Rivals reminisce about 1973 tie of OSU, Michigan
They are now in their early 50s, two former quarterbacks linked by circumstance and history. Dennis Franklin and Cornelius Greene have never met, which is odd, because they once were part of one of the most revered of all Michigan-Ohio State games, a contest played 33 years ago that looks as if it has come back to life to be played again this Saturday.
There was another time when a strong, undefeated, untied Michigan team and an equally feared, unbeaten Ohio State team met in the final game of the regular season. The year was 1973. That was when Greene's Buckeyes were ranked No. 1 and Franklin's Wolverines were not No. 2, but close, at No. 4.
"I thought it was No. 1 vs. No. 2," Greene, Ohio State's sophomore quarterback at the time, said over the phone the other day. "It blew me away to hear it was No. 1 vs. No. 4. Michigan had a great team, with All-Americans lined up everywhere, and so did we. I remember that game like it was yesterday."
A then-NCAA record crowd of 105,223 packed Michigan Stadium that day. The game was on national television, of course. It was cold and wet, which meant rival coaches Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler had every excuse to do what they were planning to do anyway: run the ball.
"I had hurt my thumb on my passing hand the week before, so I went back to attempt a pass only once, and when no one was open, I ran," Greene said with a laugh. "Coach Hayes didn't trust me to throw. Then again, he never trusted anyone to throw."
Ohio State pulled ahead 10-0 by halftime, but Michigan stormed back, tying the game 10-10 midway through the fourth quarter on Franklin's 10-yard run. Michigan got the ball back and moved to midfield late in the game when Franklin, then a junior, was hit, landing hard on his right shoulder. He didn't play another down. His collarbone was broken.
Michigan tried twice to win the game in the final minute on long field goals, but both went wide and the game ended in a tie. "If we went to overtime," Greene said, "we'd have been there all night playing until somebody said 'Uncle.' "
Although the Big Ten athletics directors had to vote on which team to send to the Rose Bowl, there seemed no doubt it would be Michigan. It had played far better as the game wore on, and Ohio State had been to the Rose Bowl the previous year.
But in a stunning decision that Schembechler says he still hasn't gotten over, the Big Ten ADs voted 6-4 to send the Buckeyes to the Rose Bowl. Because those were the days before everyone and his cousin got to play in a bowl, undefeated Michigan had to stay home.
"I was devastated," Franklin said by phone Wednesday. "I remember Bo Schembechler coming into the meeting trying to explain why we weren't going to the Rose Bowl. But he couldn't explain it."
It's always been believed that Franklin's injury tipped the vote to the Buckeyes. For Franklin, that's particularly galling because he was healthy by Jan. 1, 1974. "The AP sent a reporter to my home in Massillon, Ohio, and took a picture of me throwing a snowball," he said.
Franklin was the leader of what likely is the best team in college football never to go to a bowl game. In his three seasons, Michigan went 30-2-1 (the two losses were to Ohio State) and never was ranked lower than sixth in the nation after early in his sophomore year. "I guess I was somewhat bitter, wondering how it would have changed my life if we had had the additional exposure, but I eventually got over it," he said.
Greene, thinking back on it, said it was "highway robbery" what happened to those Michigan teams. "People dream of having records like that."
Greene, a year younger than Franklin, said he secretly looked up to his rival because both were their school's first black starting quarterback. "I was proud of it, but didn't want to be labeled," Greene said. "He set the bar so high. I wanted to emulate him."
"They used to call me Michigan's first black quarterback," Franklin said, "but I worked very hard to just be Michigan's quarterback."
Franklin and Greene have never talked about this because they've never spoken. "Isn't that amazing?" said Greene, 52, who works for the Washington, D.C., government. "We didn't speak right after the game because the crowd took over the stadium, and we've never met since then."
"It's kind of weird," said Franklin, 53, who sells real estate in Beverly Hills, Calif. "I have a lot of respect for him. I'd be more than happy to meet him."
A continent away, Greene hoped that would happen someday. "You talk about respect. I know I'd like him because Bo Schembechler and Woody Hayes recruited the same type of guys. When we played Michigan, it was like you were playing yourself."
Old article on the 1973 game:
Rivals reminisce about 1973 tie of OSU, Michigan - USATODAY.com
