In 3 Saturdays Ohio State football will return as the Buckeyes host Oregon State. Hopeful that the Urban Meyer situation will be concluded by this time next week.
Below, you will find a list of the 35 players who have worn No. 21 since 1933. Today's featured players are Zack Dumas, B.J. Sander, Nate Salley and Parris Campbell.
| PLAYER | WORN | B1G MVP | TEAM MVP | AA | CAPT. | 1R NFL | ALL B1G | AC AA | NFL DRAFT | AC B1G | LETTER |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glenn Whinnery | 1933 | ||||||||||
| Earl Thomas | 1934-35 | ||||||||||
| Donald Cook* | 1936 | ||||||||||
| Robert Maloney* | 1937 | ||||||||||
| Earl Carlin | 1939-40 | 1939-40 | |||||||||
| Ernest Plank | 1943 | 1943 | |||||||||
| E. Pete Perini* | 1947-48 | 1947-48 | |||||||||
| William Peterson | 1952 | 1952 | |||||||||
| James Samuels | 1957 | ||||||||||
| Michael Benis | 1960 | 1960 | |||||||||
| Kenneth Johnson* | 1961 | 1961 | |||||||||
| Arthur Burton | 1967-69 | 1967-69 | |||||||||
| Frank Andrulis | 1970 | ||||||||||
| Carl Kern | 1972-73 | 1972-73 | |||||||||
| Max Midlam | 1974-76 | 1974-76 | |||||||||
| Ricky Johnson | 1977-78, 1980 | 1977-78, 1980 | |||||||||
| Kevin Richardson | 1982-84 | 1982-84 | |||||||||
| Kevin Delaney | 1985 | 1985 | |||||||||
| Tim Jones | 1985 | ||||||||||
| Zack Dumas | 1986-89 | 1989 | 1986-89 | ||||||||
| Tim Patillo | 1991-94 | 1991, 1993-94 | |||||||||
| Greg Sheehee | 1993-94 | ||||||||||
| Charlie Sanders | 1995, 1997-98 | ||||||||||
| C.J. Moore | 1999 | ||||||||||
| B.J. Sander | 1999-03 | 2003 | 2003 | 2004 | 2000, 2003 | ||||||
| Chris Parnell | 2000 | ||||||||||
| Nate Salley | 2002-05 | 2005 | 2005 | 2006 | 2003, 2004 | 2002-05 | |||||
| Tyson Gentry* | 2004 | ||||||||||
| Anderson Russell | 2006-09 | 2009 | 2006-09 | ||||||||
| Jamie Wood* | 2010-12 | 2010-11 | |||||||||
| Jake Russell* | 2011 | ||||||||||
| Devlin McDaniel | 2013 | ||||||||||
| Parris Campbell | 2014-18 | 2017 | 2015-17 | ||||||||
| Trevon Forte | 2015-16* | ||||||||||
| Marcus Williamson | 2017-18 |
*Wore another number at Ohio State
Did not earn a varsity letter while wearing No. 21
Zack Dumas, S (1986-1989)
Born: 1968
High School: Deptford
Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 28-17-2 with Dumas on the team.
1986 Big Ten Title.
1987 Defeated Texas A&M 28-12 to win the Cotton Bowl.
Honors
1989 Team Captain.
Dumas' senior bio per The Ohio State Team Guide:
6-2, 192...from Deptford, NJ...Bonafide all-star candidate...outstanding all-around player who started nine games at corner last year...moved to safety in the spring without missing a beat...reads very well and gets an excellent jump on the ball...great combination of strength and speed.
Very good at man coverage...excellent blitzing back...seems to play his best against the best players and in the big games...a hitter...the type of back who makes big plays.
A Parade All-American as a senior (high school), when he ran for 1,116 yards and scored 12 touchdowns...also collected 103 tackles and had 10 interceptions last year...threw just three passes during his career, but all three went for TD's...lettered three years in basketball and track, competing in the 100, 400 and long jump in the latter.
Enjoys all music, especially jazz...wants to be a teacher...still an avid basketball player.
Dumas was the second leading tackler of the '89 team with 71 tackles. He also had two carries for 44 yards that season.
Another interesting tidbit is that some people believe Dumas is the reason Ohio State has a poor record against SEC teams in bowl games.
The reason? Dumas' massive hit on Auburn's Stacy Danley in the 1990 Hall of Fame Bowl. Ohio State was up 14-3 early in the second quarter when Dumas laid the wood:
After that hit, Auburn scored 28 straight points to defeat the Buckeyes 31-14 and start the much ballyhooed streak of bowl losses to SEC teams.
Jesse Lamovsky, of clevelandfan.com, believed Dumas' hit started a curse against the SEC:
It took four minutes for Stacy Danley to peel himself off the grass. But as foggy as he might have been in the wake of the Shot Heard Round the Sombrero, his teammates had quickly and suddenly been roused from their own slumber. Zack Dumas had forcefully reminded them that they were in a football game.
“The moment Stacy got hit, it pumped us up,” split end Greg Taylor said afterward. Linebacker Quentin Riggins concurred. “When we saw that hit and what it did to Stacy, it woke us up.”
Since that game- or more precisely, since that hit- Ohio State’s fortunes against the Southeastern Conference have been, to put it mildly, checkered. The Buckeyes have met SEC opponents seven times in bowl games since that 1990 Hall of Fame Bowl. At times they were the favorites, at times they were the underdogs, and at least once it was too close to call. All seven times the final result has been the same- a loss.
Did this hit start a curse? I don't think so. Did it motivate Auburn in that game? Yes, but it had no impact on the future games against teams of that conference.
Either way, I applaud Zack Dumas for his effort and great tackle in that game.
B.J. Sander, P (1999-2003)
Born: 1980 (Cincinnati)
High School: Roger Bacon
Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 46-17 with Sander on the team.
2002 National Champion.
2002 Big Ten Title.
2003 Defeated Miami 31-24 to win the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Championship Game.
2004 Defeated Kansas State 35-28 to win the Fiesta Bowl.
Honors
2003 Ray Guy Award.
2003 All-Big Ten.
Sander's senior bio per the Ohio State Team Guide:
6-3, 212...from Cincinnati...Will take over the punting chores for All-American Andy Groom...left-footed kicker with a strong leg...has appeared in 16 games during his career, including all 12 in 2000 when he averaged 41.9 yards per kick on 37 punts.
Has been the backup to Groom the past two years and has seen only limited playing time in that span...punted extremely will in the spring and the coaching staff does not anticipate any drop-off in 2003.
First-team All-Ohio as a senior (high school)...kicked a 60-yard field goal as a senior...averaged 43.5 yards punting as a junior and 40.4 as a senior.
B.J. Sander's Ohio State career per The Ohio State Team Guide:
B. J. Sander had big shoes to fill in 2003. As the Buckeyes’ punter, he faced the daunting task of replacing graduated All-American Andy Groom. But Sander’s shoes seemed to fit just fine. In a storybook season, he averaged 43.3 yards per punt, was voted to a first-team all-Big Ten berth and became the first Buckeye to win the
Ray Guy Award as the nation’s best collegiate punter.From a pure numbers point, Sander was magical. Of his 82 kicks, a phenomenal 39 were downed inside the opposing 20-yard line. That figure led the nation. Additionally, 16 of his punts were fair-caught, meaning just 31 of his punts were even returned.
Sander led the Big Ten and was fourth nationally in net punting. Like Groom, he was a master at giving the Buckeyes good field position and allowing the Ohio State defense to dominate a game.
Two of his best efforts came late in the year. Against Purdue in Ohio State’s final home game of the season, he punted 10 times, downing seven of those inside the 20 and five inside the 10. At Michigan, where Ohio State athletes establish their legacies, he averaged
49.1 yards per punt on nine kicks.Sander had five kicks of 60 or more yards, including a career best of 68 yards against San Diego State.
The Cincinnati native was a third-round draft pick of the NFL’s Green Bay Packers in 2004 and played there two seasons.
Sander was drafted in the third round of the 2004 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. Although his NFL career only lasted one season, Sander can take comfort in the fact that he will always be Ohio State's first Ray Guy award winner.
B.J. Sander doing his thing in the 2004 Fiesta Bowl:
Nate Salley, FS (2002-05)
Born: 1984 (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
High School: St. Thomas Aquinas
Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 43-8 with Salley on the team.
2002 National Champion.
2002 Big Ten Title.
2005 Big Ten Title.
2003 Defeated Miami to win the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Championship Game.
2004 Defeated Kansas State 35-28 to win the Fiesta Bowl.
2004 Defeated Oklahoma State 33-7 to win the Alamo Bowl.
2006 Defeated Notre Dame 34-20 to win the Fiesta Bowl.
Went 3-1 against That Team.
Honors
2003 Academic All-Big Ten.
2004 Academic All-Big Ten.
2005 All-Big Ten.
Salley's senior bio per The Ohio State Team Guide:
6-3, 220...from Fort Lauderdale, FL...Hard-hitting free safety who will be in his third year as a starter...won second-team all-conference honors last year and is expected to be in the running for postseason recognition again this season.
Has been a steady, dependable performer throughout his career and rarely makes a mistake or is out of position...coaches love his attitude, work ethic and demeanor.
Is a terrific athlete and fine student...is the wise old sage in the Buckeyes' defensive backfield, but plays with great emotion...lettered in basketball for the Buckeyes as a freshman, plying in 10 games after Ohio State returned from the national championship game.
Helped lead Aquinas to a glittering 14-1 record and a berth in the Class 5A state championship game as a senior...finished the 2001 season with 76 tackles, including four tackles-for-loss...blocked eight kicks during his career...also played basketball and was a starter as a junior when Aquinas won the state championship (he was named to the all-tournament team)...competed in track in the spring and advanced to the state finals.
Parris Campbell, WR (2014-18)
High School: Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary
Ohio State
The Buckeyes are 49-6 with Campbell on the team.
2014 National Champion.
2014 Big Ten Title.
2014 Big Ten East Title.
2015 Big Ten East Title.
2016 Big Ten East Title.
2017 Big Ten Title.
2017 Big Ten East Title.
Defeated No. 1 Alabama 42-35 to win the 2015 Sugar Bowl.
Defeated No. 2 Oregon 42-20 to win the 2015 CFP National Championship.
Defeated No. 8 Notre Dame 44-28 to win the 2016 Fiesta Bowl.
Defeated No. 8 USC 24-7 to win the 2018 Cotton Bowl.
Honors
2017 Captain.
| YEAR | GAMES | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | RUSH ATT | YDS | AVG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 12 | 13 | 121 | 9.3 | 0 | 4 | 54 | 13.5 | 1 |
| 2017 | 13 | 40 | 584 | 14.6 | 3 | 10 | 132 | 13.2 | 1 |
| TOTAL | 25 | 53 | 705 | 13.3 | 3 | 14 | 186 | 13.3 | 2 |
Campbell's bio from 2017 per The Ohio State Team Guide:
6-1, 208...from Akron, Ohio...Parris Campbell is a fourth-year player in the program who enters the 2017 season with junior eligibility...a veteran of 21 games and 12 starting assignments, Campbell is one of the key receivers on the roster and is being counted on to provide plays and big plays.
He was one of the most talked-about players coming out of spring drills because of his fine play throughout...he has 13 career receptions for 121 yards and 9.3 yards per reception average with all of those stats coming during the 2016 season. He is also a fine return specialist and led the Big Ten in 2016 in kickoff returns.
Campbell was considered one of the elite players in the Ohio State class of 2014...a consensus four-star prospect who was rated as a Top 25 player regardless of position with rankings as high as the No. 14 running back (Scout), No. 15 athlete (Rivals), No. 19 wide receiver (247Sports) and No. 22 athlete (ESPN).
Outstanding on a track, Campbell powered SVSM to the 2013 Ohio State outdoor track and field championship by anchoring victorious 4x100 and 4x200-meter relays and taking second in the 100...broke the Ohio state record in the 60-meter dash at 2014 Indoor state championships (6.85).
With a year to go, Campbell could become the most decorated Ohio State player to wear the No. 21.
| NAME | YEAR | ROUND | PICK | POSITION | TEAM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B.J. SANDER | 2004 | 3 | 87 | P | PACKERS |
| NATE SALLEY | 2006 | 4 | 121 | S | PANTHERS |
| 99 | 98 | 97 | 96 | 95 | 94 | 93 | 92 | 91 | 90 |
| 89 | 88 | 87 | 86 | 85 | 84 | 83 | 82 | 81 | 80 |
| 79 | 78 | 77 | 76 | 75 | 74 | 73 | 72 | 71 | 70 |
| 69 | 68 | 67 | 66 | 65 | 64 | 63 | 62 | 61 | 60 |
| 59 | 58 | 57 | 56 | 55 | 54 | 53 | 52 | 51 | 50 |
| 49 | 48 | 47 | 46 | 45 | 44 | 43 | 42 | 41 | 40 |
| 39 | 38 | 37 | 36 | 35 | 34 | 33 | 32 | 31 | 30 |
| 29 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 21 |
104 days until The Game.
