The Ohio State Buckeyes, under coach Woody Hayes, had been good – nationally good – for quite a while. But the 1973 season was special. The Buckeyes simply dominated their opponents. They started the season with victories over Minnesota (56-7), TCU (37-3), and Washington State (27-3). Then, there was the middle-of-the-season quartet of shutouts: 24-0 versus Wisconsin, 60-0 over Northwestern, 30-0 against the Illini, and 35-0 over Michigan State. The Buckeyes entered the season ranked No. 3 and moved to No. 1 after the TCU game.
They stayed there the rest of the season, until a fateful 10-10 tie in Ann Arbor against the No.