The 1988 season represented a changing of the guard at the helm of the Ohio State football program.
After the Buckeyes endured a disappointing 6-4-1 campaign in 1987 under head coach Earle Bruce, Ohio State decided to go in a new direction regarding the leadership of its football program.
Bruce, who capped off his time with Ohio State with a victory over Michigan in Ann Arbor, was fired. At the same time, the Buckeyes became enamored with Arizona State head coach John Cooper, who had led the Sun Devils to the Pac-10 title and a Rose Bowl victory during the 1986 season.
Cooper, a native of Powell, Tennessee, accepted the Ohio State position on New Year’s Eve of 1987, charting the Buckeye football program on a new course. In the immediate aftermath of his Sun Devils’ 33-28 victory over Air Force in the 1987 Freedom Bowl, Cooper laid out his thoughts on taking over at the prestigious program in Columbus.
“I’m leaving because, for me, it’s a better environment professionally,” Cooper said. “There wasn’t any one thing. Ohio State is obviously a great school.”
Led by quarterback Greg Frey and a collection of talented running backs, including Carlos Snow, the 1988 Ohio State football team marked Cooper’s maiden voyage with the program.
Cooper’s first challenge with the Buckeyes came against a Syracuse program that enjoyed an outstanding 1987 season, going 11-0 before tying No. 4 Auburn in the Sugar Bowl. Syracuse finished the season as the No. 4 team in the country.
Syracuse had already picked up some momentum in the 1988 season as well, capturing a season-opening 31-21 victory over Temple to waltz into Columbus with a 1-0 record. Led by the running back duo of Daryl Johnson and Robert Drummond, and the pass-catching capabilities of Rob Moore, Syracuse boasted plenty of talent to give the Buckeyes fits in Cooper’s Ohio Stadium debut.
The Orangemen, who had won or tied in their last 14 games, opened the scoring, marching down the field to take a 3-0 lead, thanks to a 24-yard field goal from kicker Kevin J. Greene, with 6:10 remaining in the first quarter. The Syracuse advantage held until early in the second quarter, when Ohio State’s Pat O’Morrow scored the Buckeyes’ first points of the season with a 27-yard field goal to tie the game at three.
From that point forward, however, it was all Ohio State. The Buckeyes tacked on touchdowns in each of their next two possessions, thanks to a 14-yard rushing touchdown from Snow and a two-yard touchdown connection from Frey to tight end Jeff Ellis.
Greene added a 45-yard field goal to cut Syracuse’s gap to 11 points with 2:56 remaining in the opening half, and the Buckeyes ultimately entered the locker room with a 17-6 lead over the Orangemen.
The Buckeyes continued to put pressure on Syracuse during the third quarter, as a pair of O’Morrow field goals extended the Ohio State lead to 23-6 entering the game’s final frame.
Syracuse cut the gap slightly early in the final stanza, after Greene buried a 38-yarder to cut the deficit to 14. But, O’Morrow matched that score with a 30-yard field goal of his own, setting the final score at 26-9 in favor of the Buckeyes.
As the final seconds dwindled off the game clock, members of the Ohio State football team hoisted Cooper on their shoulders to celebrate their coach’s maiden win.
Cooper’s debut victory was boosted by a showing of immense discipline from his team, as the Buckeyes did not record a single penalty in the win.
Frey completed 12 of 17 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown in the win.
While Ohio State enjoyed an outstanding victory against a solid opponent in its opener, the Buckeyes' season immediately went into a tailspin a week later. Ohio State fell 42-10 on the road against Pittsburgh, and ultimately went on to finish the season with a 4-6-1 record — including a 34-31 loss to Michigan, Cooper’s first of 10 defeats to the Wolverines during his time with the Buckeyes.
Cooper would reign over the Ohio State football program until 2000, amassing a 111-43-4 record during his time with the Buckeyes.
