9 Days: Don Scott, Ed Thompson, David Boston, Donte Whitner and Brian Hartline

We are now down to single digits until the start of Ohio State's 2014 season. 91 days down and only 9 to go. Hopefully I have enough stamina in the tank to make it through this marathon.

Today's featured players are Don Scott, Ed Thompson, David Boston, Donte Whitner and Brian Hartline.

Go here to see the list of the 30 players who have worn No. 9 for Ohio State and been selected in the NFL Draft since 1934.

Don Scott was Ohio State's first All-American at quarterback.

Don Scott, HB/QB (1938-1940)
High School: Canton McKinley
Died: 1943 (England)

Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 14-9-1 with Scott on the team.
1939 Big Ten Title.

Honors
1939 All-American.
1939 All-Big Ten.
1940 All-American.
1940 All-Big Ten.
1943 Ohio State's airport is re-named Don Scott Airport.
1988 Inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame.
2000 Named to the Ohio State All-Century Team.
Stark County High School Hall of Fame.
Canton City School's track is named after Scott.

Don Scott's Ohio State career per ohiostatebuckeyes.com:

A two-time All-American, Don Scott was the first Ohio State quarterback to earn such an honor. On the football field, he was considered one of the most talented and versatile players in OSU's history. Coach Esco Sarkkinen credits him with superbly masterminding the undisputed 1939 Big Ten Championship team. Scott also played on the 1939 basketball team that won the Big Ten and played in the first ever NCAA finals.

Scott also played baseball and track for Ohio State.

Scott had to decide between the NFL and WWII per Wikipedia:

Scott was ninth overall selection in the 1941 NFL Draft. He was selected by the Chicago Bears. Scott decided to volunteer to fight in the war in Europe.

Scott had participated in the Civilian Pilot Training Program, sponsored by the Civil Aeronautics Administration, while at Ohio State. When he entered the United States Army Air Forces it was as a commissioned pilot.

Don Scott and WWII per library.osu.edu:

Don Scott volunteered to fly in WWII rather than play in the NFL as a 1st round draft pick.

When World War II broke out, many OSU students immediately signed up to join in the fight, suspending their studies for a much greater cause. Probably none of them was more well-known than Don Scott, the archetypical Big Man on Campus.

[...]

After enlisting, by May 1941, Scott, along with other OSU athletes were stationed in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for Air Corps Training Detachment. By October, Scott had completed training and had advanced to get his wings and commission in the Army Air Corps. He was eventually promoted to a Captain.

Unfortunately, on October 1, 1943, at the age of 23, Scott was killed in a bomber crash over England. This marked the 100th alumnus or former student to give his life in World War II. One week after his death, on October 8, his wife gave birth to their child, Don Sands Scott.

The creation of Don Scott Field per library.osu.edu:

Soon after Scott’s death, President Bevis presented a resolution to the Board of Trustees that read, in part:

[Scott] was one of the nation’s great athletes; he was a sportsman in the finest sense of that term; he was a thorough gentleman, beloved by all who knew him; his life brought great credit to his alma mater. … As a fitting commemoration … I desire to propose to this Board that the airfield now owned and operated by the University be designated ‘Don Scott Field.’

The board approved the resolution and the newly named Don Scott Field was used by the Navy until the end of the war, when OSU transferred its focus to a civilian aviation curriculum.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide, ohiostatebuckeyes.com, library.osu.edu and Wikipedia

Thompson won 3 Big Ten Titles and was captain in 1976.

Ed Thompson, LB (1974-1976)

Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 30-5-1 with Thompson on the team.
1974 Big Ten Title.
1975 Big Ten Title.
1976 Big Ten Title.
1977 Defeated Colorado 27-10 to win the Orange Bowl.
Went 2-1 against That Team, 1974 (12-10) and 1975 (21-14).

Honors
1976 Captain.
1975 All-Big Ten.

Thompson led Ohio State in tackles with 126 in 1975. He ranks 7th all-time with 149 tackles in a season (1976). Thompson finished his Buckeye career with 338 tackles.

Today Ed Thompson resides in Portsmouth and owns a carpet business.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide and lostletterman.com

Boston was an All-American in 1998 and re-wrote Ohio State's record book.

David Boston, WR (1996-1998)
Born: 1978 (Humble, TX)
High School: Humble

Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 32-5 with Boston on the team.
1996 Big Ten Title.
1998 Big Ten Title.
1997 Defeated No. 4 Arizona State 20-17 to win the Rose Bowl.
1999 Defeated No. 8 Texas A&M 24-14 to win the Sugar Bowl.
1996 Defeated No. 5 Notre Dame (29-16) in South Bend and No. 4 Penn State (38-7) in Columbus in consecutive weeks.
Defeated That Team 31-16 in 1998.

Honors
1998 All-American.
1998 All-Big Ten.
1997 All-Big Ten.
1997 Academic All-Big Ten.
1999 Sugar Bowl MVP.

Boston's Ohio State career per The Ohio State Team Guide:

Winning TD in the 1997 Rose Bowl.

In three seasons, David Boston set or tied 12 Ohio State receiving records, including most receptions (191), yards (2,855) and touchdowns (34) in a career and most receptions (85) and yards (1,435) in a season (1998). His records also included most 100-yard receiving games in a career (13) and season (8 in 1998).

In 1998, he earned first team All-America honors. But what separated him from other receivers in OSU history is the way he stood out in big games. With 19 seconds left to play in the 1997 Rose Bowl, he caught the game-winning touchdown.

In the 1998 Michigan game, he torched the Wolverines with 10 receptions for 231 yards and two touchdowns. He capped off his career by being named MVP of the 1999 Sugar Bowl.

The Humble, Texas, native played eight seasons in the NFL.

What makes it worse is that Marcus Ray of Eastmoor is the player that hit

What makes it worse is that Marcus Ray of Eastmoor is the player that made the hit.

I remember David Boston as a go-to receiver for Joe Germaine and Stanley Jackson.

Unfortunately, I also remember him talking smack before The Game and paying the price for it.

The picture of Boston getting flipped is what comes to mind when I think about the Cooper years and The Game.

In the 1998 Michigan game Boston made up for his performance in 1997. He torched the Wolverines with 10 receptions for 231 yards and two touchdowns.

Boston went on to play eight seasons in the NFL.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide and Wikipedia

Whitner was 3-0 in bowl games and the 8th overall selection in the 2006 NFL Draft.

Donte Whitner, S (2003-05)
Born: 1985 (Cleveland)
High School: Glenville

Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 29-8 with Whitner on the team.
2005 Big Ten Title.
2004 Defeated No. 8 Kansas State 35-28 to win the Fiesta Bowl.
2004 Defeated Oklahoma State 33-7 to win the Alamo Bowl.
2006 Defeated No. 5 Notre Dame 34-20 to win the Fiesta Bowl.
Went 2-1 against That Team, 2004 (37-21) and 2005 (25-21).

Honors
2005 All-American.
2005 All-Big Ten.

Whitner's childhood accident per Wikipedia:

What I imagine the car looked like after hitting 6-year old Donte.

When Whitner was 6 years old he was hit by an oncoming car after chasing a loose football down the street. He had up to 30 fractures in his legs from the impact and was told that he might not be able to walk again. The oncoming car suffered significant body damage. He spent 3 months in a full body cast but managed to recover from the ordeal.

Whitner's last season, 2005, with Ohio State per ohiostatebuckeyes.com:

Whitner earned all-conference honors his junior season in 2005, helping lead the Buckeyes to a 10-2 overall mark, a share of the Big Ten title and a Fiesta Bowl win over Notre Dame. He recorded 73 tackles and had two interceptions for the 2005 Buckeye defense that ranked No. 5 overall in the country.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide, ohiostatebuckeyes.com and Wikipedia

Hartline won 4 Big Ten Titles and went 4-0 against That Team.

Brian Hartline, WR (2005-08)

Born: 1986 (Canton)
High School: GlenOak

Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 43-8 with Hartline on the team.
2005 Big Ten Title.
2006 Big Ten Title.
2007 Big Ten Title.
2008 Big Ten Title.
2006 Defeated No. 5 Notre Dame 34-20 to win the Fiesta Bowl.
2006 Defeated No. 2 Texas 24-7 in Austin.
Went 4-0 against That Team, 2005 (25-21), 2006 (42-39), 2007 (14-3) and 2008 (42-7).

Honors
2006 Academic All-Big Ten.
2007 Academic All-Big Ten.
2008 Academic All-Big Ten.

Brian Hartline's senior year of football and track per brianhartline.com:

I would later attend The Ohio State football camp for an entire week where I would eventually earn a scholarship to play football as a wide receiver. So, going into my senior year there were a lot of expectations, as there should have been, unfortunately, a higher power had a different plan.

Right before half time of our ﬁrst game I ﬁelded a punt and needless to say it was going to be my last for the reminder of my high school career. I ended up breaking my left leg in two places. I was devastated. Shortly after the incident sank in, I understood there was only one thing to do, get back for track season.

Hartline won two Division I State Track Titles.

Now, I was a hurdler in high school and I loved it. But after the injury and after speaking to my doctor, he said that hurdling next track season would prolly be out of the question.

[...]

Ignoring the doctors orders and just trusting what my body was telling me, I was able to return to run a race in indoor track. Needless to say I was signiﬁcantly ahead of schedule in my healing process. Later that spring, I was able to go on and win two division one state titles, along with All-American honors. So by the time it was all said and done, I ended up standing out more as a track athlete then as a football player.

Hartline's Ohio State career per brianhartline.com:

When I got to college I knew track would have to take a back seat if I wanted to take my football game to the next level. Football was my life for the next four years and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

I loved playing football at OSU. We have the best collegiate fans in America and anyone who gets the chance to play for such a great university, is truly blessed. I was fortunate to be apart of a great run while I was at OSU (wait a sec, what athlete isn’t? We always win at THE Ohio State University) which consisted of three Fiesta Bowl appearances, one Sugar Bowl appearance and two National Championship births.

I also can not forget the four Big Ten Championships and four pairs of gold pants I received from beating the University of Michigan all FOUR times.

Unfortunately, in order to get to the next page in your story, you have to turn your current page. So I turned my page in the spring of 2009.

Hartline's feelings about playing for the Dolphins per brianhartline.com:

Once a Buckeye, always a Buckeye.

I absolutely love playing for the Miami Dolphins and the staff that we are fortunate to have here in south Florida. I am also truly blessed to go from the best collegiate fans in America, to the best fans in the National Football League. Thanks for all the support and Go Buckeyes! Go Dolphins!