As the Buckeyes are looking to the Rose Bowl, the Rose Bowl is looking at the Buckeyes. That is, the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame.
Tournament of Roses President Harold E. Coombes started the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1989 to honor those who help make the Rose Bowl “The Granddaddy of Them All.”
Eligible inductees can include players, coaches, school administrators, athletic directors, conference officials and other contributors.
Since its creation in 1989, Ohio State has boasted five inductees.
Most recently inducted was former Buckeye fullback Pete Johnson.
Johnson played for the Buckeyes from 1973-76, but didn’t make his mark until 1975.
Behind leading rusher Archie Griffin in 1975, Johnson rushed for 1,059 yards, setting OSU single-season records with 25 rushing touchdowns and 156 points.
Johnson played in three consecutive Rose Bowl games, most notably the 1974 Rose Bowl, which marks the last time the Buckeyes defeated USC in the game.
Johnson scored three touchdowns and led the Buckeyes to a 42-21 win over the Trojans.
Johnson left OSU with 2,308 rushing yards. He holds the Ohio State record with 58 touchdowns. Johnson is the second all-time leading scorer behind kicker Mike Nugent.
Johnson was selected for the Ohio State All-Century Team in 2000 and in 2007 was inducted into the Ohio State Athletic Hall of Fame.
Prior to Johnson’s induction came the induction of Fred “Curly” Morrison, Buckeye tight end and fullback from 1947-1949.
In his rookie season he led the Buckeyes as a tight end with seven receptions for 113 yards.
Morrison took over at fullback in 1948 for an injured Joe Whistler and maintained his position in his senior season in 1949, when he earned his team another Rose Bowl berth.
Morrison had one touchdown to lead the Buckeyes to their 17-14 win over California in the 1950 Rose Bowl.
After rushing for 113 yards, he was named the Rose Bowl MVP.
Morrison is not often recognized for his role on special teams as a “coffin” corner kicker. His job was to kick the ball on punt returns out-of-bounds around the ten-yard line to ensure no run back.
His induction to the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame came in 1993.
Two years prior, former Buckeye quarterback from 1968-70 Rex Kern was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame.
Kern came to Ohio State in 1967 to play basketball under coach Fred Taylor, but instead was recruited to play football for Woody Hayes.
Right from the start he showcased his immense athleticism and stepped up as a leader on and off the field.
Kern started on the freshman squad before taking the starting quarterback spot from returning senior Bill Long the following season.
Kern was responsible for leading the 1968 team to an undefeated season and a National Championship at the Rose Bowl. This was the last time the Buckeyes won a national title under Hayes. Kern’s unbelievable ball-handling skills earned him Most Outstanding Player in the bowl.
The next season, OSU suffered a heart-wrenching loss to Michigan 24-12, which meant the Buckeyes had to share the Big Ten title with the Wolverines.
Despite the devastating loss, Kern was named an All-American and came in third for the Heisman Trophy.
There was a no-repeat rule in effect until 1972 which stated no team could make back-to-back appearances in the Rose Bowl, which prevented the Buckeyes from playing in the 1970 game.
Kern’s 1970 season was characterized by an immense rebound, regaining the Big Ten title and securing another Rose Bowl berth. The Buckeyes fell to Stanford in the 1971 Rose Bowl.
Kern again received a Heisman nomination, but finished fifth in the ballots for the trophy.
His class, the “super sophomores,” finished their career with a 27-2 record.
Today, Kern is no stranger to Halls of Fame. In 1978 he was inducted in to the Ohio State Varsity “O” Hall of Fame, and in 2007 was inducted in to the College Football Hall of Fame. Kern also shares a spot on the Ohio State Football All-Century team with fellow Buckeye Pete Johnson, to which he was named to in 2000.
Archie Griffin, another Rose Bowl Hall of Fame inductee, is the second-biggest name in Ohio State football. His stats were endless, his resume impeccable, his name immortal.
He is quite possibly the No. 1 all-time player at Ohio State.
Football analyst and devoted Buckeye Jack Park agreed that Griffin is the best player to come through Ohio State for three reasons: overall talent, persistence, and becoming a mark player over his four years with the Buckeyes.
Griffin was the Buckeyes’ running back from 1972-1975, when he led the team to a 40-5-1 record.
Under Griffin, the Buckeyes were defeated by Michigan State in 1972 and 1974, and they lost three times in the Rose Bowl in 1973 and 1975 to Southern California, and to UCLA in 1976.
He led the Big Ten in rushing yards three consecutive years. His career with the Buckeyes concluded with a total of 5,589 yards 26 touchdowns.
He is a man all about breaking records.
In 1972 he broke the Ohio State single-game rushing record, which had stood for 27 years, with 239 yards.
It came as no surprise in his sophomore season when he broke his own record with 246 rushing yards in a win over Iowa.
He led OSU to four consecutive Rose Bowl games, making him one of only two players to start in four consecutive bowl games.
Today, he still holds the NCAA record for average yards per carry with 6.13 yards.
Following his run with the Buckeyes, Griffin was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals, where he played with fellow Buckeye Pete Johnson.
Griffin is the only collegiate football player to have won the Heisman Trophy two times.
He is one of only two players to with the Big Ten Most Valuable Player Award twice, which he took home in both 1973 and 1974.
The Tournament of Roses inducted Griffin in to the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1990.
Ohio State has since retired his No. 45 and enshrined it in Ohio Stadium.
Former Buckeye coach Woody Hayes, the only man more deserving of the first Ohio State spot in the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame, said it best: “He’s a better young man than he is a football player, and he’s the best football player I’ve ever seen.”
In 28 years, Hayes won three National Championships, 13 Big Ten Championships, and four Rose Bowl appearances.
Arguably his biggest win was 27-16 over USC in the 1969 Rose Bowl for the National Championship.
This was the first time Ohio State had been in a game between No. 1 and No. 2.
There is no question that the most damaging and agonizing loss in Hayes’ career was the 24-12 loss to Michigan in 1969.
The loss ended the Buckeyes’ 22-game winning streak, their longest ever, and prevented them from winning consecutive National Championship Games.
Hayes earned the Buckeyes a bid to the 1961 Rose Bowl game, but at the time the trip was denied by a required vote of the faculty members.
The rejection came out of fear that the athletic program was taking precedence ahead of academics.
Riots spread throughout campus, but Hayes kept a cool head and encouraged students to speak their minds, yet respect the wishes of the institution.
Hayes is a three-time recipient of the College Football Coach of the Year Award. He is ninth in NCAA most winning coaches with his career record of 238-72
-10.
He was inducted in to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983 and was among the first four inductees to the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1989.
He was, and always will be, an Ohio State football legend.
The Rose Bowl Hall of Fame needs another Buckeye addition.
Although it takes the team to win the bowl, it requires the stand-outs to take the initiative.
If Park had a nomination, he’d go with 1996 Buckeye quarterback Joe Germaine.
Germaine is remembered for passing the length of the field with nine seconds left in the 1996 Rose Bowl to stun Arizona State 20-17.
That was the last Rose Bowl appearance the Buckeyes made, until now.
On Jan. 1, the players that take the field will make their cases to be the next Buckeye in the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame.
