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Ohio State "Franchise Four"

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LordJeffBuck

LordJeffBuck

Illuminatus Emeritus
Staff member
BP Recruiting Team
In the lead up to last night's All Star Game, MLB revealed the "Franchise Four" for each team, that is, the four best players all-time from each team. The MLB "Franchise Four" were limited to living players.

Who are your Buckeye Franchise Four? Players only (no coaches), and players do not have to be alive.
 
1st Team:
Archie Griffin
Chic Harley
Chris Spielman
Orlando Pace

2nd Team:
Vic Janowicz
Eddie George
Jack Tatum
Bill Willis

Also under consideration: Hopalong Cassidy, Antoine Winfield, Keith Byars, Jim Parker, John Hicks
 
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Chic Harley
Archie Griffin
Chris Spielman
Eddie George

My criteria is most "iconic" Buckeyes. Tough to leave Pace off but I think between him and Eddie, Eddie gets the more iconic nod.

Of more modern vintage, Troy Smith is one who could make a list like this were it expanded sometime.
 
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Harley, Archie, and Spielman are more or less the 3 most everyone would pick I think. The 4th one is always tougher, I guess I would go with Bill Willis, but I am biased. Tatum, Eddie, Troy, and Kern are all good additions to Pace
 
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Harley, Griffin, Pace, Spielman

If you don't have Harley in your list, your list is wrong. Some of this list objective, but this part is not. All the other players you might consider for this list played in a stadium that only exists because of the demand Harley created. He was the first three-time All-American at Ohio State, and the only reason it wasn't four times was due to his service in WWI. He set the trajectory for all the things that have been accomplished by Ohio State football in the last 100 years. You want statistics? Here's one to chew on:

Ohio State's all-time win percentage vs M*ch*g*n before Chic Harley faced them for the first time: .000
​
Ohio State didn't notch a win in fifteen meetings against that team up north over a span of thirty seasons. The first and only time Chic Harley took the field against them, the Buckeyes won.

Simply put, Chic Harley is the most important player ever at Ohio State.
 
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Harley gets the ball rolling. Cassedy saves Woody's hide as the natives were sending up planes carrying banners with "Good Bye Woody." Archie is unique. How can you not include him? And then you have to honor those who have made the path through which the Buckeyes roll, so let me introduce Parker Hicks Pace.

And since the nonsense of franchise four is among us, the greatest Reds Player I have seen in my 72 years is Frank Robinson. Bench is certainly the player who changed how the position of catcher is played. Pete always gave you full value for the price of admission and unlike Ty Cobb will be welcomed to play at the Field of Dreams. Joe Morgan made the difference between being in the series and winning the series. Much as I enjoyed watching Larkin play, he was nowhere, no where, near the player that Robinson was in his Cincinnati years.
 
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Bucklion said:
Another interesting one would be the basketball team. Jerry Lucas for sure. Havlicek? Jim Jackson? Newer guys?
Click to expand...
Well the guy who caused St. Johns to be built is Robin Freeman. He is to OSU basketball as Chic Harley is to OSU football and without St. Johns I seriously doubt that Lucas ends up playing for the Buckeyes. What about Dick Larkins who qbd the football team and was the ball handler on the b-ball team.

I have a problem with Jackson. In the most important game of the year, a threepeat against the Fab Four, Jackson didn't want the ball in the final minutes of a one score game - not just once, but several times he passed or hid from the ball. I'd go with Gary Brads who took a very limited Buckeye team into Ann Arbor and led them to an upset of a Wolverine team led by Cazzie Russell. That win enabled the team to tie Michigan for the Big Ten crown. Next I'd go with Clark Kellogg. So, Freeman, Lucas and Havlicek and then a pick of Brads or Kellogg.
 
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It's tougher to pick a top 4 out of CFB players compared to professionals because of the limited time and different eras. But the players of Mount Buckmore would have to include IMO Chic Harley, Archie Griffin, Chris Spielman, and Orlando Pace. But there are so many alternatives to the list that one could argue, I'm just thankful it is not in stone.
 
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Football
Archie Griffin: 3-time All American; 2-time Heisman
Orlando Pace: 2-time All American; 2-time Lombardi; Outland
John Hicks: 2-time All American; Lombardi; Outland
Jim Parker: 2-time All American; Outland (the Lombardi Award was not yet in existence)

The greatest RB and the greatest OL of their respective generations. That's not just at Ohio State, that's for all of CFB.

That being said, at least a dozen other payers could be in the Franchise Four.

Basketball
Jerry Lucas: 3-time All American; averaged 24.3 points and 17.2 rebounds for his Buckeye career
Jim Jackson: 2-time All American; national player of the year
Clark Kellogg: the best all-around player that I ever saw at Ohio State
Dennis Hopson: All American in 1987 when he averaged 29.0 points and 8.2 rebounds per game

John Havlicek and Evan Turner were close to making the list.
 
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