In 8 days Ohio State is looking to finally take the field in the 2018 season opener. Since 1934, 24 players have worn No. 8 for Ohio State.
Today's article will cover the careers of Jim McDonald, Earl Langhurst, Stanley Jackson, Steve Bellisari, Noah Spence and Kendall Sheffield.
Two players who wore today's number during the mid 1990s and early 2000s caused me great hate for the No. 8. I'm hoping Kendall Sheffield will help end my disdain for this digit.
| PLAYER | WORN | B1G MVP | TEAM MVP | AA | CAPT. | 1R NFL | ALL B1G | AC AA | NFL DRAFT | AC B1G | LETTER |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Art Boucher | 1934-35 | 1934-35 | |||||||||
| Jim McDonald* | 1936-37 | 1937 | 1937 | 1937 | 1936-37 | ||||||
| Earl Langhurst | 1938-40 | 1940 | 1938-40 | ||||||||
| Dan Cunningham | 1971 | ||||||||||
| Billy Ezzo | 1972-74 | 1972-74 | |||||||||
| Rod Gerald | 1975-78 | 1977 | 1975-78 | ||||||||
| David McTier | 1979-80 | ||||||||||
| Lamar Keuchler | 1982 | 1982 | |||||||||
| Scott Leach | 1984-86 | 1984-86 | |||||||||
| Courtney Gasper | 1984 | ||||||||||
| Mark Smith | 1987-88 | ||||||||||
| Bobby Olive* | 1988-90 | 1988-90 | |||||||||
| Jeff Cothran* | 1991-93 | 1991-93 | |||||||||
| Stanley Jackson | 1993-97 | 1997 | 1995-97 | ||||||||
| Steve Bellisari | 1998-2001 | 2000, 2001 | 1998-2001 | ||||||||
| Drew Carter* | 2002-03 | 2002-03 | |||||||||
| Roy Hall* | 2004-06 | 2004-06 | 2004-06 | ||||||||
| Aaron Gant | 2006-10 | 2006-10 | |||||||||
| DeVier Posey | 2008-11 | 2008-09, 2011 | |||||||||
| Dionte Allen | 2011 | 2011 | |||||||||
| Noah Spence | 2012-13 | 2013 | 2013 | 2012-13 | |||||||
| Jeff Green | 2013 | ||||||||||
| Gareon Conley | 2015-16 | 2016 | 2015-16 | ||||||||
| Kendall Sheffield | 2017-18 | 2017 |
*Wore another number at Ohio State
Did not earn a varsity letter while wearing No. 8
Jim McDonald, QB (1935-1937)
Born: 1915 (Springfield, Ohio)
Died: 1997 (Knoxville, TN)
Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 18-6 with McDonald on the team.
1935 Big Ten Title.
Went 3-0 against That Team and outscored them 80-0 between 1935 and 1937.
Honors
1937 Captain.
1937 All-American.
1937 All-Big Ten.
Ohio State career per ohiostatebuckeyes.com:
Jim McDonald enjoyed the rare honor of being selected captain of both the football and basketball teams. He played quarterback and linebacker in football and guard in basketball. After leaving OSU, McDonald played two years with the Detroit Lions. He later became head football coach at the University of Tennessee.
McDonald puts excitement into a PAT and plays basketball for the Buckeyes per Wikipedia:
McDonald's most memorable play that year was only worth one point. He was kicking a point after touchdown against Northwestern and the ball was blocked. The holder, Mike Kabealo, grabbed the ball, pitched it back to McDonald. McDonald ran the ball around the right side for the point. The final score was 7–0.
McDonald was also a three-year starter as a guard on the Ohio State basketball team from 1936 to 1938. As a senior, he served as team captain.
McDonald's career after Ohio State:
NFL
McDonald was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles as the second pick in the 1938 NFL Draft, but never played for that team.
He played two seasons with the Detroit Lions, picking up a career total of 80 yards.Coach
McDonald was an assistant football coach at the University of Tennessee under head coach Bowden Wyatt from 1955 to 1962.
He succeeded Wyatt as head coach in 1963, but stayed at that position for only one year (5-5).McDonald remained at Tennessee as an assistant athletic director.
Earl Langhurst, FB (1938-1940)
Born: 1919 (Willard, Ohio)
Died: 2008 (Willard)
High School: Willard
Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 14-9-1 with Langurst on the team.
1939 Big Ten Title.
Honors
1940 Captain.
Earl Langhurst and his career in sports persanduskyregister.com:
He was Willard's first high school state track champion, and in his junior year of football led the state in scoring with 130 points.
At The Ohio State University he was a three year football letterman. As a sophomore in 1938, he was Ohio State's MVP and led the Big Ten in scoring. He was a member of the 1939 Big Ten Championship Team and elected captain in 1940.
He had a long and illustrious football officiating career highlighted by 12 years as a Big Ten Head Linesman and worked the Rose, Sugar and Orange Bowls.
Stanley Jackson, QB (1993-1997)
Born: 1975 (Paterson, NJ)
High School: Paterson Catholic
Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 51-11-1 with Jackson on the team.
1993 Big Ten Title.
1996 Big Ten Title.
1993 Defeated BYU 28-21 to win the Holiday Bowl.
1997 Defeated No. 4 Arizona State 20-17 to win the Rose Bowl.
Honors
1997 Captain.
Jackson's senior bio per The Ohio State Team Guide:
6-1, 203...from Paterson, NJ...Started all 11 games last year (all but Michigan) and played a key role in helping the Buckeyes capture the Big Ten title and Rose Bowl championship...threw for 1,298 yards and 12 touchdowns in his first year as a starter.
A gifted athlete with a strong, resilient arm and quick feet...has the ability to scramble out of harms way when danger seems imminent...helped the Buckeyes off on the right foot early in the season, throwing for 324 yards and four touchdowns in back-to-back wins over No. 4 Notre Dame and No. 3 Penn State in weeks three and four.
Finished third in the Big Ten in passing efficiency with a rating of 140.0...top game in terms of rushing was 53 yards against Penn State...longest run of the year was 21 against Wisconsin...unquestionably one of the team leaders.
His high school coach, Lou Mathis, was a defensive back for the Buckeyes and played in two Rose Bowls (1972 and '73 seasons).
Stanley "Run Around" Jackson is what my friends called him during his time with the Buckeyes. Had "Run Around" been at Ohio State a few years later I probably wouldn't have the disdain for the No. 8 that I do now. In fact, Jackson would have saved us from the next sad chapter in the story of No. 8 that you will read about next.
With John Cooper and Mike Jacobs implementing a dual-quarterback system it made the fans choose sides. Unfortunately for Jackson it was
clear to everyone watching the games, except Cooper, that Joe Germaine was the better quarterback.
Here is an excerpt from the Chicago Tribune about Mike Jacobs and his use of two quarterbacks (MY THOUGHTS):
"If you have a kid at tailback who's having an off day, you have someone else to lean on," he said. "You do that at every other position. But if you do it at quarterback, everyone talks about it. The bottom line is it's a good situation for us." (NO, IT WAS NOT A GOOD SITUATION)
That's an easy sell. The ninth-ranked Buckeyes, who face No. 4 Florida State on Thursday in the Sugar Bowl, are 21-3 over the last two years. Jackson has started all but one game during that stretch (a 1996 loss to Michigan), with Germaine carrying the baton for the final laps.
Neither player likes the predicament. But neither can quibble with the results.
"I wouldn't want anyone to go through what we've been through," Jackson said. "No one likes to platoon. Everyone wants to be the hero."
Said Germaine: "It is very hard, but the most important thing is to win." (AFTER GERMAINE COMES IN TO SAVE THE DAY HE IS THE HERO)
It's well known that Jackson and Germaine have different styles on the field. Germaine is the classic drop-back passer with an accurate arm and the patience needed to find Ohio State's explosive receivers.
Germaine's passing numbers this season (a 64.7 percent completion rate, 1,674 yards and 15 touchdowns) were excellent--and significantly better than Jackson's, who completed 60 percent of his throws for 1,021 yards and eight touchdowns. But unlike Germaine, Jackson is a scrambler. He ran for 339 yards, if you don't include what he lost on sacks.
"Like the fans, we constantly evaluate them," Jacobs said. "We'll have different guys in the staff room throwing out positives and negatives, just like for tailbacks or offensive tackles."
(YOUR CRAPPY EVALUATION SYSTEM COST OHIO STATE A SHOT AT A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP IN 1996 AND 1997)
As time has passed, my dislike for Jackson the player has waned. Time, and two national championships, does heal all wounds. A shame that Jackson and Germaine were at Ohio State during the same time. Had either one been there two or three years later, I don't believe the Buckeyes would have experienced their non-bowl game season of 1999.
Steve Bellisari, QB (1998-2001)
Born: 1980 (Boca Raton, FL)
High School: Boca Raton
Ohio State
The Buckeyes were 32-16 with Bellisari on the team.
The Buckeyes were 20-15 with Bellisari as the starter.
1998 Defeated No. 8 Texas A&M 24-14 to win the Sugar Bowl.
Honors
2000 Captain.
2001 Captain.
Bellisari's senior bio per The Ohio State Team Guide:
6-3, 220...from Boca Raton, FL...Co-captain...left-handed thrower with tremendous athletic ability...physical player who won't shy away from contact...is unquestionably one of the keys to the 2001 campaign...had his best year statistically last year and hopes to show continued improvement this year.
Worked hard in the spring on becoming more consistent in his decision making...has started 22 consecutive games and has led the Buckeyes in total offense each of the past two years...currently ranks eighth in Ohio State history with 4,470 yards in total offense.
Prep All-America and two-time all-state safety...passed for 891 yards and rushed for 543 more as a senior...also threw for seven touchdowns, was in on 55 tackles, blocked six kicks and had three interceptions his last year.
The three seasons that Bellisari was quarterback for the Buckeyes were hard for me to watch. Every time he dropped back, I would anticipate him throwing his patented punterception. I believe Bellisari's play on 3rd down coined that term.
Bellisari continued to lower my expectations for anyone wearing the No. 8 on an Ohio State jersey. After watching Run Around and Bellisari play for nine seasons, I truly believed that the No. 8 should have been banned at Ohio State.
One good thing to come from Bellisari's reign of terror is that it brought Jim Tressel and the 2002 season to Ohio State.
My view of Bellisari reinforced by Wikipedia:
Bellisari, a special teams player and a defensive back his first year, replaced Joe Germaine as the Ohio State starting quarterback in 1999.
In contrast to the accurate Germaine, Bellisari is remembered for a tendency to throw interceptions...Bellisari experienced an increasingly controversial tenure as Ohio State's starting quarterback, culminating in a two-game suspension at the end of his senior season following an arrest for drunk driving.
He was re-instated to travel with the team to the Outback Bowl against South Carolina, where he finished his career as a substitute, leading Ohio State back from a large deficit to tie the game before giving up an interception that allowed South Carolina to kick a winning field goal.
In defense of Bellisari, he was a great safety and was forced to play quarterback for the Buckeyes due to Cooper not signing anybody better at that crucial position.
Noah Spence, DL (2012-13)
High School: Bishop McDevitt (PA)
Ohio State
The Buckeyes are 24-2 with Spence on the team.
2012 Undefeated Season.
2012 B1G Ten Leaders Title.
24 Game winning streak.
2-0 against That Team.
Honors
2013 All-B1G.
2013 Academic All-B1G.
Spence's "junior" bio from The Ohio State Team Guide:
6-3, 252...from Harrisburg, PA...Noah Spence is a fine football player...this true junior has played in 24 games through his first two seasons and he has started 13 times...he is coming off a first-team all-Big Ten Conference season and he ranks second among current Buckeyes with 15.5 career tackles-for-loss and with 9.0 quarterback sacks.
Spence was a Parade Magazine All-American, a five-star prospect, the No. 2 defensive end prospect in the country and a Top 5 prospect nationally...he was also the No. 1 player in the state of Pennsylvania and the state's two-time big school defensive player of the year...also named the 2011 Gatorade Player of the Year and Maxwell Football Club's national high school player of the year.
The curse of No. 8 strikes again.
In January of 2014, Spence was suspended for three games after he tested positive for MDMA (ecstasy). He missed the Orange Bowl and was scheduled to miss the first two games of the 2014 season. However, in September of '14, Spence failed another drug test and was indefinitely suspended. Two months later, the Big Ten ruled him permanently ineligible.
Spence transferred to Eastern Kentucky where he recorded 11.5 sacks, 63 tackles and was named co-Defensive Player of the Year of the Ohio Valley Conference. His effort, and freakish athletic ability, caught the eye of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who drafted him with 39th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Kendall Sheffield, CB (2017-18)
High School: Thurgood Marshall (TX)
Ohio State
The Buckeyes are 12-2 with Sheffield on the team.
2017 Big Ten Title.
2017 Big Ten East Title.
Defeated No. 8 USC 24-7 to win the 2018 Cotton Bowl.
Is 1-0 against That Team.
Honors
2017 Academic All-Big Ten
Sheffield's junior bio per The Ohio State Team Guide:
6-0, 193...from Missouri City, TX...In the summer of 2018 Kendall Sheffield was selected by NFL.com as the fastest player in college football...this after he broke the Ohio State record and the French Field House indoor record in the 60-meter dash in February with a time of 6.663...the previous record had stood for 23 years.
Sheffield, a fourth-year junior in his second year with the program, is much more than just a speed merchant, though … he had a fine sophomore season with the Buckeyes in 2017, playing in all 14 games and ranking second on the team in pass break-ups with nine … only the No. 4 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Denzel Ward, had more PBUs.
Earned game “champion” status from the OSU coaches for his Cotton Bowl efforts, including breaking up four passes, making three solo tackles and forcing a fumble that led to the first Buckeye touchdown in the 24-7 victory … was named a champion five times in all, including after the wins over Michigan State and Michigan.
Sheffield transferred from Blinn College, in Brenham, Texas, and enrolled at Ohio State for the start of 2017 spring drills, one of 10 from the 2017 recruiting class who enrolled early … he was rated as the No. 1 cornerback coming out of junior college.
Sheffield was a consensus 5-star prospect in the 2015 recruiting class out of Thurgood Marshall High School in Missouri City, Texas...he was an Under Armour All-American, an all-USA first-team selection by USA Today and a first-team Associated Press Texas 5A all-state selection in 2014.
In track and field, Sheffield won the 2014 Texas state 5A 110-meter and 300-meter hurdles championships and repeated as 110-meter champion in 2015
Here's to Sheffield breaking the bad streak that has cursed the No. 8 for the past 20 years.
| NAME | YEAR | ROUND | PICK | POSITION | TEAM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JIM McDONALD | 1938 | 1 | 2 | HB/FB | EAGLES |
| JIM LANGHURST | 1941 | 10 | 89 | BACK | DODGERS |
| SCOTT LEACH | 1987 | 9 | 234 | LB | SAINTS |
| BOBBY OLIVE | 1991 | 11 | 300 | WR | CHIEFS |
| JEFF COTHRAN | 1994 | 3 | 66 | RB | BENGALS |
| STEVE BELLISARI | 2002 | 6 | 205 | QB | RAMS |
| DREW CARTER | 2004 | 5 | 163 | WR | PANTHERS |
| ROY HALL | 2007 | 5 | 169 | WR | COLTS |
| DeVIER POSEY | 2012 | 3 | 68 | WR | TEXANS |
| GAREON CONLEY | 2017 | 1 | 24 | DB | RAIDERS |
*Noah Spence played for Eastern Kentucky when he was selected in the NFL Draft.
| 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 | 20 |
| 19 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 |
| 9 | 8 |
91 days until The Game.
