Remember the Alamo… Bowl?
Since the Alamo Bowl was established in 1993, OSU has participated in the bowl exactly one time in its history, a contest going back more than 20 years.
Now, Ohio State has long fortified itself into an elite program that if it’s ever playing in the Alamo Bowl in the present day with a 12 and likely soon to be 16-team playoff, someone has some splainin’ to do.
But let’s rewind a bit and reflect on a game not often discussed in Buckeye lore, the 2004 Alamo Bowl — a 33-7 victory over Oklahoma State.
The regular season certainly wasn’t the highlight of Jim Tressel’s storied coaching career at OSU, as the Buckeyes finished 7-4 with losses to Northwestern, Purdue, Wisconsin and Iowa. Though certainly not nothing, they upset No. 7 Michigan 37-21 that season.
Oklahoma State entered the contest 7-4 as well, and I’ll allow you two guesses as to who was coaching the other OSU on the sidelines that day. It was Les Miles, who departed Stillwater for LSU shortly after the game to replace Nick Saban as the new Tigers head coach.
Ohio State starting quarterback Troy Smith was suspended for this contest after he allegedly accepted $500 from a booster — which frankly is a hilarious infraction considering what happens on a random Tuesday in the NIL era — so backup quarterback Justin Zwick was thrust into action. Zwick completed 17 of 27 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown in the victory.
But if we’re talking about the true stars of this game, it had to be Ted Ginn Jr. and Mike Nugent.
Ginn caught a game-high six passes for 78 yards and a touchdown, while also running the infamous “Shot-Ginn” formation where he took snaps as a quarterback and ran for 40 yards and a rushing touchdown. He was named the offensive MVP for his efforts.
“I try to make something out of nothing if I get trapped,” Ginn said after the game. “You always got to keep your feet moving. You're always moving forward that's what we've been taught.”
Nugent had a busy day, making four field goals in the contest and becoming Ohio State’s all-time leading scorer. Fittingly, Nugent received the Lou Groza award in his senior year, an honor given to college football’s best placekicker yearly.
OSU’s defense limited Oklahoma State quarterback Donovan Woods to 15 of 34 passing for 137 yards and an interception, though he did run for 72 yards on 12 carries. Ohio State running back Lydell Ross also had a solid day, running for 99 yards and a touchdown.
The game itself obviously was far from an instant classic, with OSU jumping out to a 23-0 halftime lead and keeping Oklahoma State off the scoreboard until the fourth quarter.
Though Smith was suspended for this contest, things worked out pretty well for the future Heisman Trophy winner. Meanwhile, Tressel went 66-11 in his final six seasons with the Buckeyes.
