You can’t be one of the best college football programs in the country without engendering some hatred along the way.
Ohio State boasts one of the nation’s most fervent fan bases, but also a fair share of detractors. One Buckeyes team in particular earned a lot of “hate,” according to 247Sports.
247Sports’ Brad Crawford released his rankings of the top 10 most hated college football teams of all-time this week, with Ohio State’s 2002 national championship squad checking in at No. 7.
“The “Luckeyes” seemed to always have a flair for the dramatic during Jim Tressel’s only national championship season and benefited from several calls — including that big one — to be the last team standing,” Crawford wrote. “Freshman Maurice Clarett was Ohio State’s star, a trash-talking ballcarrier no one seemed to like in the Big Ten or nationally.”
Crawford named the 1986 Miami Hurricanes the most hated singular team in college football history, but Miami fans might have put the Buckeyes atop the list because of how Ohio State beat The U in the BCS National Championship Game.
“Miami fans still want an explanation from Terry Porter on what exactly he saw when Hurricanes ballhawk Glenn Sharpe blanketed Buckeyes wideout Chris Gamble in the end zone, only to be called for defensive holding to extend the national championship game in overtime,” Crawford said.
If you polled OSU supporters, many would probably say the 2002 team was one of their favorites ever, if not their most favorite.
Beauty is sometimes in the eye of the beholder.