COLUMBUS — If you’re looking for drama at Ohio State Saturday, you might want to check what the Department of Theater has on its schedule.
But on the football field, where OSU plays Hawaii, drama is the last thing anyone expects.
The Rainbow Warriors, who probably should be called the Road Warriors after traveling almost 4,500 miles for this game, have won a total of nine games the last four seasons.
They did open the season with a 28-20 win over Colorado last Saturday.
But the scariest thing about Colorado football the last few years has been four-legged mascot Ralphie the Buffalo charging down the ramp at Folsom Stadium before the game. And Ralphie wasn’t even there last week since the game was at Hawaii.
Hawaii’s coach Norm Chow used to be a legendary college offensive coordinator who tutored quarterbacks like Steve Young, Philip Rivers, Carson Palmer and Jim McMahon.
His starting quarterback Saturday will be Max Wittek, who transferred from USC after throwing three touchdown passes and five interceptions in two seasons.
Wittek completed 19 of 38 passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Colorado. Wide receiver Marcus Kemp caught six passes for 116 yards, including a 79-yard touchdown catch, in that game.
Even with a win over a Pac-12 team and some legitimate athletes on its roster, Hawaii is still a huge underdog against No. 1 Ohio State, but probably not one of the very worst teams to come into Ohio Stadium in the last 25 years.
A list of the worst teams to appear on the Buckeyes’ home schedule in the last 25 years would probably look something like this:
1. Florida A&M in 2013.
Ohio State won 76-0 and scored the most points since it had 83 against Iowa in 1950. It was 34-0 after one quarter and Ohio State scored in one play, one play and two plays on its first three possessions.
2. New Mexico State in 2009.
OSU’s 45-0 win doesn’t reflect how pitiful New Mexico State was. It gained only 62 yards the entire game. Seven Buckeyes had more yards total offense than that by themselves.
3. Eastern Michigan in 2010.
Jim Tressel had a thing about not running up big scores, so even Ohio State’s players were amazed that they hung a 73-20 loss on Eastern Michigan. In Tressel’s previous nine seasons at OSU, the Buckeyes had never scored more than 58 points in a game.
4. Kent State in 2014.
It was Kent State’s misfortune to be on Ohio State’s schedule the week after the Buckeyes’ loss to Virginia Tech last season.
Add in the fact that the Golden Flashes weren’t very good and you get a 66-0 Ohio State win. Ohio State scored on seven of its first eight possessions and went up 45-0 at halftime.
5. Pittsburgh in 1996.
Either of the first two teams Ohio State played that year at Ohio Stadium could have made the list. But Pittsburgh gets the nod over Rice because as a Top 25 team just a few years earlier it had fallen much farther than the Owls to become a contender for worst opponent.
After opening the season with a 70-7 win over Rice, Ohio State demolished Pittsburgh 72-0. The Panthers, who somehow won four games that season, managed only four first downs all day.
Even with a short week to prepare for Hawaii after beating Virginia Tech 42-24 on Monday night, Ohio State should roll over the Rainbow Warriors. The only question is by how much.
The prediction: Ohio State 51, Hawaii 7.
.neFileBlock {
margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
padding-bottom: 5px;
padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
font-size: 85%;
}
