The Buckeyes finished the 1956 season with a two shut-out losses to
Iowa and
Michigan. Going into the 1957 season fans had a feeling of rebuilding. The feeling was made stronger with an opening loss to unranked
TCU. To make matters worse,
Michigan State,
Minnesota, Michigan and Iowa were all ranked in the Top 6 of the
AP Poll Rankings while Ohio State would not be ranked until late October. Coach Hayes rallied the team every week and made them better following this loss.
The Buckeyes came back with a big win at
Washington and victories over Illinois, Wisconsin and Purdue, along with crushing victories over Indiana and Northwestern. A shocking Purdue upset over #2 Michigan State, a tie between Michigan and Iowa, and Minnesota’s unraveling season after a loss to Illinois continued to help the Buckeyes.
It was a late star performance by sophomore fullback
Bob White against unbeaten Iowa that pushed the team even further. Trailing 13–10 and on their own 32-yard line, White ran on six of the eight plays for 66 out of the 68 yards, capped off by a 5-yard touchdown run.
A victory over Michigan moved Ohio State up to #2 in the AP, behind undefeated
Auburn. However, the UPI Coaches' poll voted OSU #1 and Auburn #2 as the Tigers were on probation.[1] The Buckeyes were also declared #1 by the
Football Writers Association of America and awarded the
Grantland Rice Trophy.
^"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived from
the original(PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.{{
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^"Washington Buried by Ohio State, 35-7." Eugene Register-Guard. 1957 Oct 6. Retrieved 2015-Jan-05.
^"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived from
the original(PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.{{
cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
link)
^"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived from
the original(PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.{{
cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
link)
^"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived from
the original(PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.{{
cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
link)
^"100,101 See Ohio State Overpower Wolverines; 31-14." Palm Beach Post. 1957 Nov 24.
^"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived from
the original(PDF) on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2016.{{
cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
link)
General
Lindy's (2002), A Championship Season...and the Battle for #1, p. 76