Buckeye Madness by Joe Menzer

Author:Joe Menzer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Published: 2005-07-15T00:00:00+00:00

Signs that Hayes was slipping became more frequent the following season. There was a 29-28 loss to Oklahoma in front of 88,113 at Ohio Stadium. The Sooners scored a touchdown and a field goal in the final one minute, 29 seconds to pull out the victory. It wasn’t an upset; the Buckeyes entered the game ranked fourth in the country, the Sooners third. But even after scoring their late touchdown, the Sooners trailed 28-26 upon getting stuffed on a two-point conversion attempt. The Buckeyes prepared for the onside kick that was to come next, but Oklahoma placekicker Uwe von Schamann squibbed it just right and Oklahoma recovered. A few plays later, von Schamann shocked the home crowd by kicking a 41-yard field goal for the win.

There was another 14-6 loss to Michigan with the Big Ten championship and a Rose Bowl trip hanging in the balance. The game was in Ann Arbor, and Mike Trgovac very nearly played a key role in the outcome, much to his horror.

“What happened in the game was they were driving on us and they ran an option play and they fumbled the ball and we recovered it. I was a freshman and I jumped off-sides, almost, but I got back on that play,” Trgovac said. “I can still see the TV replay of that, showing me as I walk off the field to the sidelines after that play. I’m holding my head and looking for a flag. I’m thinking, ‘My whole career could be ruined.’ And it could have been.

“They fumbled the ball there, but if I would have been called for off-sides they could have kicked a field goal there or gone in to score a touchdown. My stomach was just in knots. Luckily they didn’t throw the flag, or my whole career could have been different.”

Instead, it was another loss to Michigan for Hayes. In what would prove to be his final appearance in Michigan Stadium, Hayes went out in typical style. On the play described by Trgovac, the Buckeyes were driving with about four minutes to go in the game, hoping a touchdown and two-point conversion would tie the score. But after reaching the Michigan 10-yard line, quarterback Rod Gerald took a hit in the backfield and lost the fumble to the Wolverines at the 18-yard line. The chance for a tie was lost along with the fumble, and Hayes exploded in typical fashion on the sideline.

After ripping off his headphones and slamming them into the turf in disgust, the enraged Hayes turned to find a cameraman from ABC-TV, Mike Freedman, closely filming his every move. Hayes was furious, and later described the scene for Hornung of the Columbus Dispatch.

“We were going down the field with a chance to score in a great game for a great championship, and we lost the ball and a chance to score a touchdown. I was sick about it—and as I turned around, right there in my face was this damn television camera. I took a swing at it.

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