Ken Fritz: More Than the Gator Bowl

Ken Fritz was a big, strong man even before he officially became a man.

The Ironton native won nine letters in high school: three each in football, wrestling and track. Then he arrived at Ohio State in 1976 as one of the top high school linemen in Ohio.

By 1978, Fritz was starting at guard for the legendary Woody Hayes.

And on Dec. 29 of that year, he found himself in the middle of one of the ugliest moments in college football history.

Ohio State trailed Clemson 17-15 late in the Gator Bowl when freshman quarterback Art Schlichter threw an interception to Clemson's Charlie Bauman, who was tackled near the Ohio State sideline.

Woody lost his marbles and hit Bauman in a fit of Woody rage.

Chaos followed, and the Buckeye you see in that old video who stepped in to stop Woody was No. 56.

Ironton’s Ken Fritz.

Photos from that night show the 6-foot-3 offensive lineman wrapping up his 65-year-old coach and trying to pull him away.

Newspaper reports indicated Hayes struck Fritz during the confrontation, too.

But Fritz refused to throw his coach under the bus. He later insisted Hayes was simply trying to wrestle himself free.

Woody, the OSU icon, was fired the following day.

Twenty-eight years of leading and shaping Ohio State football ended in one terrible decision.

But Fritz still had another season and a new coach to acclimate to.

Earle Bruce replaced Hayes in 1979, inheriting a team that wasn't even ranked in the preseason.

Fritz became one of its captains and Ohio State won all of its regular season games.

The Buckeyes entered the Rose Bowl ranked No. 1 with a national championship within reach. But USC beat Ohio State 17-16, ending the Buckeyes' perfect season.

What happened to Ken Fritz?

The guy whose photograph has become attached to Woody Hayes' worst moment became a consensus All-American and first-team All-Big Ten guard. The All-American honor earned him a tree in Buckeye Grove, just south of the Horseshoe.

The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Fritz the following spring.

That's an amazing twelve months!

One December, Fritz was trying to keep his legendary coach from making a terrible situation worse.

The next, he was helping lead Ohio State to within one point of an undefeated season and potential national championship.

Offensive linemen don't get many statistics. Their contributions don’t make headlines.

Ken Fritz never let anything hold him back. But his most famous moment came when he held somebody else back.

O – H!