Ohio State Football - Central Ohio News

1. Archie Griffin, RB, Ohio State 1,920

2. Anthony Davis, RB, USC 819

3. Joe Washington, RB, Oklahoma 661

4. Tom Clements, QB, Notre Dame 244

5. David Humm, QB, Nebraska 210

1975 Heisman Voting

1. Archie Griffin, RB, Ohio State 1,800

2. Chuck Muncie, RB, California 730

3. Ricky Bell, RB, USC 708

4. Tony Dorsett, RB, Pittsburgh 616

5. Joe Washington, RB, Oklahoma 250

COLUMBUS -- The Archie Griffin saga was so improbable, so stunning, the telling of it never gets old in central Ohio.

Part of the endearing quality of Griffin is his enduring ability to remain humble despite his many accomplishments. Ironically, that trait nearly guided him away from Ohio State in the first place.

Playing at Columbus Eastmoor, the 5-foot-9 185-pounder was chosen the 1971 Ohio Back of the Year by both AP and UPI. He scored 170 points, averaged just under 8.0 yards per carry and gained 1,737 yards in 10 games. In addition, he captained the football, track and wrestling teams.

With that kind of athletic ability, and having three older brothers already playing college football, Griffin was considered a priority recruit. Yet he wasn't sure if he could play for the Buckeyes. He looked in the mirror and saw a chunky, short back with adequate speed.

He also looked across town and saw Woody Hayes coming off the Rex Kern-Jack Tatum-Jim Stillwagon Era, when OSU had gone 27-2 and won three straight Big Ten titles. Griffin wondered if he could play for the Buckeyes, especially with his lack of size. He thought he might be a better fit at Northwestern.

Eventually though, the fire of a competitor won the recruiting decision.

"The more I heard that I couldn't make it, the more I was determined to do it," Griffin said in his autobiography, "The Archie Griffin Story." "I never liked being told that I'm not good enough to do this or that."

Ohio State running backs coach Rudy Hubbard was convinced Griffin could play, and with an assist from Hayes, the Buckeye staff finally landed the future two-time Heisman Trophy winner.

In 1972, college football allowed freshmen eligibility, and Ohio State would take advantage immediately.

It would be poetic to think of Griffin's incredible breakout performance against North Carolina as his Ohio Stadium baptism. It would also be incorrect. Griffin's first experience came in the season opener against Iowa, a 21-0 victory. A fifth-string tailback at the time, Griffin was sent in for one play, fumbled an option pitch and lost five yards. He exited immediately. He was gone for the game, but not forgotten.

The next week, with the OSU running game sliding in neutral, Hubbard convinced Hayes to send in Griffin. When the call came, Griffin was so stunned he started onto the field sans helmet. He quickly rectified that problem, and went about the business of wrecking North Carolina.

Ohio State was trailing 7-0 when Griffin joined the fray late in the first quarter. He made an instant impact, juicing the Buckeyes with his daring darts, incredible balance, razor-like cutting ability, and a knack for breaking multiple tackles.

Before the afternoon was over Ohio State had a 29-14 win and Griffin had a school record 239 yards on 27 carries -- and his first touchdown.

"Of all the games I played in, that's the most exciting one," Griffin said in later years. "I never even expected to play. If I had known the night before I was going to play, I would have been a nervous wreck."

Clearly, the Buckeyes had a back who put them back in business.

Before the year was through, Griffin would gain 867 yards (5.4 avg.) and score three TDs. This would also be a trademark. Griffin often carried the weight during a drive, but in the red zone Hayes favored his famed fullhouse backfield and leaned exclusively on the fullbacks to finish the job. That season fullback Champ Henson collected 20 touchdowns.

Another trademark to Griffin's career began that season. Ninth-ranked Ohio State upset undefeated and third-ranked Michigan 14-11 to reach the Rose Bowl. Griffin's 30-yard TD run in the third quarter proved to be the game-winning points. In Griffin's four years, OSU never lost to Michigan, won at least a share of four Big Ten titles, and the Buckeye running back became the first player in history to start four straight Rose Bowls.

Griffin's first Rose Bowl was the least memorable. Although he gained 95 yards, Ohio State was outscored 35-10 in the second half of a 42-17 loss to national champion USC. Still, it was a season that would signal a return to glory for the Buckeyes. The following fall, Griffin played on one of the greatest Ohio State teams in history.

Hayes won five national championships at OSU, but this may have been his greatest club. Griffin, John Hicks, Neal Colzie, Randy Gradishar, Van DeCree, Pete Cusick, Steve Myers, Kurt Schumacher and Tom Skladany all would be voted All-Americans before their careers ended. All of them played on this team.

Gradishar spearheaded a defensive unit that allowed only 64 points, pitched four shutouts and limited eight teams to a touchdown or less. Meanwhile, the offense ravaged opponents with 413 points. Only a 10-10 tie at undefeated and third-ranked Michigan spoiled a national championship. Griffin was never better than in this game. With OSU unable to complete a pass due to quarterback Cornelius Greene's injured thumb, Griffin gained 163 yards on 30 carries against a stacked Michigan defense.

He justified his All-American status in the Rose Bowl, producing 149 yards on 22 carries, including a 47-yard TD dash to outduel Trojan star Anthony Davis and lead the Buckeyes to a 42-21 rout of the defending national champions. The Buckeyes finished No. 2 in the final poll, behind Notre Dame. Yet USC coach John McKay, who sent his team against both squads, said Ohio State was the better team.

"As I said before the (Rose Bowl), Ohio State is the best team we've played this year," McKay said.

Griffin ended the year with 1,577 yards, a Big Ten record, and finished fifth in the Heisman voting. It also set him up as a leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy the following fall.

"I thought I had a chance to win the Heisman as a junior, mainly because the four guys who finished ahead of me the year before had graduated," Griffin said.

His consistent string of 100-yard games 31 regular-season contests in a row, was well under way. As a junior, Griffin rushed for a then-school record 1,695 yards. Ohio State was atop the polls all season before a shocking 16-13 loss at Michigan State. Yet the Buckeyes rebounded, beat Michigan 12-10 in the season finale, and again went to the Rose Bowl. This time Ohio State led deep into the fourth quarter before Pat Haden hit J.K. McKay with a long TD pass in the closing minutes. The ensuing two-point conversion gave USC an 18-17 victory and the national championship over the Buckeyes. Griffin had two costly fumbles in this game and was limited to less than 100 yards.

Still, it couldn't overshadow a spectacular season that led to his first Heisman Trophy. Griffin won the vote in a landslide, accumulating 1,920 points to 819 for USC's Davis.

"The trophy is not for me, it's for the team," Griffin said during the December ceremony. "I'd love to win the national championship. If trading this award (for a national title) would mean being No. 1, yes, I'd trade it."

The following season would be even more bittersweet. Ohio State crushed nearly ever foe, and looked especially sharp beating nationally-ranked Penn State (17-9) and throttling UCLA (41-20) on the road. In the latter game, Griffin ripped off 160 yards as the Buckeyes dominated coach Dick Vermeil's squad.

As had become the custom, No. 1-ranked OSU cruised into the Big Ten finale at Michigan. The undefeated Wolverines finally ended Griffin's 100-yard string, he managed just 46 yards in this contest, but the Bucks rallied in the final moments to overcome a 14-7 deficit and earn a 21-14 victory. The key play was an interception by Archie's younger brother, Ray Griffin, that set up the game-winning score. Another Griffin had done in the Wolverines, but Archie was still the main attraction.

Although he never accomplished his chief goal of winning a national title -- the Buckeyes were stunned by previous victim UCLA 23-10 in the Rose Bowl -- it didn't tarnish Griffin's image with his fans or his coach.

"He's a better young man than he is a football player, and he's the best football player I've ever seen," Hayes said.

As a senior, Griffin gained 1,450 yards and averaged 5.5 yards per carry. He finished his career with 5,589 yards, including more than 400 yards in four Rose Bowl games, an NCAA record 6.13 yards per carry and 26 touchdowns. He became the only two-time Heisman winner that season, outpacing California running back Chuck Muncie in the voting 1,800 to 730.

Griffin graduated from Ohio State a quarter early and was a first-round NFL draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals. In seven years at Cincinnati, Griffin gained 2,808 yards, averaged 4.1 yards per carry, and hauled in more than 1,500 yards receiving for a team that emphasized the pass.

After a long tenure in the Ohio State athletic department, Griffin became head of the school's alumni association in 2003.

To this day he is without question the most beloved figure in Ohio State football history.

Contact Phillips by e-mail at lbphillips@nncogannett.com or call (419) 521-7238.