25 Days until kickoff!
It was hard to pick between two of our best RBs of all time.
Carlos Snow and Antonio Pittman both wore #25, and they both tore up defenses across the Big Ten, each finishing their careers with just a shade under 3,000 yards. Snow stands as the #6 rusher in Ohio State history, Pittman holds camp at #8.
My favorite memory of each player happens to be against Michigan, and both of them are YouTubed for all of us to share.
First, let’s look at ‘Los.
1987, Michigan Stadium. Four days earlier, Head Coach Earle Bruce was shockingly fired. The man’s WORST season before ’87 was 9-3. As the team prepared to play that state up north, they were angry, and they were going to take it out on the maize and blue.
Michigan came out firing and jumped on the scoreboard early. The Wolverines pulled out to a 13-0 lead, and looked tough. But somewhere in the second quarter, they just lost all the momentum.
All season long, the third quarter had not been kind to Ohio State. Most of the 4 games they lost had fallen apart in front of their eyes in the second half. They were determined not to let that happen again. They put the ball in Snow’s hands on the first play of the third quarter;
Ohio State took the lead for the first time, and didn’t look back. Their 23-20 win over Bo Schembechler may have been Bruce’s finest victory, but it also may have cost Ohio State a LOT more than it won. Ohio State administrators were so ravaged by the premature firing of Bruce, that it led to a LOT of cold feet on future firings. John Cooper may have been kept for 5 years longer because the administration was afraid to pull the trigger too quickly again.
Game #2 – Pittman
2006, Ohio Stadium. You know the day….#1 vs #2. Brent Musberger wet his pants at least thirty times in the week leading up to it.
Ohio State had dominated the entire game, leading by 14 points most of the way. It was obvious who the better team was. But two third-quarter miscues allowed Michigan to get back into the game. The ABC broadcast team found their voices rising as they discussed “Michigan’s valiant comeback.” Their sideline reporter began talking about Troy Smith saying goodbye to the Heisman (never mind the fact that he was 21-31 with 252 yards, 3 TDs and one INT to that point). On second-and-1 from their own 44 yard line, they gave the ball to Pittman.
The game still had a quarter and a half left in it, but it was as good as over at that point. Ohio State proved that they would not fall short today.
Here’s to you, Carlos Snow and Antonio Pittman. Today’s your day!
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