In 1954 he led Ohio State to an undefeated 10–0 season and a berth in the Rose Bowl, where Ohio State defeated USC and Leggett was...

 and captains John Borton and Dick Brubaker. They were the second national title team in Ohio State football history. They were coached by Hall of Fame coach Woody Hayes

Woody Hayes

Wayne Woodrow "Woody" Hayes was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Denison University , Miami University , and Ohio State University , compiling a career college football record of 238–72–10.During his 28 seasons as the head coach of the Ohio...

. The Buckeyes were awarded the title by the AP Poll

AP Poll

The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...

 and represented the Big Ten Conference

Big Ten Conference

The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...

 in the Rose Bowl

1955 Rose Bowl

The 1955 Rose Bowl was a college football game played between the University of Southern California and the Ohio State University. Ohio State won the game, 20–7....

.

The Buckeyes finished the 1953 season with a record of 6-3. They began the 1954 season ranked #20 and defeated six top ranked teams to capture their first league title under fourth year Coach Hayes.

Led by their powerful defense, the Bucks beat the #2 Wisconsin Badgers

Wisconsin Badgers

The Wisconsin Badgers are the collegiate athletic teams from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. This NCAA Division I athletic program has teams in football, basketball, ice hockey, volleyball, soccer, cross country, tennis, swimming, wrestling, track and field, rowing, golf, and softball...

 and their eventual Heisman Trophy winner Alan Ameche

Alan Ameche

Lino Dante "Alan" Ameche , nicknamed "The Horse", was an American football player who played six seasons with the Baltimore Colts in the National Football League after winning the Heisman Trophy in college at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He was elected to the Pro Bowl in each of his first...

 on an 88 yard interception return by Howard "Hopalong" Cassady, who would win the award the following year. The Buckeye defense forced 35 turnovers during the season and allowed only two teams to score more than one touchdown

In their game against the Michigan Wolverines

Michigan Wolverines

The Michigan Wolverines comprise 27 varsity sports teams at the University of Michigan. These teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except men's ice hockey which competes in the NCAA D1 Central Collegiate Hockey Association, and women's water polo, which...

, the Bucks held a goal-line stand and then drove 99 yards for a touchdown. The AP Poll declared the Bucks to be number one while the UPI Coaches Poll

Coaches Poll

The USA Today Coaches' Poll is the current name for a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and Division I college basketball teams....

 opted for 9-0 PCC Champion the UCLA Bruins

UCLA Bruins

The UCLA Bruins are the sports teams for University of California, Los Angeles . The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pacific-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation . For football, they are in the Football Bowl Subdivision of Division I...

. However, because of the “no repeat rule” the Bruins were locked out of the Rose Bowl leaving the Buckeyes to play second place Southern California

USC Trojans

The USC Trojans are the athletic teams representing the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the Trojans, the women's athletic teams are referred to as either the Trojans or Women of Troy...

.

The 1955 Rose Bowl

1955 Rose Bowl

The 1955 Rose Bowl was a college football game played between the University of Southern California and the Ohio State University. Ohio State won the game, 20–7....

 was played during a rainstorm in poor field conditions. However, Ohio State managed to gain 304 yards and hold the Trojans to only six first-downs. USC's only score came on an 86 yard punt return. The team finished 10-0 for the first time in school history.

Schedule

1955 NFL draftees

Player	Round	Pick	Position	NFL Club
Bobby Watkins Bobby Watkins (American football running back) Robert Archbald Watkins Jr. is a former American football running back who played collegiately for the Ohio State Buckeyes and later in the National Football League.-Ohio State:...	2	23	Halfback	Chicago Bears 1955 Chicago Bears season The 1955 Chicago Bears season was their 36th regular season completed in the National Football League. The club posted 8-4 record for the second straight year under head coach George Halas placing them in second place for the second straight year in the NFL's Western Conference...
Dean Dugger	4	46	End	Philadelphia Eagles 1955 Philadelphia Eagles season The 1955 Philadelphia Eagles season was their 23rd in the league. They failed to improve on their previous output of 7–4–1, winning only four games. The team failed to qualify for the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season.-NFL Draft:...
Dave Leggett Dave Leggett William David "Dave" Leggett is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League. He played collegiately at Ohio State University from 1952–1954. In 1954 he led Ohio State to an undefeated 10–0 season and a berth in the Rose Bowl, where Ohio State defeated USC and Leggett was...	7	74	Quarterback	Chicago Cardinals 1955 Chicago Cardinals season The 1955 Chicago Cardinals season was the 36th season the team was in the league. The team improved on their previous output of 2-10, winning four games. They failed to qualify for the playoffs for the seventh consecutive season.-Schedule:-Standings:...
Jerry Krisher	13	153	Center	Philadelphia Eagles 1955 Philadelphia Eagles season The 1955 Philadelphia Eagles season was their 23rd in the league. They failed to improve on their previous output of 7–4–1, winning only four games. The team failed to qualify for the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season.-NFL Draft:...
John Borton	13	157	Quarterback	Cleveland Browns 1955 Cleveland Browns season The 1955 Cleveland Browns season was the team's sixth season with the National Football League. The Browns' defense became the first defense in the history of the NFL to lead the league in fewest points allowed and fewest total yards allowed for two consecutive seasons.-Exhibition Schedule:-Regular...
Dick Brubaker	15	170	End	Chicago Cardinals 1955 Chicago Cardinals season The 1955 Chicago Cardinals season was the 36th season the team was in the league. The team improved on their previous output of 2-10, winning four games. They failed to qualify for the playoffs for the seventh consecutive season.-Schedule:-Standings:...
Bob Myers	28	328	Defensive Tackle	Baltimore Colts 1955 Baltimore Colts season The 1955 Baltimore Colts season was the 3rd season for the team in the National Football League. The Baltimore Colts finished the National Football League's 1955 season with a record of 5 wins, 6 losses and 1 tie and finished fourth in the Western Conference....
Dave Williams	28	330	Guard	Pittsburgh Steelers 1955 Pittsburgh Steelers season -Schedule:- Week 1 : Chicago Cardinals :at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania* Game time:* Game weather:* Game attendance: 26,359* Referee:* TV announcers:Scoring Drives:...