With Ohio State vs. Indiana in 30 days, here are the best OSU season openers in the past 30 years
Ohio State will begin the 2023 football season in 30 days.
On Sept. 2, the Buckeyes will open the 2023 campaign in Bloomington, taking on Indiana at 3:30 p.m. on CBS.
Ohio State has not lost a season-opening game since 1999. Since then, the Buckeyes have won 23 consecutive season openers.
With 30 days before the Buckeyes' season opener, here's a look at the 10 most memorable Ohio State season-opening games in the past 30 years:
Sept. 5, 1998: No. 1 Ohio State 34, No. 11 West Virginia 17
Ohio State's 1998 season opener was not an easy one.
The Buckeyes traveled to Morgantown, West Virginia, as the No. 1 team in the country to take on No. 11 West Virginia: the first of five ranked matchups during the 1998 season.
Ohio State took control against the Mountaineers behind 301 passing yards from quarterback Joe Germaine and 140 rushing yards from Michael Wiley, amounting to a 34-10 lead before West Virginia cut it down to 17 with 13 seconds left.
The Buckeyes' road win against the Mountaineers began an 11-1 season that ended with a Sugar Bowl win against Texas A&M.
Aug. 29, 1999: No. 12 Miami (FL) 23, No. 9 Ohio State 12
Ohio State's most recent season-opening loss came at the hands of No. 12 Miami.
To start the 1999 season, the Buckeyes mustered 220 yards of offense, 12 first downs and six turnovers to lose to the Hurricanes 23-12 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The Miami loss was the Buckeyes' first in a season opener since 1986, when they lost 16-10 to Alabama. Ohio State has not lost a season-opening game since.
In 1999, the loss to the Hurricanes was one of six for the Buckeyes, who ended the season with a three-game losing streak that included a road loss to Michigan.
Sept. 8, 2001: No. 24 Ohio State 28, Akron 14
The Tressel ball era at Ohio State began against Akron in 2001.
In Jim Tressel's first game as the Buckeyes' coach, Ohio State beat Akron 28-14, helped by 119 rushing yards and two touchdowns from Beanie Wells and touchdown passes from Steve Bellisari to Jamar Martin and Chris Vance.
The Buckeyes limited the Zips to one offensive score, 14 first downs and 148 yards of offense. Akron averaged 3.5 yards per rush.
Ohio State's season-opening win against Akron began a 7-5 season for the Buckeyes, who finished 2001 unranked after an Outback Bowl loss to South Carolina.
Aug. 24, 2002: No. 13 Ohio State 45, Texas Tech 21
Maurice Clarett set the tone for Ohio State in 2002.
In his first collegiate game against Texas Tech, the freshman running back recorded 175 rushing yards and three scores, helping the Buckeyes to a 45-21 win against the Red Raiders.
Clarett had three of Ohio State's six rushing touchdowns, joining Lydell Ross and Scott McMullen, who each scored for a team that recorded 317 rushing yards.
Ohio State finished the 2002 season on top, securing its seventh national championship with a Fiesta Bowl win against Miami, capping off an undefeated season.
Sept. 5, 2009: No. 6 Ohio State 31, Navy 27
Ohio State's 2009 season opener nearly ended in disaster.
With Ohio State holding onto a 29-14 lead three minutes into the fourth quarter, Navy scored 12 unanswered points, cutting the Buckeyes' lead to two. But with 2:23 left in the game, linebacker Brian Rolle intercepted a two-point attempt by Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs, returning it 98 yards to secure the Buckeyes' 31-27 win.
Quarterback Terrelle Pryor scored two of Ohio State's three touchdowns, recording a 38-yard touchdown pass to Dane Sanzenbacher in the first quarter before scoring himself on a 2-yard run.
Despite losses to Southern California and Purdue, Ohio State ended 2009 as the No. 5 team in the country after a Rose Bowl win against Oregon.
Sept. 1, 2012: No. 18 Ohio State 57, Miami (OH) 10
Entering the 2012 season ineligible for both the Big Ten Championship game and a bowl game, Ohio State still showed signs of life in Urban Meyer's first game in Columbus.
Trailing 3-0 after the first quarter, the Buckeyes scored seven offensive touchdowns in three quarters, adding a 1-yard fumble recovery by cornerback Bradley Roby in the third quarter to help beat Miami 56-10.
Quarterback Braxton Miller led the way, scoring three touchdowns with 161 yards rushing and 207 yards passing.
The Buckeyes finished the 2012 season undefeated.
Aug. 30, 2014: No. 5 Ohio State 34, Navy 17
After giving Ohio State a scare in 2009, Navy played the Buckeyes close again in 2014.
Trailing 14-13 with four minutes left in the third quarter, an 80-yard touchdown pass from quarterback J.T. Barrett to wide receiver Devin Smith secured a lead Ohio State wouldn't lose. OSU scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns — a 10-yard run by Ezekiel Elliott and a 9-yard pass from Barrett to wide receiver Michael Thomas — to get the 34-17 win.
Despite losing their Week 2 game on the road against Virginia Tech, the Buckeyes went on to win their eighth national championship, beating Alabama and Oregon in the first College Football Playoff.
Aug. 31, 2017: No. 2 Ohio State 49, Indiana 21
Much like Clarett in 2002, J.K. Dobbins ran the show in Ohio State's 49-21 season-opening win against Indiana in 2017.
In his first college game, Dobbins broke the single-game rushing record for an Ohio State freshman, recording 181 rushing yards on 29 carries, finishing the game with 205 yards from scrimmage and averaging 6.6 yards per touch.
Barrett added four touchdowns, throwing touchdown passes to Parris Campbell, Johnnie Dixon and Binjimen Victor, and adding a 2-yard touchdown run, while Antonio Williams recorded two touchdown runs.
Losses to Oklahoma and Iowa kept Ohio State out of the College Football Playoff in 2017, but the Buckeyes would win a Big Ten title before earning a Cotton Bowl win against USC.
Sept. 1, 2018: No. 5 Ohio State 77, Oregon State 31
Taking the reins from Meyer as he served a three-game suspension, Ryan Day led a dominant offensive performance to begin Ohio State's 2018 season.
The Buckeyes scored 10 offensive touchdowns — along with a 1-yard fumble recovery score by defensive end Nick Bosa — to beat Oregon State 77-31, recording 35 first downs and 723 yards of total offense.
Quarterback Dwayne Haskins threw five touchdown passes to four different receivers — Campbell, Dixon, tight end Rashod Berry, running back Mike Weber and wide receiver Terry McLaurin, who brought in two — while Weber also recorded three rushing touchdowns, finishing with 189 yards from scrimmage.
A loss to Purdue kept the Buckeyes out of the College Football Playoff in 2018, but Ohio State secured a Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl win against Washington.
Sept. 3, 2022: No. 2 Ohio State 21, No. 5 Notre Dame 10
Ohio State's most recent season opener was one of the biggest in program history.
Ranked No. 2 in the country, the Buckeyes hosted No. 5 Notre Dame to begin the 2022 campaign, beating the Fighting Irish 21-10 at home. Ohio State limited Notre Dame to 253 yards of offense.
After two C.J. Stroud touchdown passes to Emeka Egbuka and Xavier Johnson, running back Miyan Williams secured the win with less than five minutes to go with a 2-yard touchdown run.
Ohio State ended its season in the College Football Playoff despite losing its final regular season game to Michigan. The Buckeyes lost the Peach Bowl to Georgia.
Get more Ohio State football news by listening to our podcasts
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Most memorable Ohio State football season openers
