College Football Old School Game of the Week: Ohio State Stuns Iowa with Buzzer Beater Touchdown

Ohio State players celebrate after their shocking win over the Iowa Hawkeyes in 1990.

When Ohio State traveled to Iowa City to take on the Iowa Hawkeyes on November 10, 1990, the Buckeyes were cast in the unfamiliar role of underdog when facing the Hawkeyes as Ohio State came into the game unranked while Iowa was ranked #6 in the country.

Ohio State was led by head coach John Cooper, who was in his third season as the Buckeyes' head coach having gone just 15-13-1 sinch his arrival, as the Buckeyes were trying to bounce back from a three-game winless streak earlier in the season while they lost to USC and Illinois while tying Indiana.

But the Buckeyes came into the Iowa game on a three-game winning streak as they had scored a combined 142 points over the past three games with senior quarterback Greg Frey throwing seven touchdown passes during the winning streak.

With Frey and the offense clicking, the Buckeyes looked to continue their dominance over Iowa, a team Ohio State had defeated in 20 of their previous 23 meetings since 1962.

Iowa fans thought that 1990 would be different when it came to Ohio State as the Hawkeyes came into the game on a five-game winning streak and a 6-1 overall record as the Hawks stood atop the Big 10 standings.

Led by head coach Hayden Fry, who was in his 12th season as the head coach of the Hawkeyes and junior quarterback Matt Rodgers, son of then Boston Celtics head coach Jimmy Rodgers, Iowa seemed poised to return to the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1985 and third time in 10 years.

 The Hawkeyes got the ball to start the game as Fry surprised the Buckeyes with an end around reverse pass from wide receiver Danan Hughes to tight end Michael Titley that went for 30 yards on the second play of the game to put Iowa at the Ohio State 37-yard-line.

Six plays later, the Hawkeyes were in the end zone as Rodgers kept the ball and ran it in for a three-yard touchdown to give Iowa a 7-0 lead with 11:12 remaining in the first quarter.

Iowa quarterback Matt Rodgers 13 of 21 passes for 137 yards while running for one touchdown.

After an Ohio State punt, the Hawkeyes got the ball at the Buckeyes' 46-yard-line as Nick Bell ran for four yards to set up 2nd & 6 when Paul Kujawa fumbled the football on a hit by linebacker Tom Lease which was recovered by cornerback Foster Paulk to give Ohio State the ball at its 36-yard-line.

The fumble would not amount to anything as the Buckeyes would go three-and-out to punt the ball back to the Hawkeyes who would also go three-and-out on their ensuing possession to give the ball back to Ohio State who would take over at their 41-yard-line.

The Buckeyes would drive down the field as Frey completed passes of 24 yards to Jeff Graham and 17 yards to Bobby Olive to put Ohio State at the Iowa one-yard-line as time expired in the first quarter with the Buckeyes facing a 4th & goal situation.

Cooper decided to go for the touchdown as the second quarter began which he got when Frey ran it in on a quarterback option to help tie the game at 7 just two seconds into the second quarter.

The Hawkeyes would respond with a 12-play, 50-yard drive where Rodgers completed all five of his passes on the drive for 45 yards only for Iowa to settle for a field goal after the junior quarterback was sacked by Buckeyes linebacker Jason Simmons for a 13-yard loss on 3rd & goal at the Ohio State four-yard-line as Jeff Skillet would come on to kick a 34-yard field goal to give Iowa a 10-7 lead with 9:04 left in the second quarter.

Following an Ohio State punt, the Hawkeyes got the ball at the Ohio State 46-yard-line as Iowa would ride the legs of Lew Montgomery as he carried five times for 29 yards on a nine-play, 46-yard drive that ended with Montgomery punching it in from a yard out to increase Iowa's lead to 17-7 with 2:17 left before halftime.

Iowa seemed poised to increase their lead before the end of the first half as they would get the ball once again in Buckeyes territory as their next possession would begin at the Ohio State 44-yard-line with 1:56 left in the first half.

A clipping penalty would push the Hawkeyes back 15 yards to their 41-yard-line as two runs by Bell for 24 yards put Iowa at the Ohio State 35-yard-line when Fry opted to go for the 1st down.

However, an illegal motion penalty would push the Hawkeyes back five yards to make it 4th & 6 as Fry kept his offense on the field to try and get the 1st down which they failed to get as Rodgers threw an incomplete pass intended for Bell.

Taking over at their 25-yard-line after a dead ball penalty following the 4th down stop, the Buckeyes would drive into Iowa territory as Frey completed an 11-yard pass to Graham which was followed by a 16-yard run by running back Robert Smith to put Ohio State at the Hawkeyes' 48-yard-line with 10 seconds left in the half.

That is when Frey fired a Hail Mary pass that bounced off the chest of Hawkeyes cornerback Merton Hanks and into the arms of Graham, who would then run it in to complete the shocking 48-yard touchdown as time expired in the first half to help cut the Iowa lead to 17-14.

The third quarter would be a defensive stalemate as both teams traded punts until 3:15 remaining in the quarter when Rodgers completed a 29-yard pass to Titley, then a 21-yard pass to tight end Alan Cross to help lead the Hawkeyes to the Buckeyes' 15-yard-line.

After a two-yard run by Montgomery, Rodgers would be dropped for a seven-yard loss by Simmons to set up 3rd & 15 when Rodgers fired a pass for Bell, who dropped the ball in the end zone for what would have been a touchdown.

Instead, the Hawkeyes settled for a 37-yard field goal by Skillet which increased Iowa's lead to 20-14 with 18 seconds to go in the third quarter.

Following an Ohio State three-and-out, the Hawkeyes got the ball at their 20-yard-line as they would use Tony Stewart's legs to drive down the field as the senior running back would carry the ball eight times for 52 yards on a 11-play, 80-yard drive that culminated with a one-yard touchdown run by Montgomery to increase Iowa's lead to 26-14.

The Hawkeyes would attempt a two-point conversion but were unsuccessful as Hughes tried to take it in on an end around to keep the score at 26-14 in favor of Iowa with exactly 11 minutes to play.

It seemed like the Hawkeyes would on their way to sixth straight victory as they held the Buckeyes to another three-and-out on their next possession to get the ball back at the Iowa 23-yard-line.

However, the Buckeyes would catch a break when Paluk blocked Jim Hujsak's punt to give the ball to the Ohio State offense at the Hawkeyes' 24-yard-line.

A three-yard run by Smith and an incomplete pass would set up 3rd & 7 when Frey fired a 21-yard touchdown pass to Olive that cut the Iowa lead to 26-21 with 6:34 to go in the game.

Iowa would start its next possession at their 23-yard-line as it took them three plays to move to their 39-yard line when Rodgers was intercepted by cornerback Lance Price, whose nine-yard return put Ohio State at the Hawkeyes' 44-yard-line with 4:37 to go and a chance to take the lead.

The drive would begin with a 15-yard pass from Frey to Olive which was followed by a three-yard run by Smith and then a quarterback sack by Iowa linebacker John Derby for an eight-yard loss to make it 3rd & 15 where Frey threw an incomplete pass to set up 4th & 15.

That is when Frey threw a pass toward the end zone intended for wide receiver Bernard Edwards only to have Iowa defensive back Jason Olejniczak intercept it to give the Hawkeyes the ball back at their 20-yard-line with 2:31 left on the clock and a chance to run out the clock.

The Hawkeyes would run the ball three straight times only picking up a yard before punting the ball back to the Buckeyes as Hujsak's kick traveled only 27 yards as Ohio State would get the ball at the Iowa 48-yard-line with 59 seconds left in the game.

The drive would start with Frey completing a 23-yard pass to Olive, then finding Graham for seven yards, then throwing an incomplete pass intended for Scottie Graham to set up 3rd & 3 at the Iowa 18-yard-line with 20 seconds left.

Frey would then complete a 15-yard pass to Jeff Graham to put Ohio State at the Iowa three-yard-line as Frey would throw an incomplete pass set up 2nd & goal with seven seconds to play.

That is when Frey found Olive in the back of the end zone for a three-yard touchdown with one second to go as the Buckeyes took their first lead of the game at 27-26 as Ohio State would fail to convert on the ensuing two-point conversion.

The Hawkeyes would have one attempt to pull off a miracle as they tried their version of the 1982 California game-winning kickoff return for a touchdown, but it failed as the Buckeyes would come away with the 27-26 win.

The loss would not derail Iowa's dreams of going to the Rose Bowl as they wound up finishing the regular season with a 8-3 record and 6-2 in the Big 10 as they finished in a four-way tie with Illinois, Michigan, and Michigan State as the Hawkeyes advanced to the Rose Bowl based on their head-to-head record against the four teams.

But the Hawkeyes would fall to the Washington Huskies 46-34 in the "Grandaddy of Them All" as Iowa would finish the season with 8-4 record and #16 ranking in the final coaches poll while finishing #18 in the final AP poll.

As for the Buckeyes, they would finish the season with a 7-4-1 record as they would drop their regular season finale 16-13 to Michigan and then lose to Air Force 23-11 in the Liberty Bowl.

College Football Old School Game of the Week: Ohio State Rallies From 31 Points Down to Beat Minnesota

Ohio State quarterback Greg Frey would complete 18 of 23 passes for 327 yards and throw three touchdowns in the second half alone.

In 1984, the Maryland Terrapins overcame a 31-point deficit to beat the Miami Hurricanes 42-40 to pull off the greatest comeback in college football history.

Five years later, the Ohio State Buckeyes would tie the record for largest deficit overcome to win a college football game as they came back from 31 points down to beat the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

The Buckeyes came into the Minnesota game with a 4-2 record under second-year head coach John Cooper whose team had already equaled the same amount of victories they got in his first season in 1988.

On the field, the Buckeyes were led by junior quarterback Greg Frey, who had started every game for Ohio State since the beginning of the 1988 season with his top performance coming on September 24, 1988 when he led the Buckeyes back from a two-touchdown deficit in the final four minutes to a 36-33 comeback win over LSU.

Frey and the Buckeyes were looking for two more victories to become eligible for a bowl as they traveled to the "Land of 10,000 Lakes" to take on the Golden Gophers.

Minnesota also came into the game with a 4-2 record under fourth-year head coach John Gutekunst, who had complied a 18-20-2 since his arrival in 1986 and taken the Gophers to just one bowl game during that time.

If the Gophers were going to get bowl eligible, they would need to ride the legs of senior running back Darrell Thompson, who needed just 77 yards to cross the 4,000 yard career rushing mark, as the Gophers hoped to knock off the Buckeyes for the first time since 1981.

The Gophers got the ball to start the game as they did not pick up and were forced to punt the ball to the Buckeyes only to have the punt hit the leg of Ohio State tight end Rich Huffman leading to a recovery by Scott Streiff to give the Gophers the ball at the Buckeyes' 28-yard-line.

Four plays later, the Gophers were in the end zone as Thompson punched it in from 12 yards out to give Minnesota a 7-0 lead just 2:49 into the game.

After both teams traded punts on their ensuing possessions, the Buckeyes had the ball at their 33-yard-line when Frey was sacked by Minnesota defensive end Eddie Miles to jar the ball loose as defensive tackle Bob Coughlin recovered the fumble at the Ohio State 22-yard-line.

A pair of runs by Thompson which totaled 13 yards gave Minnesota a 1st & goal at the nine-yard-line as three straight running plays gained six yards to set up 4th & goal from the three-yard-line when the Gophers decided to go for the touchdown.

It looked like the gamble was going to pay off as quarterback Scott Schaffner took it in for a three-yard touchdown only to have it nullified by a holding penalty which pushed the Gophers back 10 yards to the Ohio State 13-yard-line.

Brent Berglund would come on to kick a 30-yard field goal which increased Minnesota's lead to 10-0 with  as Carlos Snow would return the ensuing kickoff 79 yards to give Ohio State a 1st & goal at the Gophers' nine-yard-line.

But after the next two plays netted only one yard, disaster struck for the Buckeyes on 3rd & goal when Frey was hit by Minnesota defensive tackle Mike Sunvold, causing the ball to come loose and land in the arms of defensive back Sean Lumpkin, who then ran it back for a 85-yard touchdown to increase the Gophers' lead to 17-0 with 3:07 left in the first quarter.

The score remained 17-0 as the game moved into the second quarter when the Gophers got the ball at their 27-yard-line as wide receiver Steve Rhem ran for 15 yards on two carries, then caught a 29-yard touchdown pass from Schaffner at the end of the four-play drive which pushed the Minnesota lead to 24-0.

Things would get worse for the Buckeyes on their ensuing possession as Frey had a pass intercepted by Minnesota linebacker Joel Staats after it was tipped by defensive end Skeeter Akre to give the Gophers the ball at the Ohio State 44-yard-line.

From there, it would take nine plays for the Gophers to get back into the end zone as Schaffner threw a five-yard touchdown pass to Chris Gaiters to push the Minnesota lead to 31-0 with 4:29 left in the first half.

Minnesota running back Darrell Thompson would carry the ball 29 times for 133 yards and score one touchdown.

It seemed hopeless for the Buckeyes as they now trailed by 31 points and would go three-and-out on their ensuing possession to punt the ball back to the Gophers,

However, the Buckeyes would get a reprieve as Minnesota was called for 12 men on the field during the punt, drawing a 15-yard penalty and giving Ohio State a 1st down at its 35-yard-line.

A pass interference penalty on the Gophers would give the Buckeyes another 15 yards and a 1st down at the 50-yard-line as Snow would run the ball twice as he gained 13 yards to give Ohio State a fresh set of downs at the Minnesota 37-yard-line when Frey connected with Bobby Olive for a 30-yard completion to give the Buckeyes a 1st & goal at the Gophers' seven-yard-line.

Three straight runs by Snow for a total of six yards would set up 4th & goal from the one-yard-line as the Buckeyes would go for the touchdown which they got when Snow punched it in for the one-yard touchdown that with Frey's two-point pass to Jeff Graham cut the Gophers' lead to 31-8 as the first half came to an end.

The Buckeyes would get the ball to start the second half as they were able to drive 66 yards in nine plays to set up a 25-yard field goal by Pat O'Morrow which trimmed Minnesota's lead to 31-11 with 10:04 remaining in the third quarter.

The Buckeyes would be given a golden opportunity to cut even further into the lead when on the first play of the Gophers' ensuing possession, Thompson lost the football as Ohio State linebacker Steve Tovar would recover the fumble to give Frey and the offense the ball at the Minnesota 23-yard-line.

However, the Buckeyes would give the ball right back when on the very next play as running back James Bryant tried to throw a halfback pass, only to have it intercepted by Minnesota cornerback Fred Foggie to give the Gophers the ball back at their five-yard-line.

Six straight runs by Thompson for 50 yards would help Minnesota drive to the Ohio State 38-yard-line until the Gophers punted the ball back to the Buckeyes, who would take over at their two-yard-line.

The Gophers seemed poised to get the ball back in good field position as the first two plays of the Buckeyes' drive picked up only three yards until Frey completed a 13-yard pass to Snow on 3rd & 7 to give Ohio State a 1st down at its 18-yard-line.

From there, Frey completed a 20-yard pass to Graham, then handed the ball off to Snow who ran for nine yards to set up 2nd & 1 when Scottie Graham would carry the ball for six yards to pick up another Ohio State a 1st down at the Minnesota 47-yard-line.

Frey would then hit Greg Beatty for 21 yards which was followed by a nine-yard run by Snow and two straight runs by Scottie for two yards, all leading to Frey's 15-yard touchdown pass to Snow to end the 11-play, 98-yard drive which cut the deficit to 31-18 with 20 seconds left in the third quarter.

With their lead now down to 13 points, the Gophers would get great field position to start their next drive as Gaiters returned the ensuing kickoff 44 yards to the Minnesota 49-yard-line.

From there, the Gophers would drive 37 yards in nine plays as Berglund would come on to kick a 32-yard field goal to increase the Minnesota lead to 34-18 with 11:24 left in the fourth quarter.

It would only take the Buckeyes 93 seconds to get back into the end zone as a 45-yard return by Dante Lee on the ensuing kickoff would give Ohio State the ball at the Minnesota 46-yard-line as Frey would complete a 17-yard pass to Olive on 3rd &8, then connected with Snow on a 27-yard touchdown to cut the Gophers' lead to 10 points.

The Buckeyes would go for two again and would again be successful as Snow caught the two-point pass from Frey to make it an one-possession game at 34-26 with 9:51 remaining.

Ohio State would force a three-and-out to give their offense the ball at their 33-yard-line with a chance to tie the game, only to have them turn it over for the sixth time in the game when a bad snap out of the shotgun formation lead to a fumble recovery by Lumpkin to give Minnesota the ball at the Buckeyes' 28-yard-line.

After a holding penalty pushed them back 10 yards, the Gophers would pick up 14 yards on the next three plays to set up a 42-yard field goal by Berglund to push the Minnesota lead back to double digits at 37-26 with 5:15 left in the game.

Carlos Snow would account 278 all-purpose yards on 30 touches as he scored three touchdowns.

The Buckeyes would start their ensuing drive at their 32-yard as Frey completed four consecutive passes for 60 yards to put Ohio State at the Minnesota eight-yard-line as two incomplete passes and a holding penalty would push the Buckeyes back 10 yards to the Gophers' 18-yard-line where they faced a 3rd & goal.

That is when Frey would complete a 17-yard pass to Jeff Graham to set up a 4th & goal from the one-yard-line when Cooper decided to go for the touchdown as Frey would keep it himself on a quarterback option as he punched it in for one-yard touchdown that with his two-point pass to Graham made it 37-34 in favor of the Gophers with 3:04 to go in the game.

The Gophers would get the ball at their 32-yard-line to start their next possession only to pick up a 1st down or two and run out the clock so they could escape with the win.

But with Thompson on the sidelines with a bruised right hip, the Gophers could not pick up a 1st down as they gained four yards on three plays, forcing them to punt the ball back to the Buckeyes who would take over at their 27-yard-line with 1:52 left and no timeouts.

Frey would complete an 18-yard pass to Snow to start the drive, then hit Chris Stablein for 19 yards to give Ohio State a 1st down at the Minnesota 36-yard-line when Akre would sack Frey, dropping him for a 13-yard loss to force 2nd & 23.

However, Frey would overcome the loss of yards as hit tight end Jim Palmer for 34 yards to give the Buckeyes a 1st down at the Minnesota 15-yard-line when Frey threw a pass for Jeff Graham in the right corner of the end zone.

Graham would make the catch for the 15-yard touchdown that with the extra point gave the Buckeyes their first lead of the game at 41-37 with 51 seconds left in the game.

The Gophers would get one last chance to salvage themselves from an historic defeat as they began their next possession at their 38-yard-line as Schaffner completed a seven-yard pass to tight end Shane Strain, then completed back-to-back passes to Pat Tingelhoff for a total 33 yards to put Minnesota at the Ohio State 22-yard-line with seven seconds to play.

That is when Schaffner rolled to his left and fired a pass for Rhem in the back of the end zone who got his fingertips on the ball before it fell to the ground for an incomplete pass to end the game with the Buckeyes on top 41-37.

The Gophers would somewhat recover from their collapse against Ohio State to finish the season with a 6-5 record as they defeated rivals Wisconsin and Iowa in the final month of the regular season though they would not be invited to a postseason bowl game.

As for the Buckeyes, they would finish the regular season with a 8-3 record to earn them an invitation to play Auburn in the Hall of Fame Bowl in Tampa, Florida where the Tigers would defeat Ohio State 31-14 as the Buckeyes would finish ranked #24 in the final AP poll.

The win over Minnesota remains the greatest comeback in Ohio State history while the record for greatest comeback in college football history was broken in 2006 by the Michigan State Spartans as they overcame a 35-point deficit to beat Northwestern.