Franklin feels like he’s in that weird spot Mark Richt was with Georgia before he was canned. Ninety percent of fanbases around the country would love to have his results. Penn St fans wonder what’s keeping them from being Ohio St (and Michigan of late).
No doubt. Ohio State's two coaches between Woody and Tressel both lived in this universe for long stretches of time.
Ohio State had no choice but to fire Woody after he punched an opposing Player in the Gator Bowl after the 1978 season. Truth be told, however, the decision was made somewhat easier by the fact that Woody's only ever three-game skid against The Team Up North (TTUN) was 1976-1978, his last three.
Earle Bruce had been an assistant on Woody's NC Team in 1968 (66-71 in total) then had a couple HC jobs before tOSU grabbed him from Iowa State after firing Woody. In his nine years as HC at Ohio State he notably bested Bo 5-4 (Bo had bested Woody 5-4-1) but after a terrific first year mostly with Woody's recruits, he slid into losing three games every year:
- 79: 11-1, beat M, lost a CLOSE RB to USC that would have been for an NC.
- 80: 9-3, L to M, also lost to PSU in the Fiesta Bowl. Team was 9-1 going into THE GAME but lost their last two.
- 81: 9-3, beat M and beat Navy in the Liberty Bowl. Basically the opposite of 1980. This team was only 7-3 going into THE GAME, but won their last two. This team was co-champion of the BigTen but lost out to Iowa on the "longest loser" tiebreaker.
- 82: 9-3, beat M, beat BYU in the Holiday Bowl. This team was 7-3 going into THE GAME but won their last two. Ohio State and Michigan each had one league loss but Michigan played nine and Ohio State played eight league games so Michigan had a better winning percentage because 8-1>7-1.
- 83: 9-3, L to M, beat Pitt in the Fiesta Bowl. This team was 8-2 heading into THE GAME and split their last two.
- 84: 9-3, beat M, L to USC in the Rose Bowl. Yet another close RB loss (20-17 this time). Similar to 83 being 8-2 going into THE GAME and splitting the last two.
- 85: 9-3, L to M, beat BYU in the Citrus Bowl. Same as the two prior years being 8-2 and splitting the last two games.
- 86: 10-3, L to M (CLOSE, 26-24), beat aTm in the Cotton Bowl. They had an extra game because they played Bama at the Meadowlands in the Kick Off Classic. They lost their first two, won nine straight, lost to M, and won their bowl.
- 87: 6-4-1, Beat M, no bowl. Coach Bruce was fired prior to THE GAME and the surprise 23-20 upset in Ann Arbor would be Ohio State's last win up there until Jim Tressel's first year, 2001.
Bruce really only had one bad year, his last. Even that was still above .500 and within a few years of that time that would have easily been good enough for a bowl. I don't think he was fired for the ONE bad year. He was fired because he was close but no cigar for his entire tenure.
Then came the dark times (at least with respect to the rivalry) of John Cooper but even during that time, after 1991 the Buckeyes were generally very good, they just couldn't beat Michigan or win bowls:
- 88: 4-6-1 L to M*, no bowl. The other reason Bruce was fired was that recruiting had dropped off. The cupboard was bare when Cooper arrived and it took him a few years to restock it.
- 89: 8-4, L to M, lost to Auburn in the HoF Bowl. This team was 8-2 going into THE GAME but lost their last two.
- 90: 7-4-1, L to M, lost to Air Force in the Liberty Bowl. This team was 7-2-1 going into THE GAME but lost their last two.
- 91: 8-4, L to M, lost to Syracuse in the HoF Bowl. The loss to Syracuse along with the previous year's loss to Air Force were just inexcusable. Ohio State EASILY beat Syracuse at their place a few months later but regular season games against teams not named Michigan were easy for Cooper.
- 92: 8-3-1, tied M, lost to UGA in the Citrus Bowl. So in his fifth year Cooper FINALLY didn't lose to Michigan.
- 93: 10-1-1, L to M, beat BYU in the Holiday Bowl. So in his sixth year Cooper FINALLY won a bowl game! This team was a BigTen co-champ with Wisconsin and lost out to the Badgers on the "Longest Loser" tiebreaker. But for the Michigan loss they'd have been in the Rose Bowl (which UW won) playing for an NC.
- 94: 9-4, beat M, lost to Bama in the Citrus Bowl. So in his seventh year Cooper FINALLY beat Michigan. This was something of a rebuilding year but ended REALLY well. First, Cooper FINALLY got his first win over Michigan and then the bowl loss wasn't as bad as it might seem. Bama was REALLY good that year. They finished 12-1 with their only loss being by a single point to Florida in the SECCG and Ohio State played them to a 24-17 decision. Given that Ohio State had three prior losses that was NOT expected.
- 95: 11-2, L to M, lost to TN in the Citrus Bowl. There are a lot of Ohio State fans who still call Tennessee "Tennecheat" or "Tennecleat" over this loss. The field was quite sloppy and apparently the Volunteers wore impermissibly long cleats. I really don't get hung up on that because I don't care. Ohio State was 11-0 and in the thick of the NC race before the loss to Michigan and everything after that was anti-climactic.
- 96: 11-1, L to M, beat ASU in the Rose Bowl. I attended this Rose Bowl. It was great to be there and see my team win but the whole thing was a disappointment because if it hadn't been for the loss to Michigan the Buckeyes would have been NC after UF beat FSU later that night.
- 97: 10-3, L to M, lost to FSU in the Sugar Bowl. The Buckeyes were 10-1 and lost their last two.
- 98: 11-1, beat M, beat aTm in the Sugar Bowl. This was Cooper's best team and a truly great team it was. Their only loss was a strange upset to a Michigan State team coached by some guy named Saban. I've heard he's done pretty well for himself elsewhere since then.
- 99: 6-6, L to M, no bowl.
- 00: 8-4, L to M, lost to USCe in the Outback Bowl.
Both Bruce's and Cooper's are records that most schools would LOVE to have but when you coach at a helmet, that isn't enough.
