Ohio State Buckeyes
Encyclopedia
The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of The Ohio State University, named after the state tree, the Buckeye
. The Buckeyes participate in the NCAA
's Division I in all sports and the Big Ten Conference
in most sports. The Ohio State Buckeyes men's ice hockey
program competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
, and its women's hockey
program competes in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association
. The school colors are scarlet
and grey
. Ohio State's mascot is Brutus Buckeye
.
The Ohio State University is one of only four universities to have won a NCAA national championship in baseball
, men's basketball
and football
. Ohio State has also won national championships in men's swimming & diving, men's outdoor track & field, men's volleyball, men's golf, men's gymnastics, men's fencing, co-ed fencing, and synchronized swimming. Since the inception of the Athletic Director's Cup
, Ohio State has finished in the top 25 each year, including top 6 finishes in three of the last five years. During the 2005-2006 school year Ohio State became this first Big Ten team to win conference championships in football, men's basketball and women's basketball in the same season. They repeated this feat in the 2006-2007 season, which also included a February 25, 2007 men's basketball game which saw the Buckeyes defeat the Wisconsin Badgers
in the Big Ten's first one-versus-two basketball game.
A few of the many outstanding sports figures who were student athletes at Ohio State include Jesse Owens
, “The Buckeye Bullet,” (track and field), John Havlicek
, Jerry Lucas
, and Katie Smith
(basketball), Frank Howard
(baseball), Jack Nicklaus
(golf), Archie Griffin
(football running back, the only two-time Heisman Trophy
winner), and Chic Harley
(three-time All-American football running back). Hall of Fame coaches at Ohio State have included Paul Brown
and Woody Hayes
(football), Fred Taylor
(men's basketball). Notable sports figures in Ohio State history may be inducted into the Ohio State Varsity O Hall of Fame
.
, winning the championship in 1960, when they were led by Basketball Hall of Fame
rs Jerry Lucas
, John Havlicek
, and Bob Knight off the bench. A Buckeye has been named first team All American 23 times, including five two-time All Americans and one three-time All American. Between 1960 and 1964 Ohio State won five consecutive Big Ten championships, an achievement that has yet to be matched.
In 2004, The Ohio State University fired men's basketball coach Jim O'Brien for recruiting violations and self-imposed a one year penalty, including a ban on post-season play and reduction of scholarships. In light of these University self-imposed penalties, the NCAA Division I Committee on infractions merely placed The Ohio State University on three years probation for the violations, and gave heavier penalties to Coach O'Brien and a former assistant coach. The lightness of this judgment was seen as encouragement for schools to be proactive in responding to violations. Nevertheless, O'Brien successfully sued Ohio State for improper termination. Thad Matta, the current coach of the Buckeyes, took over O'Brien's spot in 2004. Ohio State recruited such talents as Greg Oden
, and Mike Conley, Jr.
to start the 2006-2007 year. The Buckeyes finished the season with a 27-3 record; won the Big Ten tournament, and earned a number 1 seed for the NCAA tournament. After a very close game with state rival Xavier, and a thrilling 20 point come from behind victory against the Tennessee Volunteers
, the Buckeyes managed to hold off Georgetown Hoyas
67-60 to reach the Championship Game
for the first time since 1962, which they lost to defending NCAA champions Florida Gators
, 84-75. The Buckeyes ended the 2006-2007 season with a record of 35-4. In the 2009-2010 Season, the Buckeyes won the Big Ten Championship. In the 2010-2011 season the Buckeyes won the regular season Big Ten Championship, and the Big Ten Tournament Championship going 32-2 overall, and winning 20 straight home games, receiving honors of the #1 overall seed in the NCAA March Madness Tournament in the East Region. The Buckeyes were defeated by the University of Kentucky
in the Sweet 16, 62-60.
, which they moved into in 1998. Prior to 1998, they played at St. John Arena
. They have won 10 Big Ten titles, which is the most in the conference and have 14 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, the most recent being in 2007. In 1993 they lost to the Texas Tech Lady Raiders
84-82 for the National Title, while they captured the NIT title in 2001, beating the New Mexico Lobos
62-61. Notable alumni include former All-Americans Katie Smith
and Jessica Davenport
.
, who designed the Masters
course at Augusta National. However, his original design was not implemented fully, and the greens were the only part of the course that truly resembled his designs. Golf magazines annually rate the Scarlet Course as one of the top collegiate courses in the nation. The Scarlet recently underwent a $4.2 million renovation under the supervision of Jack Nicklaus. Ohio State has won the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships
in 1945 and 1979. Five times, Buckeye men have won the NCAA golf individual championship: John Lorms in 1945, Tom Nieporte
in 1951, Rick Jones in 1956, Jack Nicklaus
in 1961 and Clark Burroughs in 1985.
, which opened in 1997. Going into the 2008 season the Buckeyes all-time record is 2228-1427-38. Notable alumni include Frank Howard, Nick Swisher
and two time All-American Steve Arlin
.
in Columbus, Ohio
.
Some of the more notable Buckeye alumni include Don Perry, the first OSU All-American in the sport (Trampoline - 1954 - 4th place), brothers Seth and Noah Riskin - Co-national Champions (Parallel Bars - 1985 - 1st place), and Mike Racanelli - Ohio State's first Nissen winner in 1990. Racanelli also went on to win Gymnastic's first Ohio State Male Athlete of the Year Award that same year, given out annually to the athlete who displays the best performance in his sport (regardless of grade).
Following later in Racanelli's footsteps were other Nissen winners Kip Simons (1994), Blaine Wilson (1997) and Jamie Natalie (2001). Blaine Wilson (1995, 1996, 1997) and Jamie Natalie (2000, 2001) also went on to win Ohio State Male Athlete of the Year. Raj Bhavsar was the only other Men's Gymnast to win Ohio State Athlete of the Year which he accomplished in 2002.
On the Olympic and World Championship stage, OSU Men's Gymnastics is well represented, by gymnasts and coaches. The Olympian list includes: Miles Avery (asst coach 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008), Peter Kormann (Athlete in 1976, Head Coach 1996, 2000), Raj Bhavsar (2004, 2008), Jamie Natalie (2000), Gil Pinto (1988), Kip Simons (1994) and Blaine Wilson (1996, 2000, 2004).
Two gymnasts who trained at the Ohio State facilities under coach Miles Avery, but were not NCAA Athletes due to eligibility rules, were Paul
and Morgan Hamm
- twin brothers from Wisconsin. Paul later went on to win the first ever Olympic Gold medal in the Men's Gymnastics All-Around competition for the United States.
In 2011, Senior co-captain, Brandon Wynn, won his second national championship on rings. Brandon Wynn, Ty Echard, Kris Done and Jeff Treleaven earned All-America honors. In all, the seven All-America honors tie the second-best single-season performance in program history and are the most laurels since the 2005 campaign.
(CCHA). They have won one conference championship in 1972, the first year of the CCHA, and the tournament in 1974 and 2004. The Buckeyes have made it to the NCAA tournament
in 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2009, and went to the semi-finals in 1998. They have only retired one number, #22 Paul Pooley
.
The OSU women’s ice hockey team was started in 1999 and competes in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association
(WCHA). The Buckeyes have yet to make an NCAA post season appearance. Notable Buckeye alumni include Olympians Emma Laaksonen
, Tessa Bonhomme
, and Lisa Chesson
.
.
Men's Tennis - Big Ten Championships - 1915 (co-champions), 1943, 1991, 2001, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010.
NCAA Men's Tennis Tournament Team Appearances (since 1977) - 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010. The Men's tennis team has 23 NCAA Singles Appearances, 11 NCAA Doubles Appearances and eight All-Americans.
Women's Tennis - Big Ten Championships - 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979 - Note: The Big Ten officially began sponsoring championships for women with the 1981-82 season. Since then, Ohio State has yet to win a Big Ten Championship.
NCAA Women's Tennis Tournament Team Appearances - 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2009. The Women have five NCAA Singles Appearances, four NCAA Doubles Appearances and two All-Americans.
Ohio State has produced over two hundred Olympic athletes, most notably Jesse Owens
who won four Olympic gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics
and is one of the greatest Olympians in history. In all, 48 Ohio State athletes have combined for a total of 77 Olympic medals which includes 33 gold, 28 silver and 16 bronze medals. Ohio State's track team is coached by Hobert Gregand, and plays all home meets at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium
. The Buckeyes' track team is also famous for being the first Buckeye team in any sport to win a national title.
Bold indicates an NCAA championship.
player gets to "dot the i" in the word Ohio.
The Ohio State school colors of scarlet and gray were chosen by a committee of three students (Curtis C. Howard, Harwood R. Pool, and Alice Townshend) prior to the school's first graduation ceremony in 1878. The committee's original recommendation was to be orange and black. The committee soon discovered that Princeton already used the colors, however, and changed their recommendation. For this reason some references claim that Ohio State's original school colors were orange and black. This claim is not quite accurate, in that the committee never filed the original report with that recommendation.
Ohio Buckeye
The tree species Aesculus glabra is commonly known as Ohio buckeye, American buckeye, or fetid buckeye.It is native primarily to the Midwestern and lower Great Plains regions of the United States, extending southeast into the Nashville Basin. It is also found locally in the extreme southwest of...
. The Buckeyes participate in the NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
's Division I in all sports and 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 most sports. The Ohio State Buckeyes men's ice hockey
Ohio State Buckeyes men's ice hockey
The Ohio State Buckeyes men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I college ice hockey program that represents Ohio State University. The Buckeyes are a member of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association...
program competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
Central Collegiate Hockey Association
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association is a NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey college athletic conference that operates mostly in Michigan and Ohio, although it also has members in Alaska and Indiana. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. It holds its championship...
, and its women's hockey
Ohio State Buckeyes women's ice hockey
The Ohio State Buckeyes women’s ice hockey team represents Ohio State University in NCAA Division I competition in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. The team plays homegames at OSU Ice Rink, located on the Ohio State campus in Columbus, Ohio.-History:...
program competes in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association
Western Collegiate Hockey Association
The Western Collegiate Hockey Association is a college athletic conference which operates over a wide area of the Midwestern and Western United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as an ice hockey-only conference....
. The school colors are scarlet
Scarlet (color)
Scarlet is a bright red color with a hue that is somewhat toward the orange. It is redder than vermilion. It is a pure chroma on the color wheel one-fourth of the way between red and orange. Scarlet is sometimes used as the color of flame...
and grey
Grey
Grey or gray is an achromatic or neutral color.Complementary colors are defined to mix to grey, either additively or subtractively, and many color models place complements opposite each other in a color wheel. To produce grey in RGB displays, the R, G, and B primary light sources are combined in...
. Ohio State's mascot is Brutus Buckeye
Brutus Buckeye
Brutus Buckeye is the athletics mascot of The Ohio State University. Brutus is a student dressed in Buckeye colors with a headpiece resembling an Ohio Buckeye nut. Brutus has appeared since 1965, with periodic updates to design and wardrobe...
.
The Ohio State University is one of only four universities to have won a NCAA national championship in baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, men's basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
and football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
. Ohio State has also won national championships in men's swimming & diving, men's outdoor track & field, men's volleyball, men's golf, men's gymnastics, men's fencing, co-ed fencing, and synchronized swimming. Since the inception of the Athletic Director's Cup
NACDA Director's Cup
The NACDA Learfield Sports Directors' Cup is an award given annually by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics to the colleges and universities with the most success in collegiate athletics...
, Ohio State has finished in the top 25 each year, including top 6 finishes in three of the last five years. During the 2005-2006 school year Ohio State became this first Big Ten team to win conference championships in football, men's basketball and women's basketball in the same season. They repeated this feat in the 2006-2007 season, which also included a February 25, 2007 men's basketball game which saw the Buckeyes defeat the 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...
in the Big Ten's first one-versus-two basketball game.
A few of the many outstanding sports figures who were student athletes at Ohio State include Jesse Owens
Jesse Owens
James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens was an American track and field athlete who specialized in the sprints and the long jump. He participated in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, where he achieved international fame by winning four gold medals: one each in the 100 meters, the 200 meters, the...
, “The Buckeye Bullet,” (track and field), John Havlicek
John Havlicek
John J. "Hondo" Havlicek is a retired American professional basketball player who competed for 16 seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning eight NBA titles, half of them coming in his first four seasons....
, Jerry Lucas
Jerry Lucas
Jerry Ray Lucas was a basketball player from the 1950s to the 1970s, and is now a memory education expert. In 1996, the NBA's 50th anniversary, he was named one of the 50 greatest players in National Basketball Association history...
, and Katie Smith
Katie Smith
Katherine May "Katie" Smith is an American professional basketball player in the WNBA. Her primary position is shooting guard, although she sometimes plays small forward or point guard. She is the all time leading scorer in women's professional basketball, having notched over 7000 points in both...
(basketball), Frank Howard
Frank Howard (baseball player)
Frank Oliver Howard , nicknamed "Hondo", "The Washington Monument", and "The Capital Punisher", is a former left and right fielder, coach and manager in Major League Baseball who played most of his career for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Senators/Texas Rangers...
(baseball), Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus , nicknamed "The Golden Bear", is an American professional golfer. He won 18 career major championships on the PGA Tour over a span of 25 years and is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional golfers of all time. In addition to his 18 Majors, he was runner-up a...
(golf), Archie Griffin
Archie Griffin
Archie Mason Griffin is a former American football running back. Griffin played seven seasons in the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals. He is college football's only two-time Heisman Trophy winner...
(football running back, the only two-time Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winner), and Chic Harley
Chic Harley
Charles William "Chic" Harley was one of the outstanding American football players of the first half of the 20th century and the player who first brought the Ohio State University football program to national attention. Harley was Ohio State's first consensus first-team All-America selection and...
(three-time All-American football running back). Hall of Fame coaches at Ohio State have included Paul Brown
Paul Brown
Paul Eugene Brown was a coach in American football and a major figure in the development of the National Football League...
and 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...
(football), Fred Taylor
Fred Taylor (basketball coach)
Frederick Rankin Taylor was a college men's basketball coach for The Ohio State University from 1959 to 1976.-College career:...
(men's basketball). Notable sports figures in Ohio State history may be inducted into the Ohio State Varsity O Hall of Fame
Ohio State Varsity O Hall of Fame
The Ohio State Varsity "O" Hall of Fame is the athletic hall of fame for The Ohio State University. Its purpose is to recognize individuals who have contributed to the honor and fame of the University in the field of athletics....
.
Football
| OSU Heisman Trophy Winners | |
|---|---|
| Year | Player |
| 1944 | Les Horvath Les Horvath Leslie "Les" Horvath was the 1944 Heisman Trophy winner, who played quarterback and halfback for the Ohio State University.- Early life :He was born in South Bend, Indiana, and raised in the Cleveland, Ohio area.... |
| 1950 | Vic Janowicz Vic Janowicz Victor Felix "Vic" Janowicz was an American football halfback in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins. He played college football at Ohio State University and was drafted in the seventh round of the 1952 NFL Draft... |
| 1955 | Howard Cassady |
| 1974 | Archie Griffin Archie Griffin Archie Mason Griffin is a former American football running back. Griffin played seven seasons in the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals. He is college football's only two-time Heisman Trophy winner... |
| 1975 | Archie Griffin |
| 1995 | Eddie George Eddie George Edward Nathan "Eddie" George, Jr. is a former American football running back in the National Football League. He played for the Tennessee Titans both in Tennessee and in Houston when the franchise was known as the Houston Oilers, and spent his final season with the Dallas Cowboys... |
| 2006 | Troy Smith Troy Smith Troy James Smith is an American football quarterback for the Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens of the NFL in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Ohio State.Smith has also played for the San Francisco 49ers. He... |
- National Champions : 1942, 1954, 1957, 1961, 1968, 1970, 2002
- Big Ten Champions :1916, 1917, 1920, 1935, 1939, 1942, 1944, 1949, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1961, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1981, 1984, 1986, 1993, 1996, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
- OACOhio Athletic ConferenceThe Ohio Athletic Conference was formed in 1902 and is the third oldest athletic conference in the United States. It competes in the NCAA's Division III. Through the years, 31 schools have been members of the OAC. The enrollments of the current ten member institutions range from 1,100 to 4,500...
Champions :1906, 1912
Men's basketball
The Ohio State men's basketball team has played in 10 NCAA Final FoursNCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
, winning the championship in 1960, when they were led by Basketball Hall of Fame
Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States, honors exceptional basketball players, coaches, referees, executives, and other major contributors to the game of basketball worldwide...
rs Jerry Lucas
Jerry Lucas
Jerry Ray Lucas was a basketball player from the 1950s to the 1970s, and is now a memory education expert. In 1996, the NBA's 50th anniversary, he was named one of the 50 greatest players in National Basketball Association history...
, John Havlicek
John Havlicek
John J. "Hondo" Havlicek is a retired American professional basketball player who competed for 16 seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning eight NBA titles, half of them coming in his first four seasons....
, and Bob Knight off the bench. A Buckeye has been named first team All American 23 times, including five two-time All Americans and one three-time All American. Between 1960 and 1964 Ohio State won five consecutive Big Ten championships, an achievement that has yet to be matched.
In 2004, The Ohio State University fired men's basketball coach Jim O'Brien for recruiting violations and self-imposed a one year penalty, including a ban on post-season play and reduction of scholarships. In light of these University self-imposed penalties, the NCAA Division I Committee on infractions merely placed The Ohio State University on three years probation for the violations, and gave heavier penalties to Coach O'Brien and a former assistant coach. The lightness of this judgment was seen as encouragement for schools to be proactive in responding to violations. Nevertheless, O'Brien successfully sued Ohio State for improper termination. Thad Matta, the current coach of the Buckeyes, took over O'Brien's spot in 2004. Ohio State recruited such talents as Greg Oden
Greg Oden
Gregory Wayne Oden, Jr. is an American basketball player at the center position. Oden is a member of the Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA....
, and Mike Conley, Jr.
Mike Conley, Jr.
Michael Alex "Mike" Conley, Jr. is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association.Conley is the son of Olympic gold and silver medalist triple jumper Mike Conley, Sr...
to start the 2006-2007 year. The Buckeyes finished the season with a 27-3 record; won the Big Ten tournament, and earned a number 1 seed for the NCAA tournament. After a very close game with state rival Xavier, and a thrilling 20 point come from behind victory against the Tennessee Volunteers
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
, the Buckeyes managed to hold off Georgetown Hoyas
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
67-60 to reach the Championship Game
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
for the first time since 1962, which they lost to defending NCAA champions Florida Gators
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
, 84-75. The Buckeyes ended the 2006-2007 season with a record of 35-4. In the 2009-2010 Season, the Buckeyes won the Big Ten Championship. In the 2010-2011 season the Buckeyes won the regular season Big Ten Championship, and the Big Ten Tournament Championship going 32-2 overall, and winning 20 straight home games, receiving honors of the #1 overall seed in the NCAA March Madness Tournament in the East Region. The Buckeyes were defeated by the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
in the Sweet 16, 62-60.
Women's basketball
Currently coached by Jim Foster, the Ohio State women's basketball team plays its home games in the Jerome Schottenstein CenterJerome Schottenstein Center
The Value City Arena at the Jerome Schottenstein Center is a multi-purpose arena, located on the campus of The Ohio State University, in Columbus, Ohio, United States...
, which they moved into in 1998. Prior to 1998, they played at St. John Arena
St. John Arena
St. John Arena is a multi-purpose arena on the campus of The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, USA. The arena was named for Lynn St. John, who served as Ohio State's men's basketball coach and athletic director until 1947....
. They have won 10 Big Ten titles, which is the most in the conference and have 14 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, the most recent being in 2007. In 1993 they lost to the Texas Tech Lady Raiders
Texas Tech Lady Raiders basketball
The Texas Tech Lady Raiders basketball team represents Texas Tech University and competes in the Big 12 Conference of NCAA Division I. The team is coached by Kristy Curry who is in her fourth season at the university.-History:...
84-82 for the National Title, while they captured the NIT title in 2001, beating the New Mexico Lobos
New Mexico Lobos
The New Mexico Lobos are the athletic teams representing the University of New Mexico. The university's athletic program fields teams in 19 varsity sports. The Lobos participate in the NCAA Division I and is a charter member of the Mountain West Conference...
62-61. Notable alumni include former All-Americans Katie Smith
Katie Smith
Katherine May "Katie" Smith is an American professional basketball player in the WNBA. Her primary position is shooting guard, although she sometimes plays small forward or point guard. She is the all time leading scorer in women's professional basketball, having notched over 7000 points in both...
and Jessica Davenport
Jessica Davenport
Jessica Davenport, born June 24, 1985, is a reserve center for the WNBA's Indiana Fever. She previously played for The Ohio State University's women's basketball team.-High school:...
.
Golf
Ohio State's two golf courses, the Scarlet and the Gray, were completed in 1938. The Scarlet was designed by architect Alister MacKenzieAlister MacKenzie
Dr. Alister MacKenzie was an internationally renowned, British golf course architect whose course designs, on three different continents, are consistently ranked among the finest golf courses in the world...
, who designed the Masters
The Masters Tournament
The Masters Tournament, also known as The Masters , is one of the four major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week of April, it is the first of the majors to be played each year...
course at Augusta National. However, his original design was not implemented fully, and the greens were the only part of the course that truly resembled his designs. Golf magazines annually rate the Scarlet Course as one of the top collegiate courses in the nation. The Scarlet recently underwent a $4.2 million renovation under the supervision of Jack Nicklaus. Ohio State has won the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships
NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships
The NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships, played in late May or early June, is the top annual competition in U.S. men's collegiate golf. It is a stroke play team competition, starting in 2009 the competition changed to a stroke play/match play competition with the top 8 teams after 54 holes of...
in 1945 and 1979. Five times, Buckeye men have won the NCAA golf individual championship: John Lorms in 1945, Tom Nieporte
Tom Nieporte
Thomas Nieporte is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1950s and 1960s.Nieporte grew up in the Cincinnati suburb of North College Hill, Ohio. He attended the Ohio State University and was a distinguished member of the golf team, winning the NCAA Championship in 1951...
in 1951, Rick Jones in 1956, Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus , nicknamed "The Golden Bear", is an American professional golfer. He won 18 career major championships on the PGA Tour over a span of 25 years and is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional golfers of all time. In addition to his 18 Majors, he was runner-up a...
in 1961 and Clark Burroughs in 1985.
Baseball
Ohio State has played baseball since 1881, winning a national championship in 1966 along with 14 Big Ten regular-season titles and eight Big Ten tournament titles. The Buckeyes baseball team was the first Ohio State sports team. The team is currently coached by Greg Beals and play their home games at Bill Davis StadiumBill Davis Stadium
Bill Davis Stadium is a baseball venue located in Columbus, Ohio, United States. The stadium is home to the Ohio State Buckeyes baseball team of the Big Ten Conference and is named for William C. "Bill" Davis...
, which opened in 1997. Going into the 2008 season the Buckeyes all-time record is 2228-1427-38. Notable alumni include Frank Howard, Nick Swisher
Nick Swisher
Nicholas Thompson "Nick" Swisher is an outfielder for the New York Yankees. Swisher is a switch hitter who throws left-handed....
and two time All-American Steve Arlin
Steve Arlin
Steven Ralph Arlin is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. In six major league seasons, Arlin pitched for the San Diego Padres and Cleveland Indians .-College Star:...
.
Synchronized swimming
In the team event, Ohio State has won 24 collegiate championships between 1977, the first year of the collegiate national championships, and 2004. Head coach Mary Jo Ruggieri led the team to 17 wins between 1977 and 1995, and Linda Lichter-Witter added seven more since 1996. Ohio State also has taken 61 individual honors in that span, including 11 by Karen and Sarah Josephson.Men's Gymnastics
The Ohio State gymnastics team has won three national titles and nine Big Ten titles, and has produced 4 Nissen Award winners (The Heisman Trophy of Men's Gymnastics). The team is currently coached by Rustam Sharipov. The Buckeyes have all their competitions at St. John ArenaSt. John Arena
St. John Arena is a multi-purpose arena on the campus of The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, USA. The arena was named for Lynn St. John, who served as Ohio State's men's basketball coach and athletic director until 1947....
in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
.
Some of the more notable Buckeye alumni include Don Perry, the first OSU All-American in the sport (Trampoline - 1954 - 4th place), brothers Seth and Noah Riskin - Co-national Champions (Parallel Bars - 1985 - 1st place), and Mike Racanelli - Ohio State's first Nissen winner in 1990. Racanelli also went on to win Gymnastic's first Ohio State Male Athlete of the Year Award that same year, given out annually to the athlete who displays the best performance in his sport (regardless of grade).
Following later in Racanelli's footsteps were other Nissen winners Kip Simons (1994), Blaine Wilson (1997) and Jamie Natalie (2001). Blaine Wilson (1995, 1996, 1997) and Jamie Natalie (2000, 2001) also went on to win Ohio State Male Athlete of the Year. Raj Bhavsar was the only other Men's Gymnast to win Ohio State Athlete of the Year which he accomplished in 2002.
On the Olympic and World Championship stage, OSU Men's Gymnastics is well represented, by gymnasts and coaches. The Olympian list includes: Miles Avery (asst coach 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008), Peter Kormann (Athlete in 1976, Head Coach 1996, 2000), Raj Bhavsar (2004, 2008), Jamie Natalie (2000), Gil Pinto (1988), Kip Simons (1994) and Blaine Wilson (1996, 2000, 2004).
Two gymnasts who trained at the Ohio State facilities under coach Miles Avery, but were not NCAA Athletes due to eligibility rules, were Paul
Paul Hamm
Paul Elbert Hamm is an American artistic gymnast. He is a World Champion gymnast and three-time Olympic medalist. He won the all-around competition at the 2004 Olympic Games.-Career:...
and Morgan Hamm
Morgan Hamm
Morgan Carl Hamm is an American artistic gymnast. He represented the United States at the 2000 Summer Olympics and at the 2004 Summer Olympics. At the 2004 Olympics, he won the silver medal in the team competition. He was a member of the silver-medal winning team at the 2003 World Artistic...
- twin brothers from Wisconsin. Paul later went on to win the first ever Olympic Gold medal in the Men's Gymnastics All-Around competition for the United States.
In 2011, Senior co-captain, Brandon Wynn, won his second national championship on rings. Brandon Wynn, Ty Echard, Kris Done and Jeff Treleaven earned All-America honors. In all, the seven All-America honors tie the second-best single-season performance in program history and are the most laurels since the 2005 campaign.
Ice hockey
Ohio State men's ice hockey team was established in 1961 and played at the OSU Ice Rink until 1999 when they moved into Value City Arena. The Buckeyes compete in the Central Collegiate Hockey AssociationCentral Collegiate Hockey Association
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association is a NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey college athletic conference that operates mostly in Michigan and Ohio, although it also has members in Alaska and Indiana. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. It holds its championship...
(CCHA). They have won one conference championship in 1972, the first year of the CCHA, and the tournament in 1974 and 2004. The Buckeyes have made it to the NCAA tournament
NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship
The annual NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship tournament determines the top men's ice hockey team in NCAA Division I and Division III. The semi-finals and finals of the Division I Championship are branded as the Frozen Four, a passing nod to the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship - known...
in 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2009, and went to the semi-finals in 1998. They have only retired one number, #22 Paul Pooley
Paul Pooley
Paul Robert Pooley was a professional ice hockey player who played 15 games in the National Hockey League with the Winnipeg Jets. He played his college hockey at Ohio State, where his number 22 has been retired. He is currently the associate head coach for Notre Dame's men's ice hockey team, a...
.
The OSU women’s ice hockey team was started in 1999 and competes in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association
Western Collegiate Hockey Association
The Western Collegiate Hockey Association is a college athletic conference which operates over a wide area of the Midwestern and Western United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as an ice hockey-only conference....
(WCHA). The Buckeyes have yet to make an NCAA post season appearance. Notable Buckeye alumni include Olympians Emma Laaksonen
Emma Laaksonen
Emma Laaksonen is a Finnish female ice hockey defenseman. She played on the women's ice hockey team for Finland at the 1998 Winter Olympics, winning a bronze medal. She was the youngest woman on the team . Laaksonen played for the Ohio State women's ice hockey team from the 2000-01 to 2003-04...
, Tessa Bonhomme
Tessa Bonhomme
Tessa Bonhomme is an Olympic Gold Medalist and member of the Canadian national women's hockey team. She was also a member and co-captain of the Ohio State Buckeyes women's ice hockey team in the NCAA....
, and Lisa Chesson
Lisa Chesson
Lisa Chesson is an American ice hockey defenseman. She was named to the United States women’s ice hockey team for the 2010 Winter Olympics....
.
Tennis
The Men’s and Women’s Varsity Tennis teams have showed success both individually and as a team. Both the men's and women's teams share the outdoor tennis facility, the Stickney Tennis Center, dedicated in 1993. When the weather takes them indoors, both teams play at the Varsity Tennis Center, which was recently completed in November 2007. The outdoor facility has 12 courts and the indoor has six courts and are both located in Columbus, OhioColumbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
.
Men's Tennis - Big Ten Championships - 1915 (co-champions), 1943, 1991, 2001, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010.
NCAA Men's Tennis Tournament Team Appearances (since 1977) - 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010. The Men's tennis team has 23 NCAA Singles Appearances, 11 NCAA Doubles Appearances and eight All-Americans.
Women's Tennis - Big Ten Championships - 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979 - Note: The Big Ten officially began sponsoring championships for women with the 1981-82 season. Since then, Ohio State has yet to win a Big Ten Championship.
NCAA Women's Tennis Tournament Team Appearances - 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2009. The Women have five NCAA Singles Appearances, four NCAA Doubles Appearances and two All-Americans.
Olympians And Track
Jesse Owens
James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens was an American track and field athlete who specialized in the sprints and the long jump. He participated in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, where he achieved international fame by winning four gold medals: one each in the 100 meters, the 200 meters, the...
who won four Olympic gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
and is one of the greatest Olympians in history. In all, 48 Ohio State athletes have combined for a total of 77 Olympic medals which includes 33 gold, 28 silver and 16 bronze medals. Ohio State's track team is coached by Hobert Gregand, and plays all home meets at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium
Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium
Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium is a 10,000-capacity stadium located in Columbus, Ohio, United States. The stadium is home to the Ohio State Buckeyes men's and women's lacrosse teams as well as the soccer and track and field teams. The stadium opened for soccer in the fall of 2001. It also hosts the...
. The Buckeyes' track team is also famous for being the first Buckeye team in any sport to win a national title.
National Championships
The Ohio State University has 62 total team national titles. Of these, 23 are NCAA championships. The Buckeye athletics program also has 299 individual national champions.- Men's
- Baseball: 1966
- Basketball: 1960, 1986 (NIT), 2008 (NIT)
- Fencing: 1942, 2004
- Football: 1942, 1954, 1957, 1961, 1968, 1970, 2002
- Golf: 1945, 1979
- Gymnastics: 1985, 1996, 2001
- Swimming & Diving: 1943, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1962
- Outdoor Track & Field: 1929
- Volleyball: 2011
- Women's
- Synchronized swimming: 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2009
- Pistol: 2003, 2004, 2009
- Coed
- Cheerleading: 1993
- Fencing: 2004, 2008
- Pistol: 2000
Bold indicates an NCAA championship.
Men's
- Baseball: 1917, 1924, 1943, 1951, 1955, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2001, 2009
- Basketball: 1925, 1933, 1939, 1944, 1946, 1950, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1968, 1971, 1991, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011
- Cross Country: 1923
- Football: 1916, 1917, 1920, 1935, 1939, 1942, 1944, 1949, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1961, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1981, 1984, 1986, 1993, 1996, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
- Golf: 1928, 1945, 1951, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2004
- Hockey (CCHA): 1972, 2004
- Gymnastics: 1983, 1985, 1987, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
- Indoor Track: 1942, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1993
- Outdoor Track: 1942, 1948, 1992, 1993
- Soccer: 2000, 2007, 2009
- Swimming: 1938, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 2010
- Tennis: 1915, 1943, 1991, 2001, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
- Volleyball (MIVAMidwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball AssociationThe Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association is a college athletic conference whose member schools compete in men's volleyball. Its member institutions are located in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Illinois in the west to Ohio in the east...
): 1969, 1972, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 - Wrestling:1923, 1951
Women's
- Basketball: 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1993, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
- Field Hockey: 2006
- Golf: 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1993, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
- Gymnastics: 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987
- Rowing: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006
- Soccer: 2010
- Softball: 1990, 2007
- Indoor Track: 2011
- Outdoor Track: 2011
- Swimming: 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986
- Volleyball: 1989, 1991, 1994
Media
On April 2, 2009, Ohio State signed a 10-year media-rights agreement with IMG College and RadiOhio, worth nearly $128 million, the largest such agreement in college sports.The Ohio State University Marching Band
The Ohio State University Marching Band (nicknamed "The Best Damn Band In The Land") is currently under direction of Dr. Jon R. Woods. This all brass band has 225 members, and was first formed in 1878. The band has traditions including a field march that forms a "Script Ohio", during which, a senior sousaphoneSousaphone
The sousaphone is a type of tuba that is widely employed in marching bands. Designed so that it fits around the body of the musician and is supported by the left shoulder, the sousaphone may be readily played while being carried...
player gets to "dot the i" in the word Ohio.
School colors
Pageantry
- Team Colors: ScarletScarlet (color)Scarlet is a bright red color with a hue that is somewhat toward the orange. It is redder than vermilion. It is a pure chroma on the color wheel one-fourth of the way between red and orange. Scarlet is sometimes used as the color of flame...
and GreyGreyGrey or gray is an achromatic or neutral color.Complementary colors are defined to mix to grey, either additively or subtractively, and many color models place complements opposite each other in a color wheel. To produce grey in RGB displays, the R, G, and B primary light sources are combined in... - Outfitter: NikeNike, Inc.Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
- Fight Songs: Across the FieldAcross the FieldAcross the Field is one of several fight songs of The Ohio State University and the oldest one still in current use. Though the lyrics reference football heroics and was composed by the football team's varsity manager, the song is used by Buckeye teams of all sports...
, Buckeye Battle CryBuckeye Battle CryBuckeye Battle Cry, composed by vaudeville performer and songwriter Frank Crumit, is one of two fight songs of the Ohio State Buckeyes. Every football game in Ohio Stadium begins with Ramp entrance by The Ohio State University Marching Band, performed to Buckeye Battle Cry. The tradition of Script... - Often Played Songs: Hang on SloopyHang on Sloopy"Hang on Sloopy" is a song by the pop group The McCoys which was #1 in America in October 1965 and is the official rock song of the state of Ohio and The Ohio State University...
, Le RegimentLe Régiment de Sambre et MeuseLe Régiment de Sambre et Meuse is a song and military march by Robert Planquette and Paul Cezano.The original poem was written in 1870 by Paul Cezano, in the wake of the Franco-Prussian War and the first days of the French Third Republic... - Alma mater: Carmen OhioCarmen Ohio"Carmen Ohio" is the oldest school song still used by Ohio State University. The song was composed by freshman Fred Cornell on the train ride home from Ann Arbor, Michigan, after Ohio State suffered an 86-0 loss to the University of Michigan Wolverines...
- Nicknames: BuckeyesOhio BuckeyeThe tree species Aesculus glabra is commonly known as Ohio buckeye, American buckeye, or fetid buckeye.It is native primarily to the Midwestern and lower Great Plains regions of the United States, extending southeast into the Nashville Basin. It is also found locally in the extreme southwest of...
(officially adopted in 1950), The Bucks, The Silver Bullets - Mascot: Brutus BuckeyeBrutus BuckeyeBrutus Buckeye is the athletics mascot of The Ohio State University. Brutus is a student dressed in Buckeye colors with a headpiece resembling an Ohio Buckeye nut. Brutus has appeared since 1965, with periodic updates to design and wardrobe...
- Rivalries: Michigan WolverinesMichigan WolverinesThe 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...
, Illinois Fighting IlliniIllinois Fighting IlliniThe Fighting Illini are the intercollegiate athletic teams of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The University offers 10 men's and 11 women's varsity sports....
, & Penn State Nittany Lions - Marching Band: The Ohio State University Marching BandThe Ohio State University Marching BandThe Ohio State University Marching Band performs at Ohio State football games and other events during the fall quarter...
, known as TBDBITL, or The Best Damn Band In The Land. Famous for "Script Ohio" and the "Ramp Entrance". The dotting of the "i" in "Script Ohio" by a sousaphone (tuba) player who high-kicks out and does a giant bow to the crowd was voted the #1 greatest sports tradition ever, in Athlon Sports, ESPNESPNEntertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
, and Sports IllustratedSports IllustratedSports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
. - Radio Network The Ohio State Buckeyes Radio Network; WBNS (AM)WBNS (AM)WBNS — branded 1460 ESPN — is a radio station that broadcasts from Columbus, Ohio. The station, which originally went on the air as WCAH in 1922, currently broadcasts a sports talk format and carries ESPN talk programming. WBNS is also the flagship of the Ohio State Buckeyes radio network. It is...
1460 The Fan and 97.1 FM for - Announcers Paul KeelsPaul KeelsPaul Keels is the current play-by-play announcer for Ohio State University's football and men's basketball teams for WBNS Radio and the Ohio State Buckeyes Radio Network....
(Play By Play); Jim LacheyJim LacheyJames Michael Lachey is a former American football offensive tackle who played for ten seasons in the National Football League with the San Diego Chargers, the Los Angeles Raiders and the Washington Redskins from 1985 to 1995, missing the 1993 season with a knee injury.Lachey graduated from St...
(Color (football)); Marty Bannister (Sideline (football)); Ron Stokes (Color (basketball))