Former Ohio State kicker and defensive back Don Sutherin, who made a game-winning 34-yard field goal in Ohio State’s 1958 Rose Bowl win over Oregon, died Tuesday at 85 years old, his family told the Columbus Dispatch.
Sutherin’s kick led the Buckeyes to a 10-7 win over the Ducks which led to a split national championship for Ohio State; the Buckeyes, who finished the 1957 season with a 9-1 record, were ranked No. 1 in the UPI coaches’ poll, but Auburn was ranked No. 1 in the AP poll.
Sutherin was selected in the eighth round of the 1958 NFL draft by the New York Giants, but had more success in the Canadian Football League, where he continued to play both defensive back and kicker and won four Grey Cups with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Ottawa Rough Riders. A three-time CFL All-Star and six-time CFL East All-Star, Sutherin played 12 total seasons in the CFL and then became a coach for more than two decades, winning three more Grey Cups as an assistant. He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1992.
The CFL’s Calgary Stampers, who he won the 1992 Grey Cup with as an assistant coach, were among those who paid tribute to Sutherin on Tuesday.
Today, we have heavy hearts as we mourn the death of Don Sutherin.
— Calgary Stampeders (@calstampeders) January 11, 2022
He contributed so much to the CFL over the years and he will be sadly missed. On behalf of the entire Stampeders organization, I offer my heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.
