Early season out-of-conference games have brewed some of the most iconic moments in the history of college football. Think of when then Football Championship Subdivision power, Appalachian State, rolled into the “Big House” and took down Michigan in 2007, or the thrilling overtime game between Texas and Notre Dame in 2016.
These are the moments that make college football truly special. So it may come as a surprise that Texas and Ohio State have only faced each other twice in the regular season and another two times in the postseason.
Although fans may not see these two college football superpowers play often, their games against each other make up for the infrequency — all four games have been thrilling AP top 10 matchups.
Week two of the 2005 season saw then No. 2 Texas travel to the confines of Ohio Stadium to face No. 4 Ohio State for the first top 10 matchup of the season.
This was the Longhorns’ first true test after junior quarterback Vince Young vowed on national television after the 2004 Rose Bowl that Texas “will be back” in Pasadena in a season’s time. This would be the first test for the Longhorns on their quest to return to the national championship.
“That was an opportunity for them to show you can win a big game. Show you can play on the biggest stages, in college football,” Kirk Bohls, longtime Austin-based sportswriter, said. “They had to show that in the Rose Bowl (the previous year) and in ‘05 this was going to be their chance to double down and show they were for real.”
Before the seating expansion of Ohio Stadium in 2014, the Texas game was the largest crowd ever witnessed at the “Shoe.” A record-breaking 105,565 people packed the iconic football stadium, living up to the intimidating environment the Buckeyes’ home stadium is known for.
Even hours before kickoff, tailgaters outside were already loading up in the parking lot, getting ready for the game.
“We were warned beforehand that you’d better get there early, traffic is going to be at a standstill. And we got there, it may have been four hours early, and there’s tailgating their students, where they’re hollering at UT fans and and it was like, ‘oh my god,’ it’s kind of a different environment from the Big 12,” Bohls recalled. “I think Texas people, the fans in particular, were kind of taken aback.”
Texas jumped up to a 10-point lead after a 42-yard field goal by senior kicker David Pino and a six-yard touchdown reception by sophomore wide receiver Billy Pittman to cap off the first quarter.
Then the Buckeyes came storming back in the second quarter. A trio of field goals and a touchdown pass by future Heisman trophy winner senior quarterback Troy Smith put the Buckeyes up by three heading into the half.
“That was kind of new for a lot of us,” Bohls said. “You could just feel the tension during the game, too. You just knew this was big-time, two big-time powers.”
Young fired a shot towards the endzone, as sophomore wide receiver Limas Sweed faded away into the endzone for the game-tying touchdown. Pino kicked through the game-winning point, handing the Buckeyes their first home night loss in program history — certifying it as an all-time classic.
