Buckeye Bracket: Top OSU plays of the decade - RB Region

With everything in the sporting world shut down for likely the next few months, it gives us some time to reminisce on all the good times we’ve shared as Ohio State fans. While watching Buckeye football highlights to try and pass the self-quarantine boredom, it got me thinking: What is the best OSU play of the last decade?

Obviously, there is a nearly boundless amount of great plays from guys in Scarlet and Gray in the last 10 years, so it is hard to single out just one. That’s why I’m not doing it alone. Since there is no NCAA Tournament to fulfill our March Madness needs, we here at LGHL have put together a bracket of the 32 best plays in the last decade of Ohio State football, which you the fan will be able to vote on in the coming weeks as we look to crown a champion.

The bracket will be broken up into four regions, with the winner of each region competing in the Final Four before a championship matchup between the top two plays, as voted on by you guys. The regions are as follows: quarterback plays, running back plays, wide receiver plays, and defense/special teams plays.

Yesterday, we began with the quarterback region, and today we will continue on with the running back region. Of course, with so many big plays in recent history, some may have gotten left out. We tried to focus on those that were the most flashy/came in the biggest games.

Voting for the first round will end this Saturday, with the second and third rounds continuing next week. Let’s get to debating!

Running Back Region

Here’s how this region of the bracket shakes out. Now lets get into the matchups.

No. 1 Seed (Zeke’s 85-yd TD vs. Alabama) vs. No. 8 Seed (Dobbins’ 68-yd TD vs. Clemson)

The top seed in this region — and likely the early favorite of this tournament — is a play everyone remembers. Ezekiel Elliott’s 85-yard touchdown run to put the game away against Alabama in the 2015 Sugar Bowl which paved the way for an eventual National Championship. It matches up with another big run in a playoff game, as J.K. Dobbins shook a defender out of his shoes en route to a 68-yard TD against Clemson. That game would have likely ended different had Dobbins been healthy in the second half.

No. 2 Seed (Samuel’s OT winner vs. UM) vs. No. 7 Seed (Zeke’s 75-yd TD vs. Indiana)

Another high seed with Final Four aspirations, Curtis Samuel’s game-winning touchdown in double-OT against Michigan in 2016 was an iconic play in the history of the rivalry, and was made even better with a great call by Chris Fowler. Its opponent is one of three huge runs by Zeke over Indiana in 2015, this one a 75-yard TD. He finished the day with 274 total rushing yards, with scoring plays of 55, 65 and 75 yards.

No. 3 Seed (Hyde’s TD vs. Iowa) vs. No. 6 Seed (Zeke’s B1G TD vs. Wisconsin)

This region is proving to be littered with incredible plays. Carlos Hyde’s TD run against Iowa was a truly mind-boggling moment in real time. He bounces off several tackles, stumbles backwards five yards, then manages to stay on his feet and dive into the end zone for a crazy touchdown to break a fourth quarter tie with the Hawkeyes in 2013. Elliott makes the tournament again, this time with an 81-yard TD run against Wisconsin in what would wind up becoming a resounding 59-0 Big Ten Championship victory for the Buckeyes.

No. 4 Seed (Dobbins’ pinball run vs. Indiana) vs. No. 5 Seed (Zeke’s first TD vs. Oregon)

J.K. Dobbins had a monster 2019 campaign, perhaps personified in this fantastic TD run against Indiana. The junior breaks about five tackles, bouncing off Hoosier defenders en route to the end zone. He faces stiff competition in the first round, however, as Zeke once again makes an appearance. Elliott had a massive showing in the 2014 National Championship game, and his first touchdown run in that game against Oregon really showcased his elite athleticism and ballcarrier vision.

Make sure to cast your vote for your favorite Ohio State running back play of the last decade. The winner of each region will advance to the Final Four as we continue our quest to crown the Buckeyes’ best.

Just a heads up — the polls occasionally don’t load from the Twitter mobile browser, but show up fine when accessing from the regular mobile browser or a desktop.