Ohio State is synonymous with “football school.” It’s a perennial national championship contender, laying claim to the title over eight different occasions – with two in the past twenty years.
But Ohio State athletics are more than just football (and trademarking the word “The”). OSU is one of the only schools in the nation to have one national championships in football, men’s basketball and baseball. It is a juggernaut in nearly every collegiate sport.
So, let’s give some other Buckeye sports programs some love. Here are a handful other teams to watch and where you can catch their games:
Men’s Basketball
Playing in the Value City Arena, or The Schottenstein Center, depending on what you want to call it – OSU men’s basketball is a frequent participant in the NCAA Tournament, last missing the Big Dance in 2017.
The Buckeyes have made 13 March Madness appearances in the past twenty years. Their tournament play is usually to a high standard, too. The Buckeyes have won their first-round matchup 10 out of the 13 times over the past two decades.
Past the first-round though, the team has struggled. The Buckeyes haven’t been to the Sweet Sixteen in nearly 10 years and haven’t won a championship since 1960.
Regular season basketball has also been a struggle for the team – its been roughly a decade since Ohio State has won a Big Ten regular season or tournament championship.
Baseball
Buckeye baseball has fared slightly worse than its men’s basketball counterpart.
The scarlet and gray clad play at Bill Davis Stadium and have won a single championship – dating back to 1966. And with only two NCAA Tournament appearances in the past decade, its been a while since the Buckeyes were perennial contenders.
The team, however, did experience considerable success in the 90s and early 00’s, making the tournament 10 times from 1991 to 2003. Despite their numerous appearances, Ohio State hasn’t even sniffed the College World Series since 1967.
Men’s Hockey
Since Big Ten hockey began in 2013, the Buckeyes have been an average team.
Playing their games at the same venue as men’s basketball, Value City Arena, Buckeye hockey has yet to win a national championship.
However, over the past decade, since joining Big Ten hockey, Ohio State has made three appearances, one of which lead to a bid in 2018 to the Frozen Four – collegiate hockey’s version of the Final Four.
Women’s sports
Plenty of women’s sports exist at OSU as well. Most notably being the women’s basketball team. The team has failed to make the NCAA Tournament just four times since 2003.
Also playing in Value City Arena, the team has experienced moderate success in tournament play. They have three Elite Eight appearances and were the tournament runner-up in 1993.
Other popular women’s teams include softball, field hockey, ice hockey and volleyball.