Left to right: OSU’s first two All-Americans, Gaylord “Pete” Stinchcomb and Chic Harley side-by-side standing inside Ohio Stadium.A couple weeks ago, I stumbled across this interesting picture is from “Ohio Memory: A Collaborative Project of The Ohio History Connection and the State Library of Ohio” web site. [It reappeared in a recent Forum by Brunstar posted by FatChaddie and BuckforLife - by the way, I like the idea of a Harley throwback jersey - but I digress.]
When I first saw photo, I thought it was pretty cool. Then, upon closer examination, I began to wonder about it. Harley played for the Buckeyes in 1916-17 and 1919. Stinchcomb’s career was 1918-1920. They were teammates for the1919 season. So, how is it they are posing in uniform standing inside Ohio Stadium that was not completely built until 1922? Groundbreaking occurred on August 3, 1921; the first game was played in September 1922 and the Stadium was dedicated on October 21,1922. Did they suit up and return as “old-timers” for some special football alumni recognition day? Is this a photo-shopped “fake”? Sorry to leave you hanging but I guess someone with more time than I have at the moment can do some sleuthing to solve this mystery.
