Quotes and Quips from the Coach, Tom Cole

 

Hey Buckeye Cable System Sports Gang,

 

It’s Ohio State – Michigan Week and the greatest rivalry in all of college football. Woody and Bo left all football fans a great lasting legacy and the Ohio State-Michigan football week, there is nothing like it! Nothing in college football compares. Sure Notre Dame-SC, Army-Navy, Florida-Florida State, UT-BGSU, Harvard-Yale….all outstanding, traditional Rockwellian football matchups, but “The Game” is Ohio State vs. Michigan. It really does not matter which team wins this game because this game transcends football, it has become a family and friends social get-together. This Saturday afternoon is special because it’s two outstanding academic schools and two historically rich athletic programs. Michigan, the winningist program in the history of college football and Coach Tressel with 5 Big Ten Championships and 1 National Championship. But the one and only coach in the number one spot at OSU will always be Mr. Woodrow Hayes. There has never been anyone like Woody. There are thousands of Woody Hayes stories, but I will give you two that are true.

 

One year, Woody and three of his coaches were on a recruiting trip in Michigan when on their way home late at night the assistant coach driving started to pull into a gas station, because they were low. Woody told the coach to get back on the road, he would never buy Michigan gas, so off they went. They were about 1 mile to the Ohio Line when they ran out of gas and Coach Hayes had his assistants push the car with Coach at the wheel across the line and there they bought Ohio gas. Woody’s last game as an Ohio State Coach was against Clemson. Charlie Bauman picked off a Buckeye pass to seal a victory for Clemson and was knocked out of bounds right in front of Woody. Woody helped Bauman up then fired a couple of upper-cut punches into him. Six months later Charlie Bauman receives a phone call from Coach Hayes. Charlie thought this would be an apology, no such luck. All Woody asked Bauman was what defense were you in when you picked-off that pass and hung up.

 

Ohio State –Michigan! There is no game like it to get together with your friends and family and enjoy it. Woody and Bo make this the only game in town at the end of the season. They were very special coaches and they gave us a very special game.

 

Take care and have a safe week. Tom Cole (Coach)