Season Record: 6-4-1
Conference Record: 4-4
Home Record: 3-3
Road Record: 3-1-1
Jump to: Roster | Coaching Staff | Statistics | Schedule & Results
1987 Roster
| # | Player | Position | Height | Weight | Birthday | Hometown | High School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Lance Price | CB, TB | 6'1" | 190 | 2/4/1967 | Toledo, OH | Scott |
| 2 |  Bernard Edwards | FL | 6'5" | 195 | 2/24/1969 | Ft. Myers, FL | Ft. Myers |
| 3 |  Sean Bell | DB, FS, ST | 6'2" | 195 | 12/25/1965 | Middletown, OH | Middletown |
| 4 |  Wes Siegenthaler | SE | 6'0" | 172 | 10/6/1967 | Massillon, OH | Washington |
| 5 |  Everett Ross | FL, SE, ST, TB | 5'11" | 188 | 3/6/1966 | Columbus, OH | Eastmoor |
| 6 |  Pat O’Morrow | K | 5'11" | 180 | 10/24/1967 | Radford, VA | Radford |
| 7 |  Vinnie Clark | CB | 6'1" | 193 | 1/22/1969 | Cincinnati, OH | CAPE |
| 8 |  Bobby Olive | FL | 6'1" | 165 | 4/22/1969 | Atlanta, GA | Douglass |
| 8 |  Mark Smith | P | 6'2" | 215 | 11/16/1967 | Canton, OH | McKinley |
| 9 |  Mike Morton | K | 6'2" | 196 | 3/25/1965 | Worthington, OH | Worthington |
| 10 |  Derek Isaman | ILB, OLB | 6'3" | 220 | 4/3/1967 | Fremont, OH | Ross |
| 11 |  Bill Matlock | FB, ST | 5'9" | 220 | 4/22/1967 | Columbus, OH | Beechcroft |
| 13 |  Scott Powell | H, OLB, QB, TE | 6'4" | 221 | 2/19/1966 | North Canton, OH | Hoover |
| 14 |  Eric Kumerow | OLB | 6'6" | 250 | 4/17/1965 | River Forest, IL | Oak Park |
| 15 |  Greg Frey | QB | 6'2" | 195 | 1/29/1968 | Cincinnati, OH | St. Xavier |
| 16 |  Mike Chancey | OLB, QB | 6'4" | 245 | 4/21/1968 | Syracuse, OH | Meigs |
| 17 |  John Wagoner | FL, QB, ST, SS | 6'3" | 207 | 6/01/1968 | High Point, NC | Andrews |
| 18 |  Gary Clift | FL, QB, SE | 6'2" | 195 | 12/12/1965 | Brunswick, OH | Brunswick |
| 19 |  Tom Tupa | P, QB | 6'5" | 216 | 2/6/1966 | Brecksville, OH | Brecksville |
| 19 | Joe Canestraro | CB | 6'0" | 192 | - | Steubenville, OH | Catholic Central |
| 20 |  Dwight Smith | CB, S, ST | 5'11" | 180 | 9/1/1966 | Middletown, OH | Middletown |
| 21 |  Zack Dumas | CB, ST, SS | 6'2" | 192 | 3/14/1968 | Deptford, NJ | Deptford |
| 22 |  Tony Cupe | CB, WR | 6'0" | 190 | 4/24/1968 | Columbus, OH | South |
| 23 | Jason Warner | SS | 6'1" | 180 | - | Marion, OH | Pleasant |
| 24 |  Tim Rutledge | CB, ST | 6'1" | 190 | 2/5/1969 | Youngstown, OH | East |
| 25 |  Carlos Snow | TB | 5'9" | 200 | 10/24/1968 | Cincinnati, OH | CAPE |
| 26 |  Nate Harris | FL | 5'11" | 180 | 5/15/1965 | Akron, OH | Central-Hower |
| 26 | Brian Tuffin | CB | 6'0" | 202 | - | Shaker Heights, OH | Shaker Heights |
| 27 |  David Brown | CB, S | 6'0" | 182 | 7/7/1966 | Utica, NY | Notre Dame |
| 28 |  John Spencer | FB | 6'0" | 215 | 11/20/1968 | St. Clairsville, OH | St. Clairsville |
| 29 |  Greg Rogan | CB | 5'10" | 187 | - | Urbana, OH | Urbana |
| 30 |  Dedrick Howard | OLB | 6'3" | 222 | 11/26/1966 | Middletown, OH | Middletown |
| 32 |  Tom Anderzack | OLB, ST | 6'3" | 212 | 12/29/1965 | Toledo, OH | Central Catholic |
| 33 |  Steve Gresock | FB | 5'10" | 220 | 3/5/1962 | Boardman, OH | Boardman |
| 35 |  Scottie Graham | FB | 5'10" | 220 | 3/28/1969 | Long Beach, NY | Long Beach |
| 36 |  Chris Spielman | ILB | 6'2" | 236 | 10/11/1965 | Massillon, OH | Washington |
| 37 |  William White | CB | 5'10" | 192 | 2/19/1966 | Lima, OH | Lima Senior |
| 38 |  Chris Boddie | FB | 6'2" | 240 | 12/26/1967 | Toronto, ON | York Memorial Institute |
| 39 |  Tyrone Harrison | FB, ILB | 6'2" | 235 | 5/4/1969 | Highland Park, NJ | Highland Park |
| 41 |  Jaymes Bryant | TB | 6'0" | 215 | 6/18/1967 | Harrisburg, PA | Bishop McDevitt |
| 42 |  Vince Workman | FL, TB | 5'11" | 195 | 5/9/1967 | Dublin, OH | Dublin |
| 43 |  Ceroy Robinson | CB | 5'10" | 185 | 5/16/1968 | Bethesda, MD | Chevy Chase |
| 44 |  Tony Closson | ILB | 5'11" | 233 | 9/11/1968 | Delphos, OH | Jefferson |
| 44 |  George Cooper | FB | 6'2" | 246 | 12/8/1964 | Wyandanch, NY | Wyandanch |
| 46 |  Jim Peel | ST, SS | 5'11" | 190 | 4/15/1968 | Beaver Falls, PA | Blackhawk |
| 47 | Tony Fenstermaker | FL | 6'2" | 185 | - | Powell, OH | Olentangy |
| 47 |  Ray Jackson | CB, SS | 6'0" | 190 | 1/11/1965 | Akron, OH | Central-Hower |
| 48 |  Mark “Bo” Pelini | FS | 6'2" | 195 | 12/13/1967 | Youngstown, OH | Cardinal Mooney |
| 49 |  Andy Gurd | ILB | 6'3" | 230 | 3/27/1969 | Chagrin Falls, OH | Kenston |
| 50 |  Jeff Davidson | OG, OT | 6'6" | 300 | 10/03/1967 | Westerville, OH | North |
| 51 |  Greg Zackeroff | OG | 6'5" | 265 | 4/15/1966 | Warren, OH | Harding |
| 52 |  Tom Moore | C, LS, ST | 6'3" | 227 | 2/19/1966 | Orrville, OH | Orrville |
| 54 |  Pat Thomas | NG | 6'1" | 260 | 6/6/1966 | Centerville, OH | Centerville |
| 56 |  Orlondo Craig | ILB | 6'1" | 215 | 7/12/1967 | Detroit, MI | Mackenzie |
| 57 |  John Sullivan | ILB | 6'0" | 237 | 10/27/1965 | Timberlake, OH | Lake Catholic |
| 58 | Tom Scholl | C | 6'1" | 220 | - | Columbus, OH | Watterson |
| 61 |  Ken Voll | C, OG | 6'3" | 270 | 6/15/1968 | Lakewood, OH | Lakewood |
| 62 |  Tony Moore | DT, OT | 6'4" | 296 | 1/30/1968 | Amherst, OH | Steele |
| 62 |  Dan Hirneise | C | 6'3" | 290 | 10/1/1966 | Marion, OH | Pleasant |
| 62 |  Charlie Keenan | NG, OLB, ST | 6'2" | 220 | 10/2/1966 | Steubenville, OH | Steubenville |
| 63 |  Roy Nichols | OG, OT | 6'5" | 295 | 1/9/1969 | Jeannette, PA | Jeannette |
| 64 |  Mike Kuri | C, LS | 6'5" | 275 | 6/10/1967 | Martins Ferry, OH | Martins Ferry |
| 65 |  Erik Grimm | OG | 6'4" | 260 | 8/23/1968 | Sisterville, WV | Sisterville |
| 66 |  Paul Long | C, DT | 6'5" | 282 | 4/9/1969 | Highland Heights, OH | Mayfield |
| 66 |  Karl Coles | DT, OG | 6'5" | 295 | 2/23/1967 | Gahanna, OH | Lincoln |
| 67 |  Mike Sullivan | ILB, NG, ST | 6'0" | 241 | 10/27/1965 | Timberlake, OH | Lake Catholic |
| 68 |  Jeff Uhlenhake | C, DT, OG | 6'4" | 270 | 1/28/1966 | Newark, OH | Newark Catholic |
| 69 |  Jay Shaffer | OT | 6'7" | 288 | 11/17/1964 | Lakeside, OH | Boardman |
| 70 |  Steve France | OG, OT | 6'5" | 275 | 12/27/1966 | Lancaster, PA | Catholic |
| 71 |  Mike Huddleston | C, OG | 6'5" | 285 | 12/30/1968 | Wooster, OH | Wooster |
| 72 |  Henry Brown | DT, OT | 6'4" | 262 | 1/27/1965 | New York, NY | Andrew Jackson |
| 73 |  Jeff Kuczek | OG | 6'4" | 254 | 10/11/1967 | Boardman, OH | Boardman |
| 74 |  Tim Moxley | OT | 6'7" | 310 | 3/6/1967 | Barnesville, OH | Barnesville |
| 75 |  John Peterson | OG | 6'4" | 292 | 3/20/1968 | Middletown, OH | Middletown |
| 76 |  Dan Beatty | C, DT | 6'4" | 285 | 9/18/1967 | East Liverpool, OH | East Liverpool |
| 77 |  Jim Davidson | C, DT, OG, OLB, ST | 6'5" | 245 | 12/8/1965 | Westerville, OH | Westerville North |
| 78 |  Mick Shoaf | OT | 6'6" | 285 | 3/10/1969 | Orwell, OH | Grand Valley |
| 79 |  Joe Staysniak | OT | 6'5" | 290 | 12/08/1966 | Elyria, OH | Midview |
| 81 |  Tom Lease | ILB | 6'5" | 230 | 8/31/1969 | Kenton, OH | Kenton |
| 82 |  Jay Koch | FL, OLB, ST, TE | 6'2" | 220 | 2/9/1969 | Cincinnati, OH | Purcell Marian |
| 83 |  Frank Hoak | ST, TE | 6'2" | 222 | 5/1/1966 | Richeyville, PA | Beth Center |
| 85 |  Jim Palmer | TE | 6'5" | 250 | 9/5/1966 | Loudonville, OH | Loudonville |
| 86 |  Gary Lickovitch | TE | 6'3" | 245 | 10/28/1966 | Solon, OH | Solon |
| 87 |  Rich Huffman | ST, TE | 6'3" | 240 | 11/21/1967 | Salem, OH | Salem |
| 88 |  Alex Higdon | DT, ST, TE | 6'5" | 251 | 9/9/1966 | Cincinnati, OH | Princeton |
| 89 |  Jeff Ellis | TE | 6'4" | 250 | 03/04/1968 | Louisville, KY | Male |
| 90 |  Fred Ridder | DT, ILB, NG | 6'2" | 230 | 9/29/1965 | Eaton, OH | Eaton |
| 91 |  Brian Benio | ILB | 6'2" | 230 | 3/2/1968 | Roswell, GA | Roswell |
| 92 |  Ken Coleman | NG | 6'2" | 260 | 5/24/1968 | Dayton, OH | Meadowdale |
| 93 |  Derek MacCready | DT | 6'5" | 265 | 5/4/1967 | Montreal, QC | Lachine |
| 95 |  John Kacherski | DT, NG, OLB | 6'3" | 240 | 6/27/1967 | Riverhead, NY | Milford Academy |
| 96 |  Srecko Zizakovic | DE, DT, OLB | 6'5" | 250 | 8/13/1966 | Weston, ON | Weston Collegiate |
| 98 |  Mike Showalter | DT | 6'4" | 272 | 6/3/1968 | Bay Village, OH | Bay Village |
| 99 |  Michael McCray | OLB, ST | 6'3" | 230 | 6/23/1965 | Dayton, OH | Dunbar |
Coaching Staff:
Head Coach: Earle Bruce
Defensive Coordinator: Gary Blackney
Quarterbacks & Wide Receivers: Tom Lichtenberg
Running Backs: Lenny Willis
Interior Offensive Line: Steve Devine
Tackles & Tight Ends: Bob Palcic
Outside Linebackers: Fred Pagac
Inside Linebackers: Bill Conley
Defensive Line: Randy Hart
Defensive Backs: Chuck Heater
1987 Ohio State Football Statistics
1987 Ohio State Passing Stats
| Player | Comp | Pass Att | Cmp % | Pass Yds | Pass TD | Pass Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Tupa | 134 | 242 | 55.4 | 1786 | 12 | 10 |
| Greg Frey | 8 | 20 | 40.0 | 94 | 0 | 2 |
| Scott Powell | 1 | 2 | 50.0 | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| Vince Workman | 1 | 2 | 50.0 | 25 | 0 | 0 |
1987 Ohio State Rushing Stats
| Player | Rush Att | Rush Yds | Rush Avg | Rush TD | FR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vince Workman | 118 | 470 | 4.0 | 2 | 2 |
| Carlos Snow | 99 | 381 | 3.8 | 4 | 3 |
| Jaymes Bryant | 86 | 313 | 3.6 | 3 | 0 |
| George Cooper | 86 | 347 | 4.0 | 2 | 0 |
| Tom Tupa | 72 | 45 | 0.6 | 4 | 2 |
| Bill Matlock | 8 | 61 | 7.6 | 0 | 0 |
| Greg Frey | 5 | 5 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lance Price | 3 | 6 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Everett Ross | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 2 |
| Chris Boddie | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Higdon | 1 | 31 | 31.0 | 0 | 0 |
1987 Ohio State Receiving Stats
| Player | Rec | Rec Yds | Rec Avg | Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Everett Ross | 29 | 585 | 20.2 | 5 |
| Vince Workman | 26 | 354 | 13.6 | 1 |
| Alex Higdon | 26 | 252 | 9.7 | 0 |
| George Cooper | 22 | 206 | 9.4 | 1 |
| Carlos Snow | 9 | 172 | 19.1 | 2 |
| Tony Cupe | 8 | 95 | 11.9 | 0 |
| Jeff Ellis | 7 | 63 | 9.0 | 1 |
| Gary Clift | 5 | 87 | 17.4 | 0 |
| Jaymes Bryant | 4 | 23 | 5.8 | 0 |
| Jay Koch | 4 | 48 | 12.0 | 0 |
| Bobby Olive | 2 | 18 | 9.0 | 0 |
| Bill Matlock | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 0 |
| Greg Zackeroff | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 |
1987 Ohio State Defensive Stats
| Player | Position | Tkl | Solo | Asst | TFL | TFL Yds | Sacks | Sack Yds | FF | FR | Int | Int Yds | PBU | Blk | Def TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Spielman | ILB | 156 | 78 | 78 | 10 | 45 | 4 | 31 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Sullivan | ILB, NG, ST | 78 | 29 | 49 | 9 | 44 | 5 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Eric Kumerow | OLB | 73 | 38 | 35 | 15 | 75 | 8 | 49 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Ray Jackson | CB, SS | 72 | 44 | 28 | 9 | 79 | 6 | 71 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Michael McCray | OLB, ST | 71 | 39 | 32 | 6 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 30 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| David Brown | CB, S | 53 | 25 | 28 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 33 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
 Ray Holliman | DT | 53 | 23 | 30 | 11 | 29 | 2 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| William White | CB | 41 | 29 | 12 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 85 | 7 | 0 | 1 |
| Zack Dumas | CB, ST, SS | 37 | 17 | 20 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Andy Gurd | ILB | 37 | 17 | 20 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Greg Rogan | CB | 33 | 21 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 39 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| John Sullivan | ILB | 33 | 15 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fred Ridder | DT, ILB, NG | 30 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Showalter | DT | 24 | 6 | 18 | 4 | 13 | 2 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Derek Isaman | ILB, OLB | 21 | 9 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mark “Bo” Pelini | FS | 13 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Coleman | NG | 11 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jim Peel | ST, SS | 10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sean Bell | DB, FS, ST | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Dwight Smith | CB, S, ST | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Pat Thomas | NG | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bill Matlock | FB, ST | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Kacherski | DT, NG, OLB | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Charlie Keenan | NG, OLB, ST | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Derek MacCready | DT | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Everett Ross | FL, SE, ST, TB | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Moore | C, LS, ST | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Orlondo Craig | ILB | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frank Hoak | ST, TE | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brian Benio | ILB | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jason Warner | SS | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tony Moore | DT, OT | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Spencer | FB | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| George Cooper | FB | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Karl Coles | DT, OG | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeff Uhlenhake | C, DT, OG | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gary Lickovitch | TE | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Higdon | DT, ST, TE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1987 Ohio State Kicking and Punting Stats
| Player | Pt | Pt Yds | Punt Avg | TB | I20 | Pt Blkd | XP | XPA | XP % | FG | FGA | FG % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Tupa | 63 | 2963 | 47.0 | 10 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
 Matt Frantz | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 27 | 96.3 | 10 | 17 | 58.8 |
1987 Ohio State Kick and Punt Return Stats
| Player | KR | KR Yds | KR Avg | KR TD | PR | PR Yds | PR Avg | PR TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vince Workman | 14 | 299 | 21.4 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 3.7 | 0 |
| Carlos Snow | 13 | 206 | 15.8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Everett Ross | 4 | 79 | 19.8 | 0 | 20 | 166 | 8.3 | 0 |
| John Sullivan | 2 | 7 | 3.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| David Brown | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 0 |
| Ray Jackson | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 19.0 | 0 |
1987 Ohio State Football Schedule & Results
The Earle Bruce era came to an end following the 1987 football season. Ohio State fired Bruce before the Michigan game, but allowed him to coach (and win) the game. Bruce sued the school over the firing and the lawsuit was settled out-of-court with a $471,000 payment to Bruce.
The 1987 season began with high expectations as Ohio State opened the year ranked fifth in the AP poll. Despite a 3-0-1 record, Ohio State had slid to ninth in the poll before losing 31-10 at home to Indiana. The team was on a three-game losing streak in conference when the Bruce firing was announced prior to the final game of the year.
The six wins in 1987 were the lowest total for Ohio State since the 1971 season. They scored a combined 224 points (20.4 ppg) and allowed 181 (16.5 ppg).