Woody Hayes
Denison | |
Position(s) | Denison |
---|---|
1949–1950 | Miami (OH) |
1951–1978 | Ohio State |
Head coaching record | |
Overall | 238–72–10 (college) 18–11–1 (high school) |
Bowls | 6–6 |
Accomplishments and honors | |
Championships | |
5 Big Ten Coach of the Year (1973, 1975) | |
College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 1983 (profile) |
Wayne Woodrow "Woody" Hayes (February 14, 1913 – March 12, 1987) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Denison University from 1946 to 1948, Miami University in Oxford, Ohio from 1949 to 1950, and Ohio State University from 1951 to 1978, compiling a career college football coaching record of 238–72–10. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 1983.
During his 28 seasons as the head coach of the
titles, and amassed a record of 205–61–10.Over the last decade of his coaching tenure at Ohio State, Hayes's Buckeye squads faced off in a fierce rivalry against the Michigan Wolverines coached by Bo Schembechler, a former player under and assistant coach to Hayes. During that stretch in the Michigan–Ohio State football rivalry, dubbed "The Ten Year War", Hayes and Schembechler's teams won or shared the Big Ten Conference crown every season and usually each placed in the national rankings.
Early years
A native of
Hayes enlisted in the
As World War II was near its end, and Hayes' alma mater, Denison University, was pursuing plans to reinstate its football program (which had been suspended during the war), it contacted former head coach Rogers (also in the Navy) about rejoining the program as head coach. Rogers declined, but recommended that his former team captain, Hayes, should be named the next head coach. Denison was able to locate and give Hayes an offer, which he accepted, minutes before his Navy ship was to begin the voyage through the Panama Canal — meaning Hayes would have been incommunicado for an extended period of time.
Coaching at Denison and Miami (OH) University
Upon returning to Denison in 1946, Hayes had a hard first year, winning only 2 games, over Capital and the season finale against Wittenberg. However, that victory sparked a 19-game winning streak, a surge that propelled him into the head coaching position at Miami University. Miami is recognized as the "Cradle of Coaches" because of its history of outstanding coaches starting their careers there, such as Paul Brown, Ara Parseghian, Weeb Ewbank, Bill Mallory, Sid Gillman, Randy Walker, and Bo Schembechler. After the 1947 season, Gillman moved down the road to coach at the University of Cincinnati, which was then Miami's chief rival. Hayes and Gillman maintained a sparkling feud between themselves, combining mutual distaste for the other's coaching style, and because they were in recruiting competition in the same general area.[4]
In his second year with the
Ohio State
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/Woody_Hayes%2C_Dick_Doyle_and_Ernie_Godfrey_%281952%29.jpg/165px-Woody_Hayes%2C_Dick_Doyle_and_Ernie_Godfrey_%281952%29.jpg)
As head coach of the
Hayes' basic coaching philosophy was that "nobody could win football games unless they regarded the game positively and would agree to pay the price that success demands of a team." His conservative style of football (especially on offense) was often described as "three yards and a cloud of dust"—in other words, a "crunching, frontal assault of muscle against muscle, bone upon bone, will against will." The basic, bread-and-butter play in Hayes' playbook was a fullback off-guard run or a tailback off tackle play. Hayes was often quoted as saying "only three things can happen when you pass (a completion, an incompletion, and an interception) and two of them are bad."
In spite of this apparent willingness to avoid change, Hayes became one of the first major college head coaches to recruit
Another Hayes recruit, Archie Griffin, was the only two-time Heisman Trophy winner in seven decades of selections. Altogether, Hayes had 58 players earn All-America honors under his tutelage. Many notable football coaches, such as Lou Holtz, Bill Arnsparger, Bill Mallory, Bo Schembechler, Doyt Perry, Ara Parseghian and Woody's successor, Earle Bruce, served as his assistants at various times.
Hayes often used illustrations from historical events to make a point in his coaching and teaching. When Hayes was first hired to be the head coach at Ohio State, he was also made a "full professor of physical education", having earned an
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Woody_Hayes%2C_circa_1958.png/200px-Woody_Hayes%2C_circa_1958.png)
During his time at Ohio State, Hayes' relationships with students and faculty members were particularly good.[
During his tenure at Ohio State, Hayes joked that he considered himself to be Notre Dame's best recruiter because if he could not convince a recruit to come to Ohio State instead of Michigan he would try to steer the recruit to Notre Dame, whom Ohio State did not play. While Hayes' public stance was that he refused to play Notre Dame because he was afraid of polarizing the Catholic population in Ohio, Notre Dame's long-time athletic director Edward "Moose" Krause said that Hayes had told him that Hayes liked having Michigan as the only tough game on the Ohio State schedule and that having the Buckeyes play Notre Dame would detract from that.[7] Despite Hayes' apparent fear of playing more than one "tough" game a year, Ohio State still managed to schedule regular-season games with Nebraska, Washington, Southern California, UCLA, and Oklahoma during his tenure.
After losses or ties, Hayes conducted locker room interviews while naked. A journalist from his tenure noted, "He was an ugly guy so it would clear the locker room out pretty fast."[8][9]
Controversies
In 1959, following a 17−0 loss to USC, Hayes threw a punch at Los Angeles Examiner sportswriter Al Bine, but missed, and punched the brother of Pasadena Independent sports editor Bob Shafer in the back instead.[10] In a May 1965 meeting of Big Ten Conference athletic directors and coaches, Hayes nearly started a fight with Iowa's athletic director, Forest Evashevski, before being restrained.[11]
Prior to the
In 1977, a late fumble at Michigan caused him to charge at ABC cameraman Mike Freedman, who recorded his frustration; Hayes was ejected, put on probation by the Big Ten Conference, and fined $2,000.[13]
1962 Rose Bowl vote
In the 1961 season, Ohio State won the Big Ten championship, qualifying automatically for the Rose Bowl. At the time, the Big Ten Conference rules stated that the school's Faculty Council must officially approve of the trip. In this unusual development, the Ohio State Faculty Council voted 28 to 25 against the
Comments on the My Lai Massacre
Speaking at a football
Confrontation with Jerry Markbreit
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/President_Gerald_R._Ford_and_Ohio_State_University_Football_Coach_Woody_Hayes_at_the_Port_Columbus_Airport_in_Columbus%2C_Ohio_-_NARA_-_30805881.jpg/220px-President_Gerald_R._Ford_and_Ohio_State_University_Football_Coach_Woody_Hayes_at_the_Port_Columbus_Airport_in_Columbus%2C_Ohio_-_NARA_-_30805881.jpg)
Late in the 1971 rivalry game against Michigan in Ann Arbor, furious over what he thought was a missed defensive pass interference foul committed by Thom Darden of Michigan, Hayes stormed onto the field, launched a profanity-laced tirade at referee Jerry Markbreit, and tore up the sideline markers, receiving a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Hayes then threw the penalty flag into the crowd, began destroying the yard markers, and threw the first-down marker into the ground like a javelin before being restrained by Buckeyes team officials; Hayes was then assessed an additional 15-yard penalty and ejected. Hayes was suspended for one game and fined $1,000.[16]
1978 Gator Bowl incident and dismissal
On December 29, 1978, the Buckeyes played in the
After the game, Ohio State Athletic Director Hugh Hindman, who had played for Hayes at Miami University and had been an assistant under him for seven years, privately confronted Hayes in the Buckeye locker room. He said that he intended to tell school president Harold Enarson about what happened, and strongly implied that Hayes had coached his last game at Ohio State. After a heated exchange, Hindman said that he then offered Hayes a chance to resign, but Hayes refused, saying, "That would make it too easy for you. You had better go ahead and fire me." Hindman then met with Enarson at a country club near Jacksonville, and the two agreed that Hayes had to go.[19][20]
The next morning, Hindman told Hayes that he had been fired. A press conference was held at the hotel where the team had been staying. The team returned to Columbus around noon, and Hayes left the airport in a police car. Regarding Hayes' dismissal, Enarson said that "there isn't a university or athletic conference in this country that would permit a coach to physically assault a college athlete."[21] After the incident, Hayes reflected on his career by saying, "Nobody despises to lose more than I do. That's got me into trouble over the years, but it also made a man of mediocre ability into a pretty good coach." About two months after the incident, Hayes called Bauman in his dorm room, but did not apologize for his previous attack on him. Earle Bruce succeeded Hayes as Ohio State's head coach.
Many years later,
According to the 1994
Final days and death
On March 11, 1987, Hayes was clearly in failing health when he had someone drive him in his pickup truck to
The next morning, March 12, Hayes's wife Anne found him unconscious in his bed at the couple's home.[24] He died of a heart attack at age 74.[25] He is interred at Union Cemetery in Columbus, Ohio.
Legacy
Hayes's lifetime record of 238–72–10 placed him ninth in all-time NCAA Division I FBS coaching victories.[26] He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983.
At Hayes's
Following his death and in keeping with his wishes, the Wayne Woodrow Hayes Chair in National Security Studies was established at Ohio State's Mershon Center for International Security Studies. Professor John Mueller currently holds the chair. In November 1987, the university dedicated the new Woody Hayes Athletic Center in his memory.
Personal life
Hayes married the former Anne Gross in 1942. Anne Hayes was a formidable and popular woman in her own right, who used to jokingly say at numerous sports banquets, "Divorce Woody? Never! But there were plenty of times I wanted to murder him!"[28] The couple had one son, Steven, who went on to become a lawyer and judge. Coincidentally, the younger Hayes was assigned to the 2003 trial of former Ohio State standout Maurice Clarett.[29] Judge Hayes (he had been on the Franklin County, Ohio Municipal Court) died in May 2022, at 76; his death was announced May 30.[30]
World War II movie host
Because of his knowledge of military history and ongoing popularity, Hayes in the early 1980s hosted the broadcast of six World War II films for WBNS-TV in Columbus, which has served as the official outlet of Ohio State sports media programming for years, including the football coach's shows. Among the movies broadcast were Patton, Midway, The Wackiest Ship in the Army, The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel, and Tora! Tora! Tora!.
Hayes also gave salty historical perspectives related to each movie. Hayes' segments, depending upon the movie, were taped in such locations as Fort Knox, West Point, the USS Yorktown, and Stuttgart, Germany, where he interviewed Manfred Rommel, Lord Mayor of Stuttgart and the son of Erwin Rommel.
Head coaching record
Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | Coaches# | AP° | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Denison Big Red (Ohio Athletic Conference ) (1946–1948)
| |||||||||
1946 | Denison
|
2–6 | 2–4 | 15th | |||||
1947 | Denison | 9–0 | 6–0 | 1st | |||||
1948 | Denison | 8–0 | 6–0 | 2nd | |||||
Denison: | 19–6 | 14–4 | |||||||
Miami Redskins (Mid-American Conference) (1949–1950) | |||||||||
1949 | Miami | 5–4 | 3–1 | 2nd | |||||
1950 | Miami | 9–1 | 4–0 | 1st | W Salad | ||||
Miami: | 14–5 | 7–1 | |||||||
Ohio State Buckeyes (Big Ten Conference) (1951–1978) | |||||||||
1951 | Ohio State | 4–3–2 | 2–3–2 | 5th | |||||
1952 | Ohio State | 6–3 | 5–2 | 3rd | 15 | 17 | |||
1953 | Ohio State | 6–3 | 4–3 | 4th | 20 | ||||
1954 | Ohio State | 10–0 | 7–0 | 1st | W Rose | 2 | 1 | ||
1955 | Ohio State | 7–2 | 6–0 | 1st | 5 | 5 | |||
1956
|
Ohio State | 6–3 | 4–2 | T–4th | 15 | ||||
1957
|
Ohio State | 9–1 | 7–0 | 1st | W Rose | 1 | 2 | ||
1958
|
Ohio State | 6–1–2 | 4–1–2 | 3rd | 7 | 8 | |||
1959
|
Ohio State | 3–5–1 | 2–4–1 | T–8th | |||||
1960
|
Ohio State | 7–2 | 5–2 | 3rd | 8 | 8 | |||
1961
|
Ohio State | 8–0–1 | 6–0 | 1st | 2 | 2 | |||
1962 | Ohio State | 6–3 | 4–2 | T–3rd | 13 | ||||
1963 | Ohio State | 5–3–1 | 4–1–1 | T–2nd | |||||
1964 | Ohio State | 7–2 | 5–1 | 2nd | 9 | 9 | |||
1965 | Ohio State | 7–2 | 6–1 | 2nd | 11 | ||||
1966 | Ohio State | 4–5 | 3–4 | 6th | |||||
1967 | Ohio State | 6–3 | 5–2 | 4th | |||||
1968 | Ohio State | 10–0 | 7–0 | 1st | W Rose | 1 | 1 | ||
1969 | Ohio State | 8–1 | 6–1 | T–1st | 5 | 4 | |||
1970 | Ohio State | 9–1 | 7–0 | 1st | L Rose | 2 | 5 | ||
1971 | Ohio State | 6–4 | 5–3 | T–3rd | |||||
1972 | Ohio State | 9–2 | 7–1 | T–1st | L Rose | 3 | 9 | ||
1973 | Ohio State | 10–0–1 | 7–0–1 | T–1st | W Rose | 3 | 2 | ||
1974 | Ohio State | 10–2 | 7–1 | T–1st | L Rose | 3 | 4 | ||
1975 | Ohio State | 11–1 | 8–0 | 1st | L Rose | 4 | 4 | ||
1976 | Ohio State | 9–2–1 | 7–1 | T–1st | W Orange | 5 | 6 | ||
1977 | Ohio State | 9–3 | 7–1 | T–1st | L Sugar | 12 | 11 | ||
1978 | Ohio State | 7–4–1 | 6–2 | 4th | L Gator | ||||
Ohio State: | 205–61–10 | 152–37–7 | |||||||
Total: | 238–72–10 | ||||||||
National championship Conference title Conference division title or championship game berth | |||||||||
|
Coaching tree
Former assistants who became NCAA Division I FBS or NFL head coaches:
- Joe Bugel, Arizona Cardinals, Oakland Raiders
- George Chaump, Navy
- Lou Holtz, William and Mary, North Carolina State, New York Jets, Arkansas, Minnesota, Notre Dame, South Carolina
- Bill Mallory, [Miami (OH)], Colorado, Indiana
- Wisconsin
- Doyt Perry, Bowling Green
- Ralph Staub, Cincinnati
Former players who became assistants who became NCAA Division I FBS or NFL head coaches:
- Bill Arnsparger, LSU, New York Giants
- Earle Bruce, Iowa State, Ohio State, Colorado State
- Glen Mason, Kansas, Minnesota
- Ara Parseghian, [Miami(OH)],Northwestern, Notre Dame
- Bo Schembechler, [Miami(OH)],Michigan
- Boston Patriots
- Fred Bruney, Philadelphia Eagles
- Professional Football Hall of Fameas a player)
- John McVay, New York Giants (later General Manager of San Francisco 49ers)
- Gary Moeller, Illinois, Michigan, Detroit Lions
- John Pont, [Miami(OH)],Indiana, Northwestern
- Bo Rein, North Carolina State (named coach at LSU, but died in a plane crash before coaching a game for the Tigers)
See also
- List of college football coaches with 200 wins
- List of presidents of the American Football Coaches Association
- History of Ohio State Buckeyes football
References
- ^ STAATS, WAYNE. "College football coaches with the most national championships". NCAA.com. Retrieved January 3, 2023.
- ^ Fineman, Alex. "Hayes produced champions, controversy". ESPN. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
- ^ "Woody Hayes". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
- ^
Lombardo, John (2005). A Fire to Win: The Life and Times of Woody Hayes. Thomas Dunne Books. pp. 64–67. ISBN 0-312-36036-3.
- ^ Lombardo, op.cit. pp.84-85
- ^ Lombardo, op.cit. pp.195-197
- ^
Kryk, John (2007). "The Crisler Dodge (1942–1968)". Natural Enemies: Major College Football's Oldest, Fiercest Rivalry, Michigan vs Notre Dame. Taylor Trade Publishing. p. 154. ISBN 978-1-58979-330-9.
- ^ Leonard Downie Jr. regrettably recalls Woody Hayes holding interviews while naked, Cleveland Plain Dealer, February 12, 2009, Accessed February 14, 2009.
- ^ a b Richard Oviatt, Washington Post editor Leonard Downie Jr. talks past, future Archived February 15, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, The Lantern, February 12, 2009, Accessed February 14, 2009.
- ^ "Didn't Punch Scribe, Woody Hayes Insists". Sunday Herald. October 4, 1959. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
- ^ "Hayes, Evashevski Nearly Come To Blows At Meeting". Lewiston Morning Tribune. May 21, 1965. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
- Youngstown Vindicator. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
- The Argus-Press. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
- ^ Lombardo, op.cit. pp.142–145
- ^ "Woody Waves His Flag". The Pittsburgh Press. December 12, 1969.
- The Morning Record. November 23, 1971. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Woody Hayes". YouTube.
- ^ Clemson 1978 Gator Bowl: The end for Woody Hayes, 247Sports, Steve Helwagen, December 25, 2016.
- ^ a b "Woody Hayes's last stand: Ohio State, Clemson and the punch that ruined Hayes". Sports Illustrated. December 23, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
- ^ Scorecard. Sports Illustrated, January 8, 1979.
- ^ The New York Times, December 31, 1978, pg.S1
- ^ Schembechler & Albom. p. 82.
- ^ Schembechler & Albom. p. 84.
- ^ Burt A. Folkart, Woody Hayes, Buckeye Coach 28 Years, Dies, Los Angeles Times (March 12, 1987). Retrieved on July 13, 2012.
- New York Times(March 13, 1987). Retrieved on July 13, 2012.
- ^ "page 383" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 1, 2007.
- Columbus Dispatch, March 12, 2012
- ^ Lombardo, op.cit. p.40
- ^ "Clarett case judge is Woody Hayes' son". ESPN. September 18, 2003.
- ^ "Son of legendary Ohio State football coach has died". MSN.
Further reading
- Hunter, Bob. Saint Woody: The History and Fanaticism of Ohio State Football (U of Nebraska Press, 2022)
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Wikiquote-logo.svg/34px-Wikiquote-logo.svg.png)
- Woody Hayes at the College Football Hall of Fame
- Woody Hayes at IMDb
- Woody Hayes at Find a Grave