1987 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

1987 Ohio State Buckeyes football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record6–4–1 (4–4 Big Ten)
Head coach
Defensive coordinatorGary Blackney (3rd season)
MVPChris Spielman
Captains
Home stadiumOhio Stadium
1987 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 8 Michigan State $7–0–19–2–1
No. 16 Iowa6–2–010–3–0
Indiana6–2–08–4–0
No. 19 Michigan5–3–08–4–0
Ohio State4–4–06–4–1
Minnesota3–5–06–5–0
Purdue3–5–03–7–1
Illinois2–5–13–7–1
Northwestern2–6–02–8–1
Wisconsin1–7–03–8–0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1987 Ohio State Buckeyes football team was an American football team that represented the Ohio State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their ninth and final year under head coach Earle Bruce, the Buckeyes compiled a 6–4–1 record (4–4 in conference games), finished in fifth place in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 224 to 181. They did not appear in a bowl game for the first time since 1971 and were unranked in the final AP poll.[1]

The Buckeyes gained an average of 151.6 rushing yards and 174.2 passing yards per game. On defense, they held opponents to 144.4 rushing yards and 171.1 passing yards per game.[2] The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Tom Tupa (1,786 passing yards, 55.4% completion percentage), running back Vince Workman (470 rushing yards, 4.0 yards per carry), and wide receiver Everett Ross (29 receptions for 585 yards).[2] Tupa (as punter) and linebacker Chris Spielman were consensus first-team All-Americans.[3] Four Ohio State players received first-team honors on the 1987 All-Big Ten Conference football team: Spielman (AP/UPI); linebacker/defensive end Eric Kumerow; defensive back William White (AP/UPI); and Tupa as punter (AP).[4][5]

The team played its home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 1212:30 p.m.West Virginia*No. 5
RCMW 24–388,272[6]
September 191:30 p.m.Oregon*No. 5
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
W 24–1489,882[7]
September 261:30 p.m.at No. 4 LSU*No. 7
CBST 13–1379,263[8]
October 33:30 p.m.at IllinoisNo. 9
ABCW 10–673,045[9]
October 101:30 p.m.IndianaNo. 9
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
L 10–3190,032[10]
October 173:30 p.m.at PurdueNo. 17
RCMW 20–1766,501[11]
October 243:30 p.m.MinnesotaNo. 16
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
RCMW 42–989,801[12]
October 313:30 p.m.No. 20 Michigan StateNo. 15
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
ABCL 7–1389,915[13]
November 72:00 p.m.at Wisconsin
L 24–2663,195[14]
November 141:30 p.m.Iowa
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
L 27–2990,090[15]
November 2112:00 p.m.at Michigan
ABCW 23–20106,031[16]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

West Virginia

Team 1 234Total
West Virginia 0 030 3
• Ohio St 17 007 24
Scoring summary
Q1OHSTFrantz 47 yard field goalOHST 3–0
Q1OHSTBryant 7 yard run (Frantz kick)OHST 10–0
Q1OHSTRoss 23 yard pass from Tupa (Frantz kick)OHST 17–0
Q3WVUBaumann 27 yard field goalOHST 17–3
Q4OHSTWhite 29 yard interception return (Frantz kick)OHST 24–3

[17]

Oregon

Oregon Ducks at Ohio State Buckeyes
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Oregon 0 0 01414
Ohio St 0 3 14724

at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio

  • Date: September 19, 1987
  • Game time: 1:30 p.m.
  • Game weather: Sunny, 74 °F (23 °C)
  • Game attendance: 89,882
  • Referee: Jerry Hendrickson
Game information

LSU

Team 1 234Total
Ohio St 3 037 13
LSU 7 303 13

Illinois

Team 1 234Total
• Ohio St 7 300 10
Illinois 0 006 6

Indiana

Team 1 234Total
• Indiana 7 3714 31
Ohio St 0 1000 10
  • Date: October 10
  • Location: Ohio Stadium

At Purdue

#17 Ohio State Buckeyes (3–1–1) at Purdue Boilermakers (1–3–1)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ohio St 7 10 0320
Purdue 0 0 10717

at Ross–Ade Stadium, West Lafayette, Indiana

  • Date: October 17, 1987
  • Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: Overcast, 53 °F (12 °C)
  • Game attendance: 66,501
  • Referee: John Nealon
  • TV: Raycom
TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
Ohio St PassingTom Tupa8/16, 174 Yds, TD
RushingJames Bryant23 Rush, 77 Yds
ReceivingVince Workman4 Rec, 88 Yds, TD
Purdue PassingDoug Downing20/26, 218 Yds, 2 TD, INT
RushingJames Medlock17 Rush, 44 Yds
ReceivingCalvin Williams8 Rec, 107 Yds, 2 TD

Minnesota

Team 1 234Total
Minnesota 0 900 9
• Ohio St 7 71414 42
  • Date: October 24
  • Location: Ohio Stadium

Michigan State

Michigan State Spartans at Ohio State Buckeyes
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Michigan St 10 3 0013
Ohio St 7 0 007

at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio

  • Date: October 31, 1987
  • Game time: 3:30 p.m.
  • Game weather: Sunny, 60 °F (16 °C)
  • Game attendance: 89,915
  • Referee: Ron Winter
  • TV: ABC
Game information

Wisconsin

Team 1 234Total
Ohio St 14 1000 24
• Wisconsin 7 6103 26

Iowa

Team 1 234Total
• Iowa 3 12014 29
Ohio St 7 776 27
  • Date: November 14
  • Location: Ohio Stadium

Michigan

Ohio State Buckeyes (5–4–1) at Michigan Wolverines
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ohio St 0 7 13323
Michigan 7 6 7020

at Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan

  • Date: November 21, 1987
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: Cloudy, low 30s
  • Game attendance: 106,031
  • TV: ABC
Game information

Earle Bruce's final game as Ohio State head coach.[18]

Roster

1987 Ohio State Buckeyes football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
C 76 Dan Beatty  Fr
FB 38 Chris Boddie  Fr
OT 72 Henry Brown Sr
RB 41 James Bryant So
QB 16 Mike Chancey  Fr
SE 18 Gary Clift  Jr
G 66 Karl Coles  So
FB 44 George Cooper Sr
SE 22 Tony Cupe  Fr
G 50 Jeff Davidson So
C 77 Jim Davidson  Jr
SE 80 Bernard Edwards Fr
TE 89 Jeff Ellis Fr
FL 32 Tony Fenstermaker So
OT 70 Steve France  So
QB 15 Greg Frey  Fr
RB 35 Jim Graham Fr
FB 33 Steve Gresock Sr
G 65 Erik Grimm  Fr
C 62 John Grubb Sr
FL 26 Nate Harris Sr
FB 39 Tyrone Harrison Fr
TE 88 Alex Higdon Sr
C 60 Dan Hirneise  Fr
TE 83 Frank Hoak  Jr
OT 71 Mike Huddleston Fr
TE 87 Rich Huffman  Fr
TE 82 Jay Koch Fr
G 73 Jeff Kuczek  Fr
TE 86 Gary Lickovitch  Fr
G 53 Paul Long Fr
TE 95 Matt Manifold So
FB 11 Bill Matlock Jr
C 52 Tom Moore Jr
OT 74 Tim Moxley  So
OT 63 Roy Nichols Fr
TE 85 Jim Palmer  So
OT 75 John Peterson  Fr
RB 1 Lance Price  Fr
FL 5 Everett Ross Jr
C 55 Tom Scholl Jr
OT 69 Jay Shaffer Sr
OT 78 Mike Shoaf Fr
SE 4 Wes Siegenthaler  Fr
RB 25 Carlos Snow Fr
RB 28 John Spencer Fr
OT 79 Joe Staysniak  So
QB, P 19 Tom Tupa (C) Sr
C 68 Jeff Uhlenhake  Jr
C 61 Ken Voll  Fr
QB 17 John Wagoner  Fr
RB, FL 42 Vince Workman Jr
OL 51 Greg Zackeroff  Jr
TE 96 Srecko Zizakovic  So
 Defense
Pos.#NameClass
OLB 32 Tom Anderzack  Jr
ROV 3 Sean Bell  Jr
LB 91 Brian Benio  Fr
S 27 David Brown  So
CB 19 Joe Canestraro Sr
DB 7 Vincent Clark Fr
OLB 59 Matthew Closson Fr
DT 92 Ken Coleman  Fr
LB 56 Orlando Craig So
CB 21 Zack Dumas So
LB 49 Andrew Gurd Fr
DT 55 Ray Holliman Sr
OLB 30 Dedrick Howard  So
LB 10 Derek Isaman Jr
ROV 47 Ray Jackson Sr
NG 95 John Kacherski Fr
LB 62 Charles Keenan  So
OLB 14 Eric Kumerow Sr
OLB 81 Tom Lease Fr
DT 93 Derek MacCready Jr
OLB 99 Michael McCray  Jr
DT 97 Tony Moore  Fr
ROV 46 Jim Peel  Fr
S 48 Mark Pelini  Fr
OLB 13 Scott Powell  Jr
LB 90 Fred Ridder Sr
CB 43 Ceroy Robinson So
CB 29 Greg Rogan Sr
DB 24 Tim Rutledge Fr
DT 98 Mike Showalter So
LB 36 Chris Spielman (C) Sr
LB 57 John Sullivan Jr
NG 67 Mike Sullivan Jr
NG 54 Pat Thomas  So
CB 26 Brian Tuffin Sr
CB 37 William White (C) Sr
 Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
K 12 Matt Frantz Sr
K 9 Mike Morton Sr
K 6 Pat O'Morrow So
K, QB 8 Mark Smith Fr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Gary Blackney – Defensive Coordinator (4th year)
  • Bill Conley – Inside Linebackers (4th year)
  • Steve Devine – Offensive Line – Guards, Centers (5th year)
  • Randy Hart – Defensive Line (6th year)
  • Chuck Heater – Defensive Backs (3rd year)
  • Tom Lichtenberg – Quarterbacks, Receivers (2nd year)
  • Bob Palcic – Offensive Line – Tackles, Tight Ends (2nd year)
  • Fred Pagac – Outside Linebackers (10th year)
  • Leonard Willis – Running Backs (3rd year)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Roster

1988 NFL draftees

Player Round Pick Position NFL club
Eric Kumerow116Defensive EndMiami Dolphins
Chris Spielman229LinebackerDetroit Lions
Alex Higdon356Tight EndAtlanta Falcons
Tom Tupa368QuarterbackPhoenix Cardinals
William White485Defensive BackDetroit Lions
George Cooper6156Running BackMiami Dolphins
Ray Jackson7185Defensive BackSeattle Seahawks
Henry Brown10277TackleWashington Redskins

[19]

References

  1. ↑ "1987 Ohio State Buckeyes Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  2. 1 2 "1987 Ohio State Buckeyes Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
  3. ↑ "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. pp. 3, 13. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  4. ↑ "Morris, White All-Big Ten Running Backs". The Argus-Press. November 25, 1987. p. 11.
  5. ↑ "All Big-Ten Football Team" (PDF). The Daily Iowan. November 24, 1987. p. 8.
  6. ↑ "Bucks maul Mountaineers". Dayton Daily News. September 13, 1987. Retrieved February 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Bucks topple Ducks". The Newark Advocate. September 20, 1987. Retrieved May 14, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Bucks' second half lifts them to 13–13 tie at LSU". The Marion Star. September 27, 1987. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Ohio State halts Illini drive". Herald and Review. October 4, 1987. Retrieved May 14, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Darkest day; Indiana hands Buckeyes 31–10 defeat". Troy Daily News. October 11, 1987. Retrieved May 14, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Field goal lifts OSU over Purdue". Star Tribune. October 18, 1987. Retrieved May 14, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Ohio State 'Snow's Gophers 42–9". The Marion Star. October 25, 1987. Retrieved May 14, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ Elton Alexander (November 1, 1987). "Michigan State crushes Ohio State: Spartans take lead in Big Ten". The Plain Dealer. pp. 1D, 4D – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Jubilant Badgers feeling no pain". The Journal Times. November 8, 1987. Retrieved May 14, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ "Iowa's big play dumps Bucks". Dayton Daily News. November 15, 1987. Retrieved May 14, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ "Fired Bruce departs with a victory". The Atlanta Journal & Constitution. November 22, 1987. Retrieved May 14, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ↑ Gainesville Sun. 1987 Sept 13.
  18. ↑ "Ohio State sends Bruce out a winner." Gainesville Sun. 1987 Nov 22.
  19. ↑ "1988 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
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