List of Ohio State Buckeyes football seasons
The Ohio State Buckeyes college football team competes as part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, representing the Ohio State University in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference. Ohio State has played their home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio since 1922.[1]
The Buckeyes claim eight national championships[2] along with 38 conference championships and ten undefeated seasons (six perfect seasons). Ohio State is second among all Big Ten programs in terms of conference championships (38) and has an overall record of 468-171-24 in conference play.[3] With 924 wins in over 130 seasons of football, Ohio State ranks Second among all programs in terms of total wins and is Second all-time in Winning percentage in the NCAA.[4]
Football was introduced to the university by George Cole and Alexander S. Lilley in 1890. Lilley led the Buckeyes to a record of three wins and five losses over his two seasons as head coach. Ohio State was a football independent from 1890 to 1901 before joining the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) as a charter member in 1902.[2] The Buckeyes won two conference championships while members of the OAC and in 1913 became members of the Big Ten Conference.[5] The school saw its first real success in football and in the Big Ten under head coach John Wilce, who spent sixteen years at the university and won three conference championships, with a Rose Bowl appearance in 1921. Ohio State won two more Big Ten titles under head coach Francis Schmidt and would win their first national championship in 1942 under legendary head coach Paul Brown.[2]
Following World War II, Ohio State saw sparse success on the football field with three separate coaches and in 1951 would hire Woody Hayes to coach the team. Under his guidance Ohio State won thirteen Big Ten championships and national championships in 1954, 1957, 1961, 1968 and 1970. During his tenure Ohio State appeared Rose Bowl eight times, with the Buckeyes winning four of them.[2] Following Hayes' dismissal in 1978, Earl Bruce became the head coach, leading the Buckeyes to a conference championship and a Rose Bowl appearance in his first season. Bruce coached for the Buckeyes from 1979 to 1987 and was replaced in 1988 by John Cooper.[2] Under Cooper and Bruce the Buckeyes won seven conference championships. Jim Tressel was hired as head coach in 2001 and quickly gave Ohio State its seventh national championship in 2002 with a win in the Fiesta Bowl.[6] Ohio State won seven Big Ten championships under Tressel and appeared in eight Bowl Championship Series games, winning five of them.
In his debut as head coach, Urban Meyer led the program to an undefeated 2012 season, and two years later to their eighth national championship in the 2014 season. Through the 2019 season, Ohio State has compiled an official overall record of 924 wins, 326 losses, 53 ties and has appeared in 50 bowl games, with the most recent coming in 2019 Fiesta Bowl.
Ohio State also is the only program in college football history to never lose more than 7 games in a single season.[7]
Seasons
National Champions  |
Conference Champions * | Division Champions  |
Bowl game berth ^ |
| Season | Head coach [8] |
Conference | Season results [2] |
Bowl result [9] |
Final ranking | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference finish |
Division finish [a] |
Won | Lost | Tied | Associated Press Poll [b] |
Coaches' Poll [c] | ||||
| Ohio State Buckeyes | ||||||||||
| 1890 | Alexander Lilley | Independent | — | — | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A |
| 1891 | — | — | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1892 | Frederick Ryder | — | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1893 | — | — | 4 | 5 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1894 | — | — | 6 | 5 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1895 | — | — | 4 | 4 | 2 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1896 | Charles Hickey | — | — | 5 | 5 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1897 | David Edwards | — | — | 1 | 7 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1898 | Frederick Ryder | — | — | 3 | 5 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1899 | John Eckstorm | — | — | 9 | 0 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1900 | — | — | 8 | 1 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1901 | — | — | 5 | 3 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1902 | Perry Hale | Ohio Athletic Conference | 2nd | — | 6 | 2 | 2 | — | N/A | N/A |
| 1903 | 2nd | — | 8 | 3 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1904 | Edwin Sweetland | 2nd | — | 6 | 5 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1905 | 2nd | — | 8 | 2 | 2 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1906 * | Albert Herrnstein | 1st * | — | 8 | 1 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1907 | 2nd | — | 7 | 2 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1908 | 2nd | — | 6 | 4 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1909 | 3rd | — | 7 | 3 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1910 | Howard Jones | 3rd | — | 6 | 1 | 3 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1911 | Harry Vaughan | 4th | — | 5 | 3 | 2 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1912 * | John Richards | 1st * | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1913 | John Wilce | Big Ten Conference | T–6th | — | 4 | 2 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A |
| 1914 | T–4th | — | 5 | 2 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1915 | T–3rd | — | 5 | 1 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1916 * | 1st * | — | 7 | 0 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1917 * | 1st * | — | 8 | 0 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1918 | T–8th | — | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1919 | 2nd | — | 6 | 1 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1920 * | 1st * | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | Lost Rose Bowl to California Golden Bears, 28–0 ^ | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1921 | T–2nd | — | 5 | 2 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1922 | 8th | — | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1923 | 8th | — | 3 | 4 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1924 | 7th | — | 2 | 3 | 3 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1925 | 8th | — | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1926 | 3rd | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1927 | T–6th | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1928 | 4th | — | 5 | 2 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1929 | Sam Willaman | T–5th | — | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1930 | T–4th | — | 5 | 2 | 1 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1931 | T–4th | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1932 | 4th | — | 4 | 1 | 3 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1933 | 2nd | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1934 | Francis Schmidt | 2nd | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | |
| 1935 * | T–1st * | — | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | N/A | N/A | ||
| 1936 | T–2nd | — | 5 | 3 | 0 | — | — | N/A | ||
| 1937 | 2nd | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | 13 | N/A | ||
| 1938 | 6th | — | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | — | N/A | ||
| 1939 * | 1st * | — | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | 15 | N/A | ||
| 1940 | T–4th | — | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | — | N/A | ||
| 1941 | Paul Brown | T–2nd | — | 6 | 1 | 1 | — | 13 | N/A | |
| 1942 †* | 1st | — | 9 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | N/A | ||
| 1943 | 7th | — | 3 | 6 | 0 | — | — | N/A | ||
| 1944 * | Carroll Widdoes | 1st * | — | 9 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | N/A | |
| 1945 | 3rd | — | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | 12 | N/A | ||
| 1946 | Paul Bixler | T–6th | — | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — | N/A | |
| 1947 | Wes Fesler | 9th | — | 2 | 6 | 1 | — | — | N/A | |
| 1948 | 4th | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | — | N/A | ||
| 1949 * | T–1st * | — | 7 | 1 | 2 | Won Rose Bowl vs. California Golden Bears, 17–14 ^ | 6 | N/A | ||
| 1950 | T–2nd | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | 10 | 14 | ||
| 1951 | Woody Hayes | 5th | — | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | |
| 1952 | 3rd | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | 17j | 15 | ||
| 1953 | 4th | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 20 | ||
| 1954 †* | 1st * | — | 10 | 0 | 0 | Won Rose Bowl vs. USC Trojans, 20–7 ^ | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1955 * | 1st * | — | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | 5 | 5 | ||
| 1956 | T–4th | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | 15 | — | ||
| 1957 †* | 1st | — | 9 | 1 | 0 | Won Rose Bowl vs. Oregon Webfoots, 10–7 ^ | 2 | 1 | ||
| 1958 | 3rd | — | 6 | 1 | 2 | — | 8 | 7 | ||
| 1959 | T–8th | — | 3 | 5 | 1 | — | — | — | ||
| 1960 | 3rd | — | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | 8 | 8 | ||
| 1961 †* | 1st | — | 8 | 0 | 1 | — | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1962 | T–3rd | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 13 | ||
| 1963 | T–2nd | — | 5 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | ||
| 1964 | 2nd | — | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | 9 | 9 | ||
| 1965 | 2nd | — | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 11 | ||
| 1966 | 6th | — | 4 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | ||
| 1967 | 4th | — | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | ||
| 1968 †* | 1st * | — | 10 | 0 | 0 | Won Rose Bowl vs. USC Trojans, 27–16 ^ | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1969 * | T–1st * | — | 8 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | |||
| 1970 †* | 1st * | — | 9 | 1 | 0 | Lost Rose Bowl to Stanford Indians, 27–17 ^ | 5 | 2 | ||
| 1971 | T–3rd | — | 6 | 4 | 0 | — | — | |||
| 1972 * | T–1st * | — | 9 | 2 | 0 | Lost Rose Bowl to USC Trojans, 42–17 ^ | 9 | 3 | ||
| 1973 * | T–1st * | — | 10 | 0 | 1 | Won Rose Bowl vs. USC Trojans, 42–21 ^ | 2 | 3 | ||
| 1974 * | T–1st * | — | 10 | 2 | 0 | Lost Rose Bowl to USC Trojans, 18–17 ^ | 4 | 3 | ||
| 1975 * | 1st * | — | 11 | 1 | 0 | Lost Rose Bowl to UCLA Bruins, 23–10 ^ | 4 | 4 | ||
| 1976 * | T–1st * | — | 9 | 2 | 1 | Won Orange Bowl vs. Colorado Buffaloes, 27–10 ^ | 6 | 5 | ||
| 1977 * | T–1st * | — | 9 | 3 | 0 | Lost Sugar Bowl to Alabama Crimson Tide, 35–6 ^ | 11 | 12 | ||
| 1978 | 4th | — | 7 | 4 | 1 | Lost Gator Bowl to Clemson Tigers, 17–15 ^ | — | — | ||
| 1979 * | Earle Bruce | 1st * | — | 11 | 1 | 0 | Lost Rose Bowl to USC Trojans, 17–16 ^ | 4 | 4 | |
| 1980 | T–2nd | — | 9 | 3 | 0 | Lost Fiesta Bowl to Penn State Nittany Lions, 31–19 ^ | 15 | 15 | ||
| 1981 * | T–1st * | — | 9 | 3 | 0 | Won Liberty Bowl vs. Navy Midshipmen, 31–28 ^ | 12 | 15 | ||
| 1982 | 2nd | — | 9 | 3 | 0 | Won Holiday Bowl vs. BYU Cougars, 47–17 ^ | 12 | 12 | ||
| 1983 | 4th | — | 9 | 3 | 0 | Won Fiesta Bowl vs. Pittsburgh Panthers, 28–23 ^ | 9 | 8 | ||
| 1984 * | 1st * | — | 9 | 3 | 0 | Lost Rose Bowl to USC Trojans, 20–17 ^ | 12 | 13 | ||
| 1985 | T–4th | — | 9 | 3 | 0 | Won Citrus Bowl vs. BYU Cougars, 10–7 ^ | 11 | 14 | ||
| 1986 * | T–1st * | — | 10 | 3 | 0 | Won Cotton Bowl Classic vs. Texas A&M Aggies, 28–12 ^ | 6 | 7 | ||
| 1987 | 5th | — | 6 | 4 | 1 | — | — | — | ||
| 1988 | John Cooper | T–7th | — | 4 | 6 | 1 | — | — | — | |
| 1989 | T–3rd | — | 8 | 4 | 0 | Lost Hall of Fame Bowl to Auburn Tigers, 31–14 ^ | 21 | — | ||
| 1990 | 5th | — | 7 | 4 | 1 | Lost Liberty Bowl to Air Force Falcons, 23–11 ^ | — | — | ||
| 1991 | T–3rd | — | 8 | 4 | 0 | Lost Hall of Fame Bowl to Syracuse Orange, 24–17 ^ | — | — | ||
| 1992 | 2nd | — | 8 | 3 | 1 | Lost Citrus Bowl to Georgia Bulldogs, 21–14 ^ | 18 | 19 | ||
| 1993 * | T–1st * | — | 10 | 1 | 1 | Won Holiday Bowl vs. BYU Cougars, 28–21 ^ | 11 | 10 | ||
| 1994 | 2nd | — | 9 | 4 | 0 | Lost Citrus Bowl to Alabama Crimson Tide, 24–17 ^ | 14 | 9 | ||
| 1995 | 2nd | — | 11 | 2 | 0 | Lost Citrus Bowl to Tennessee Volunteers, 20–14 ^ | 6 | 8 | ||
| 1996 * | T–1st * | — | 11 | 1 | —[d] | Won Rose Bowl vs. Arizona State Sun Devils, 20–17 ^ | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1997 | T–2nd | — | 10 | 3 | — | Lost Sugar Bowl to Florida State Seminoles, 31–14 ^ | 12 | 12 | ||
| 1998 * | T–1st * | — | 11 | 1 | — | Won Sugar Bowl vs. Texas A&M Aggies, 24–14 ^ | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1999 | T–8th | — | 6 | 6 | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000 | 4th | — | 8 | 4 | — | Lost Outback Bowl to South Carolina Gamecocks, 24–7 ^ | — | — | ||
| 2001 | Jim Tressel | 3rd | — | 7 | 5 | — | Lost Outback Bowl to South Carolina Gamecocks, 31–28 ^ | — | — | |
| 2002 †* | T–1st * | — | 14 | 0 | — | Won Fiesta Bowl vs. Miami Hurricanes, 31–24 ^ | 1 | 1 | ||
| 2003 | T–2nd | — | 11 | 2 | — | Won Fiesta Bowl vs. Kansas State Wildcats, 35–28 ^ | 4 | 4 | ||
| 2004 | T–5th | — | 8 | 4 | — | Won Alamo Bowl vs. Oklahoma State Cowboys, 33–7 ^ | 20 | 19 | ||
| 2005 * | T–1st * | — | 10 | 2 | — | Won Fiesta Bowl vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 34–20 ^ | 4 | 4 | ||
| 2006 * | 1st * | — | 12 | 1 | — | Lost BCS National Championship to Florida Gators, 41–14 ^ | 2 | 2 | ||
| 2007 * | 1st * | — | 11 | 2 | — | Lost BCS National Championship to LSU Tigers, 38–24 ^ | 5 | 4 | ||
| 2008 * | T–1st * | — | 10 | 3 | — | Lost Fiesta Bowl to Texas Longhorns, 24–21 ^ | 9 | 11 | ||
| 2009 * | 1st * | — | 11 | 2 | — | Won Rose Bowl vs. Oregon Ducks, 26–17 ^ | 5 | 5 | ||
| 2010[e] | T–1st[f] | — | 0 (12) | 1 | — | Won Sugar Bowl vs. Arkansas Razorbacks, 31–26 ^ | 5 | 5 | ||
| 2011 | Luke Fickell[g] | — | 4th | 6 | 7 | — | Lost Gator Bowl to Florida Gators, 24–17 ^ | — | — | |
| 2012 |
Urban Meyer | — | 1st |
12 | 0 | — | Ineligible | 3 | Ineligible | |
| 2013 |
2nd | 1st |
12 | 2 | — | Lost Orange Bowl to Clemson Tigers, 40–35 ^ | 12 | 10 | ||
| 2014 †* | 1st * | 1st |
14 | 1 | — | Won Sugar Bowl vs. Alabama Crimson Tide, 42–35 (CFP Semifinal) Won College Football Playoff National Championship vs. Oregon Ducks, 42–20 ^ |
1 | 1 | ||
| 2015 |
— | T–1st |
12 | 1 | — | Won Fiesta Bowl vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 44–28 ^ | 4 | 4 | ||
| 2016 |
— | T–1st |
11 | 2 | — | Lost Fiesta Bowl vs. Clemson Tigers, 31-0 (CFP Semifinal)^ | 6 | 6 | ||
| 2017 * | 1st * | 1st |
12 | 2 | — | Won Cotton Bowl Classic vs. USC Trojans, 24-7 ^ | 5 | 5 | ||
| 2018 * | Urban Meyer / Ryan Day | 1st * | T–1st |
13 | 1 | — | Won Rose Bowl vs. Washington Huskies, 28-23 ^ | 3 | 3 | |
| 2019 * | Ryan Day | 1st * | 1st |
13 | 1 | — | Lost Fiesta Bowl vs. Clemson Tigers, 29-23 (CFP Semifinal)^ | 3 | 3 | |
| 2020 * | 1st * | 1st |
6 | 0 | — | |||||
All-time records
Records current through 2019.
| Statistic | Wins | Losses | Ties | Winning Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State Buckeyes regular season record (1890–2019) | 897 | 300 | 53 | .739 |
| Ohio State Buckeyes bowl game record (1890–2019) | 25 | 26 | — | .490 |
| All-time regular and bowl game record (1890–2019) | 922 | 326 | 53 | .730 |
| Ohio State Buckeyes CFP game record (2014–2019) | 2 | 2 | — | .500 |
Notes
- a The Big Ten Conference introduced divisional play in 2011; the divisional winners advance to the Big Ten Championship Game to determine the conference champion.[10]
- b The Associated Press began conducting a weekly college football poll in 1936.[4]
- c The college football coaches' poll has been sponsored by multiple organizations since its creation in 1950. Its current sponsor is USA Today.[4]
- d Overtime rules in college football were introduced in 1996, making ties impossible.[11]
- e Ohio State vacated all 12 of its victories and its Big Ten Conference championship from the 2010 season.[12][13][14]
- f Ohio State finished with a share of the Big Ten championship in 2010, which was unaffected by the vacation of the school's victories from that season.
- g Luke Fickell was named as the interim head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2011, following Jim Tressel's dismissal on May 30, 2011.[15]
References
- "Ohio Stadium". Ohio State Buckeyes. Archived from the original on 2014-07-01. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "Ohio State Buckeyes Football Results by Year" (PDF). Ohio State Buckeyes.com. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "Ohio State Opponents". College Football Data Warehouse. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "Football Bowl Subdivision Records" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "Big Ten History". Big Ten Conference. Archived from the original on 2013-11-14. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "2003 Fiesta Bowl". FiestaBowl.org. Archived from the original on 2012-10-19. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "Vandy 42, Tennessee 24: Vols lose eight games for first time in program history". knoxnews.com. Retrieved 2020-11-20.
- "Ohio State Buckeyes Football Coaching Records" (PDF). Ohio State Buckeyes.com. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "Ohio State Buckeyes Football Bowl Results" (PDF). Ohio State Buckeyes.com. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "Big Ten Announces Football Division Alignments and 2011 and 2012 Conference Schedules". Big Ten.com. Archived from the original on 2013-02-12. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- "Overtime system still excites coaches". USA Today.com. Retrieved 2012-06-10.
- Ludlow, Randy (July 8, 2011). "Ohio State vacates wins from 2010 football season, places program on probation". The Columbus Dispatch. Dispatch Printing Co. Archived from the original on July 10, 2011. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
- Ohio State vacates all 2010 victories, ESPN, July 22, 2011
- NCAA record book, Ohio State, 2010-11 season
- "Luke Fickell Named Interim Ohio State Football Coach". 10TV.com. Retrieved 2012-06-10.