1957 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

1957 Ohio State Buckeyes football
National champion (UP, FWAA, INS, Litkenhous) Zuppke Award Big Ten champion Rose Bowl champion
Rose Bowl, W 10–7 vs. Oregon
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 1
AP	No. 2
Record	9–1 (7–0 Big Ten)
Head coach	Woody Hayes (7th season)
Offensive scheme	Heavy run
Base defense	Multiple
MVP	Bill Jobko
Captains	Leo Brown Galen Cisco
Home stadium	Ohio Stadium
Seasons ←  1956 1958  →

1957 Big Ten Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 2 Ohio State $	7	–	0	–	0			9	–	1	–	0
No. 3 Michigan State	5	–	1	–	0			8	–	1	–	0
No. 6 Iowa	4	–	1	–	1			7	–	1	–	1
No. 19 Wisconsin	4	–	3	–	0			6	–	3	–	0
Purdue	4	–	3	–	0			5	–	4	–	0
Michigan	3	–	3	–	1			5	–	3	–	1
Illinois	3	–	4	–	0			4	–	5	–	0
Minnesota	3	–	5	–	0			4	–	5	–	0
Indiana	0	–	6	–	0			1	–	8	–	0
Northwestern	0	–	7	–	0			0	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1957 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented the Ohio State University in the 1957 Big Ten Conference football season. The team was led by captains Galen Cisco and Leo Brown. They were the third national title team in Ohio State football history. They were coached by Hall of Fame coach Woody Hayes. The Buckeyes were awarded the title by the UPI Coaches Poll and represented the Big Ten Conference in the Rose Bowl.

The Buckeyes finished the 1956 season with a two shut-out losses to Iowa and Michigan. Going into the 1957 season fans had a feeling of rebuilding. The feeling was made stronger with an opening loss to unranked TCU. To make matters worse, Michigan State, Minnesota, Michigan and Iowa were all ranked in the Top 6 of the AP Poll Rankings while Ohio State would not be ranked until late October. Coach Hayes rallied the team every week and made them better following this loss.

The Buckeyes came back with a big win at Washington and victories over Illinois, Wisconsin and Purdue, along with crushing victories over Indiana and Northwestern. A shocking Purdue upset over #2 Michigan State, a tie between Michigan and Iowa, and Minnesota’s unraveling season after a loss to Illinois continued to help the Buckeyes.

It was a late star performance by sophomore fullback Bob White against unbeaten Iowa that pushed the team even further. Trailing 13–10 and on their own 32-yard line, White ran on six of the eight plays for 66 out of the 68 yards, capped off by a 5-yard touchdown run.

A victory over Michigan moved Ohio State up to #2 in the AP, behind undefeated Auburn. However, the UPI Coaches' poll voted OSU #1 and Auburn #2 as the Tigers were on probation. ^[1]

In a hard fought Rose Bowl game, a late field goal by Don Sutherin in the fourth quarter sealed the victory over the Oregon Ducks.

Following the season's bowls, the Buckeyes were voted No. 1 by the Football Writers Association of America and awarded the Grantland Rice Award representative of the national championship. ^[2]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 28	TCU *		Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		L 14–18	81,784	[3]
October 5	at Washington *		Husky Stadium Seattle, WA		W 35–7	36,328
October 12	Illinois		Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (Illibuck)	NBC	W 21–7	82,239
October 19	Indiana		Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 56–0	78,348
October 26	at Wisconsin	No. 12	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI		W 16–13	51,051
November 2	Northwestern	No. 8	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 47–6	79,635
November 9	Purdue	No. 6	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 20–7	79,177
November 16	No. 5 Iowa	No. 6	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH		W 17–13	82,935
November 23	at No. 19 Michigan	No. 3	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)		W 31–14	101,001	[4]
January 1, 1958	vs. Oregon *	No. 2	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl)	NBC	W 10–7	98,202
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Game summaries

TCU

See also: 1957 TCU Horned Frogs football team

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
•TCU	6	6	6	0	18
Ohio State	7	7	0	0	14

• Date: September 28
• Location: Ohio Stadium
• Game attendance: 81,784
• Game weather: Clear, 62 °F (17 °C)

Scoring summary

Q1		TCU	Lasater 7 yard run (kick failed)	TCU 0–6
Q1		OSU	LeBeau 1 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OSU 7–6
Q2		TCU	Shofner 90 yard punt return (kick failed)	TCU 7–12
Q2		OSU	Clark 2 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OSU 14–12
Q3		TCU	Spikes 16 yard run (kick failed)	TCU 14–18

Team Statistics

Stat		Ohio State		TCU
Pass Atts.		3		3
Pass Comps.		2		0
Pass Yards		20		0
Yds./Pass		10		0
Rush Atts.		62		54
Rush Yards		242		184
Yds./Rush		3.9		3.4
Total Yards		262		184
Fumbles Lost		2		1
INTs Lost		0		1
Total Turnovers		2		2

^[5]

At Washington

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
•Ohio State	0	7	14	14	35
Washington	0	7	0	0	7

• Date: October 5
• Location: Husky Stadium, Seattle, WA
• Game attendance: 37,500

Scoring summary

Q2		WASH	Dunn 1 yard run (Dunn kick)	WASH 7–0
Q2		OHST	Kremblas 1 yard run (Sutherin kick)	Tie 7–7
Q3		OHST	Sutherin 81 yard punt return (Sutherin kick)	OHST 14–7
Q3		OHST	Cisco 7 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OHST 21–7
Q4		OHST	LeBeau 9 yard pass from Clark (Sutherin kick)	OHST 28–7
Q4		OHST	Connazino 1 yard run (Spychalski kick)	OHST 35–7

See also: 1957 Washington Huskies football team

^[6]

Illinois

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Illinois	0	0	7	0	7
•Ohio State	7	0	7	7	21

• Date: October 12
• Location: Ohio Stadium
• Game attendance: 82,239
• Game weather: Clear, 60 °F (16 °C)

Scoring summary

Q1		OSU	Clark 9 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OSU 7–0
Q3		ILL	Haller 58 yard pass to Kreitling (Haller kick)	TIED 7–7
Q3		OSU	Kremblas 1 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OSU 14–7
Q4		OSU	Kremblas 6 yard pass to Sutherin (Sutherin kick)	OSU 21–7

See also: 1957 Illinois Fighting Illini football team

Indiana

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Indiana	0	0	0	0	0
•Ohio State	14	23	12	7	56

• Date: October 19
• Location: Ohio Stadium
• Game attendance: 78,348
• Game weather: Clear, 50 °F (10 °C)

See also: 1957 Indiana Hoosiers football team

^[7]

At Wisconsin

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
•Ohio State	13	0	3	0	16
Wisconsin	13	0	0	0	13

• Date: October 26
• Location: Camp Randall Stadium, Madison, WI
• Game attendance: 50,051
• Game weather: Cloudy, wind 10-15 mph, 35 °F (2 °C)

See also: 1957 Wisconsin Badgers football team

^[8]

Northwestern

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Northwestern	0	0	0	6	6
•Ohio State	6	14	13	14	47

• Date: November 2
• Location: Ohio Stadium
• Game attendance: 79,635
• Game weather: Clear, 65 °F (18 °C)

See also: 1957 Northwestern Wildcats football team

^[9]

Purdue

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Purdue	6	0	7	0	13
•Ohio State	3	7	0	7	17

• Date: November 16
• Location: Ohio Stadium
• Game attendance: 82,935
• Game weather: Clear, 60 °F (16 °C)

Scoring summary

Q1		OSU	Sutherin 18 y ard field goal	OSU 3–0
Q1		IOWA	Duncan 8 yard pass to Prescott (kick failed)	IOWA 3–6
Q2		OSU	Kremblas 1 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OSU 10–6
Q3		IOWA	Duncan 1 yard run (Prescott kick)	IOWA 10–13
Q4		OSU	White 5 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OSU 17–13

See also: 1957 Purdue Boilermakers football team

^[10]

Iowa

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Iowa	6	0	7	0	13
•Ohio State	3	7	0	7	17

• Date: November 16
• Location: Ohio Stadium
• Game attendance: 82,935
• Game weather: Clear, 60 °F (16 °C)

Scoring summary

Q1		OSU	Sutherin 18 yard field goal	OSU 3–0
Q1		IOWA	Duncan 8 yard pass to Prescott (kick failed)	IOWA 6–3
Q2		OSU	Kremblas 1 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OSU 10–6
Q3		IOWA	Duncan 1 yard run (Prescott kick)	IOWA 13–10
Q4		OSU	White 5 yard run (Sutherin kick)	OSU 17–13

See also: 1957 Iowa Hawkeyes football team

^[11]

At Michigan

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
•Ohio State	7	3	14	7	31
Michigan	7	7	0	0	14

• Date: November 23
• Location: Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, MI
• Game attendance: 100,101
• Game weather: Cloudy

Scoring summary

1		MICH	Jim Pace 16-yard run (Jim Van Pelt kick)	MICH 7-0
1		OSU	Dick LeBeau 5-yard run (Don Sutherin kick)	Tied 7-7
2		OSU	Don Sutherin 32-yard field goal	OSU 10-7
2		MICH	Brad Myers 25-yard pass from Jim Van Pelt (Jim Van Pelt kick)	MICH 14-10
3		OSU	Dick LeBeau 8-yard run (Frank Kremblas kick)	OSU 17-14
3		OSU	Frank Kremblas 16-yard run (Frank Kremblas kick)	OSU 24-14
4		OSU	Joe Cannavino 13 yard lateral from Frank Kremblas (Frank Kremblas kick)	OSU 31-14

See also: 1957 Michigan Wolverines football team

Ohio State played without halfback Don Clark, who was sidelined with a groin injury. ^{[12] [13]}

Vs. Oregon (Rose Bowl)

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
•Ohio State	7	0	0	3	10
Oregon	0	7	0	0	7

• Date: January 1
• Location: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA
• Game attendance: 98,202
• TV announcers (NBC): Chick Hearn and Mel Allen

Scoring summary

1		OSU	Frank Kremblas 1-yard run (Don Sutherin kick)	OSU 7-0
2		OREG	Jim Shanley 5-yard run (Jack Morris kick)	Tied 7-7
4		OSU	Don Sutherin 34-yard field goal	OSU 10-7

Main article: 1958 Rose Bowl

See also: 1957 Oregon Ducks football team

Roster

1957 Ohio State Buckeyes football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class OL Tom Baldacci RB Gerry Ballinger WR Russ Bowermaster WR Leo Brown RB Joe Cannavino RB Leroy Carr RB Galen Cisco RB Don Clark OL Al Crawford QB 23 Thomas Crawford Sr RB John Dresser FB 34 Len Fontes So OL Dan Fronk RB Ralph Gage WR Jim Houston OL Bill Jobko QB 22 Frank Kremblas Jr HB 44 Dick LeBeau Jr WR Rich Michael WR Thomas Morgan QB Andrew Okulovich RB Russell Provenza RB Philip Robinson QB Jim Samuels OL Dick Schafrath OL Aurealius Thomas RB Joseph Trivisonno RB Bill Wentz FB Bob White So RB Dave Zuhars	Defense Pos. # Name Class OL Jim Marshall DB Don Sutherin Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K Don Sutherin Sr	Head coach Woody Hayes Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster

Awards and honors

• All-American: Aurealius Thomas, G
• All-Big Ten: Aurealius Thomas, G, Leo Brown, E
• Team MVP: Bill Jobko, G

1958 NFL draftees

Player	Round	Pick	Position	NFL club
Bill Jobko	7	80	Linebacker	Los Angeles Rams
Don Sutherin	8	94	Defensive back	New York Giants
Russ Bowermaster	11	132	End	Cleveland Browns

References

1. "Auburn Barred From Bowl Games, Placed on Probation by S.E.C.," Charleston Gazette, February 14, 1956, p13
2. Written at New York City. "Ohio State Is Winner Of Grantland Rice Award". The Buffalo News . Buffalo. International News Service. January 4, 1958. Retrieved June 10, 2024. The Buckeyes received two of the five first-place votes in the balloting conducted by Look Magazine. In the voting by a five-man panel, Ohio State got eight points to five apiece for Auburn, Navy, and Michigan State.
3. "TCU in major upset win over Ohio State". The Palladium-Item. September 29, 1957. Retrieved March 21, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
4. Tommy Devine (November 24, 1957). "M at Its Best, But Bucks Better, 31-14". Detroit Free Press. p. 1E – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
6. "Washington Buried by Ohio State, 35-7." Eugene Register-Guard. 1957 Oct 6. Retrieved 2015-Jan-05.
7. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
8. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
9. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
10. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 1, 2017. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
11. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 1, 2017. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
12. "100,101 See Ohio State Overpower Wolverines; 31-14." Palm Beach Post. 1957 Nov 24.
13. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.

General

• Lindy's (2002), A Championship Season...and the Battle for #1, p. 76