In this day and age, scoring 83 points in a football game, let alone against a Big Ten opponent, feels impossible, but that's exactly what happened on October 28, 1950.
Ohio State and Iowa technically played a 60-minute game 76 years ago, but in reality, the game was essentially over well before halftime.
On the first play of the afternoon, Vic Janowicz recovered a fumble from Iowa before scoring on an 11-yard touchdown five plays later. The Hawkeyes proceeded to go three-and-out, and Janowicz then ran back the ensuing punt for a 60-yard touchdown. This brilliant excerpt from The Daily Iowan explains the punt return touchdown perfectly:
He didn't accomplish this jaunt, though without the benefit of some murderous downfield blocking, which had most of the Hawkeyes on their backs admiring the cloud effects over the stadium.
Eight minutes into the game, the Buckeyes led 28-0. The route was on.
Iowa fumbled four times (two recovered by Janowicz) while gaining only one first down in the first quarter. Midway through the second quarter, Ohio State held a 55-0 lead 23 minutes into the game.
With the blowout score, Ohio State head coach Wes Fesler pulled his starters before halftime. But even that didn't prevent the Buckeyes from adding to the score, as the Buckeyes' backups continued to get in the end zone.
The second half was only a repetition of the first. Since Iowa's hope of winning had been destroyed in the first half by Ohio's scoring deluge. Interest waned as the game drew slowly to a close.
Players on both sides were tired - Iowa from the beatln, It was takin, and Ohio State from the beatln, it was administering,
Fesler did his best to slow down the game, but he couldn't stop Ohio State's backups from wanting to score touchdowns if they could, and deservedly so.
"You might not believe it, but no one hates that big total more than I," Fesler said after the game. "But what could I do? You can’t kick on first or second down, or you’re insulting the other team. You can’t tell a boy to go in and not play his best or to drop passes."
In all, Ohio State won the game, 83-21 – the most points scored against a Big Ten foe in school history. It's the highest point total by the Buckeyes in the modern era. It was in front of the third-largest crowd in Ohio Stadium history at the time, with 82,174 fans in attendance.
Nine Buckeyes scored a touchdown, and 50 Ohio State players received playing time. It wasn't just OSU's offense, though, as the Buckeye defense forced 12 turnovers as well (five interceptions, seven fumble recoveries).
Ohio State was led by Janowicz, who dominated from start to finish. The halfback/safety/kicker/punter did it all for the Buckeyes, both literally and figuratively, especially on this particular day for the junior.
Janowicz, an Elyria, Ohio product, returned a punt 61 yards for a touchdown, scored on an 11-yard touchdown run, threw a 12-yard touchdown pass, recovered two fumbles on defense and made three extra points against the Hawkeyes — all within the first five minutes of the game. The one-man show finished with six touchdowns (four passing, one rushing, one punt return), made 10 extra points, and had two punts that totaled 84 yards, despite only playing the first half. He completed 5-of-6 passes for 133 yards and four touchdowns, had six carries for 30 yards and two scores and accounted for 46 (!) points.
Vic Janowicz, Ohio's All-American candidate, did nothing to hurt his chances Saturday. He was the personificatlon of a triple-threat quarterback and was the type of ball player every coach dreams about. but rarely has.
Janowicz's middle name could have been "perfect" Saturday. He passed for four touchdowns, ran for two others and added 10 extra points for a Big Ten record, in addition to confusing the Hawkeyes the whole afternoon with deceptive backfield fakes.
The sad part of the whole affair from the Iowa standpoint was that Janowicz wasn't the only Ohioan who had been issued a Hawk killing license.
With this game being the pinnacle of his career, Janowicz won the Heisman Trophy in 1950, the second in Ohio State history.
The win over Iowa moved Ohio State to 4-1 on the season. But, despite becoming the No. 1-ranked team in the country, the Buckeyes finished the season 6-3 following a 9-3 loss to Michigan in what many refer to as the Snow Bowl. It was Fesler's fourth and final season in Columbus, as he resigned after falling to 0-3-1 against the Wolverines. Woody Hayes then took over at Ohio State beginning in 1951.
