Clemson Looks to Join Florida State as Only Programs to Beat Ohio State Three Times without Suffering a Loss

By 11W Staff on December 10, 2016 at 7:30 am
Clemson is one of the few teams to have a 1.000 winning percentage against Ohio State.
29 Comments

127 seasons. 1,252 games. 879 wins – the fifth-most of any NCAA program.

To say Ohio State has a rich football tradition is putting things mildly. Yet, of the 110 different teams the Buckeyes have squared off against through the years, only a handful are unbeaten against Ohio State.

Clemson just so happens to be one of those teams. And with a win in the Fiesta bowl, the Tigers will join Florida State as the only teams to face the Buckeyes three times and come away with wins in every meeting.

In all, there are just 11 programs that have met Ohio State without tasting defeat. Seven of them live in the SEC or ACC – and two of them, the Tigers and the South Carolina Gamecocks, call the same state home.

Programs the Buckeyes are Winless Against
Team Conference First Meeting Last Meeting Record Win %
FLORIDA STATE ACC 1981 1997 0–3 0.000
CLEMSON ACC 1978 2013 0–2 0.000
CORNELL IVY 1939 1940 0–2 0.000
FLORIDA SEC 2006 2011 0–2 0.000
SOUTH CAROLINA SEC 2000 2001 0–2 0.000
AIR FORCE MOUNTAIN WEST 1990 1990 0–1 0.000
CARLISLE N/A 1904 1904 0–1 0.000
GEORGIA SEC 1992 1992 0–1 0.000
TENNESSEE SEC 1995 1995 0–1 0.000
AUBURN SEC 1917 1989 0–1–1 0.250
PRINCETON IVY 1927 1928 0–1–1 0.250

It's hard to look at this group and not think about John Cooper, whose teams dropped games to six of the programs, thanks to his bowl game troubles in Columbus, including three of the four programs who are 1–0 against the Buckeyes.

Or the now FCS programs like Cornell and Princeton, both of whom the Buckeyes will likely never have a chance to even things with.

Clemson is notable for going unbeaten against the two best coaches to ever patrol the sideline at Ohio State. The infamous 1978 Gator Bowl saw the Tigers drop the Buckeyes, 17-15, while also ending Woody Hayes' career. 35 years later, Dabo Swinney's Clemson squad handed Urban Meyer a 40-35 defeat in the Orange Bowl, marking the only time Meyer has suffered a multi-game losing streak at Ohio State.


Bonus: Here's Michigan's list. Hello, Toledo!

29 Comments
View 29 Comments