The 2011 Ohio State Buckeyes football team was an American football team that represented the Ohio State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was led by interim head coach Luke Fickell who took over after the resignation of Jim Tressel amid the Ohio State University football scandal. The Buckeyes compiled a 6–7 record (3–5 in conference games), finished in fourth place in the Big Ten's Leaders Division, and outscored opponents by a total of 318 to 273. Against ranked opponents, the Buckeyes defeated No. 16 Illinois and No. 12 Wisconsin and lost to No. 14 Nebraska, No. 21 Penn State, and No. 17 Michigan. They concluded the season with a 24–17 loss to unranked Florida in the 2012 Gator Bowl. The Buckeyes were unranked in the final Coaches and AP polls. It was the first time Ohio State had finished the season with a losing record since 1988. As of 2025, this is the most recent season where Ohio State finished with a losing record.
The Buckeyes gained an average of 191.2 rushing yards and 127.0 passing yards per game. On defense, they gave up 141.5 rushing yards and 182.0 passing yards per game. Quarterback Braxton Miller led the team in both passing (1,159 passing yards, 54.1% completion percentage) and rushing (715 yards, 4.5 yards per carry). The team's other statistical leaders included wide receiver Devin Smith (14 catches for 294 yards), kicker Drew Basil (84 points scored, 36 of 37 extra points, 16 of 19 field goals), and defensive back C. J. Barnett (49 solo tackles, 75 total tackles). No Ohio State players won first-team All-America honors. John Simon received first-team honors as a defensive lineman on the 2011 All-Big Ten Conference football team.
The team played its home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
Schedule
Rankings
Before the season The 2010 Ohio State team posted a 12–1 record, including a victory over No. 8 Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl. However, all 12 victories were vacated by the NCAA as part of its investigation into the Ohio State University football scandal. Also as a result of the scandal, Ohio State played the first five games of the season without five players: Terrelle Pryor, DeVier Posey, Mike Adams, Solomon Thomas, and Boom Herron. These players had sold memorabilia to the owner of a Columbus tattoo parlor. On March 8, 2011, it was reported that Tressel knew about it as early as April 2010 through an anonymous e-mail. As of result, Tressel received a two-game suspension for failing to notify authorities of the players' wrongdoings. Tressel later decided to sit out the first five games with the five players. On May 30, 2011, Tressel resigned as head coach. Assistant head coach Luke Fickell, who was to take over during Tressel's suspension, was named interim head coach. On June 8, returning starting quarterback Terrelle Pryor announced his intention to forgo his senior season, "in the best interest of [his] teammates," in light of his suspension and ongoing investigation by the NCAA.
Game summaries Akron
Ohio State's first game under Luke Fickell began with an opening drive defensive stop and a touchdown run by starting quarterback Joe Bauserman. Both teams struggled on offense through the first quarter, with Ohio State leading, 7–0. Midway through the second quarter, the Buckeyes put together a 12-play drive that concluded in a touchdown pass from Bauserman to Jake Stoneburner. Before the end of the half, Ohio State scored on another pass from Bauserman to Stoneburner. Ohio State led, 21–0, at halftime. The heat, reaching almost , caused problems for the players, referees, band members, and fans. In the third quarter, Bauserman and Soneburner connected for their third touchdown, extending the Buckeyes' lead to 28–0. Freshman quarterback Braxton Miller took most of the offensive snaps for the remainder of the game, passing for 130 yards and a touchdown. Ohio State won the game, 42–0.
Toledo
On September 10, Ohio State defeated Toledo, 27–22. In the first quarter, Joe Bauserman threw a touchdown pass to Jake Stoneburnerthe year. Still in the first quarter, Toledo blocked a punt and scored a touchdown – the first points Toledo scored against Ohio State in three games.) At the end of the first quarter, Toledo receiver Eric Page had 66-yard touchdown reception, giving Toledo a 15–7 lead. Toledo committed 14 penalties on the day for 109 yards. Heading into the second quarter, Ohio State scored on a 36 touchdown run from Carlos Hyde and a 45-yard punt return from Chris Fields. After a sloppy first half by both teams, Ohio State went into halftime with a 21–15 lead. Ohio State again started off the second half slow, allowing the Rockets to score a touchdown on their opening drive of the half, and allowing them to retake the lead, 22–21. The one-point Toledo lead held up for most of the third quarter, until another touchdown run by Hyde, and a subsequently missed two-point conversion, gave Ohio State a five-point, 27–22 lead. Neither team scored in the fourth quarter. The game came down to a final play, with a Toledo fourth and six on the Ohio State 17. Terrance Owens was unable to complete the pass, coming five yards short and the Buckeyes were able to escape with a victory.
Miami (FL)
Ohio State's first road game of the season took them to south Florida for a rematch against the Miami Hurricanes who they faced in the 2010 season, as well as the 2003 Fiesta Bowl, beating them both times. The game did not start well for the Buckeyes, with a bad opening offensive drive, giving Miami good field position. The Hurricanes quickly drove down the field 63 yards and scored their first points of the game on a Jacory Harris touchdown pass. Later in the quarter, Miami again drove down the field for another Harris touchdown pass, giving the Hurricanes a 14–0 lead at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter saw the momentum swing in favor of Ohio State, with two drives heading deep into Miami territory, however, once in the red zone, the Buckeyes were unable to capitalize and had to settle for two short range field goals by Drew Basil, bringing them closer in the games and giving Miami only a 14–6 lead. However a field goal at the end of the first half gave Miami a two-possession lead heading into halftime. The second half of the game saw little offense, with both the Buckeyes' defense dominating the Hurricanes and keeping them out of Ohio State territory, as well at the Buckeye offense continuing to struggle to get any kind of rhythm. Miami was able to score a touchdown with 0:33 remaining in the game, giving them a 24–6 lead—the final score of the game. The game was the first non-conference loss since the September 12, 2009 loss against the University of Southern California.
Colorado
Ohio State came off their previous week's loss to Miami with a home game against the Colorado Buffaloes. For the first time during the season, freshman quarterback Braxton Miller received the start, only the third time Ohio State started a freshman at that position. The second offensive drive of the first quarter saw the Buckeyes move the ball 43 yards down the field and score on a Jordan Hall touchdown run. A Drew Basil field goal later on in the quarter gave Ohio State a 10–0 lead early on in the game. Colorado's special teams, as well as the number of penalties which they drew, allowed Ohio State to have relatively good field position throughout the game, averaging a start around their 50-yard line. Ohio State took advantage of the field position with a touchdown pass from Miller to Devin Smith, giving Ohio State a 17–0 lead. Colorado eventually drove down the field on their next possession and scored on an 11-yard touchdown reception, narrowing the score to 17–7. A field goal before the end of the half allowed Ohio State to go into the locker room with a 20–7 lead. The third quarter saw a back and forth between the two teams, with Ohio State still dominating. Another Miller to Smith touchdown reception put Ohio State up 27–7, while Colorado continued to stay in the game with an Oliver field goal. Basil would kick a field goal to end the third quarter, as well as starting the fourth, and gave Ohio State a 37–10 lead late in the game. A late Colorado touchdown was the last score of the game, as the favored Buckeyes beat Colorado 37–17, rebounding after their previous week's loss to Miami, as Ohio State moved to 3–1 on the season.
Michigan State
On a cold rainy day in Columbus, Ohio, the Ohio State Buckeyes opened their 2011 Big Ten Conference campaign against the Michigan State Spartans. Both teams were unable to score on their opening possessions of the ballgame. Michigan State opened the scoring with a 33-yard pass from Kirk Cousins to B.J. Cunningham, giving the Spartans a 7–0 lead. Throughout the first quarter both teams would trade field position as both defenses stepped up to the occasion to stop the opposing team. Michigan State found themselves deep in Ohio State territory late in the second quarter, however, an interception by Cousins, one of three Michigan State turnovers on the day, would allow Ohio State to enter halftime only down by a score of 7–0. The rain and windy conditions made the game much more of a defensive battle than expected. Throughout the third quarter and the rest of the second half, both teams continued to trade field position and come up with stops on defense. A missed 51-yard field goal by Dan Conroy allowed the Buckeyes and their struggling offense to have a shot at tying the game, however, with Joe Bauserman replacing Braxton Miller at QB, Ohio State was unable to move the ball. Michigan State extended their lead by 3 with a 50-yard field goal from Conroy, giving the Spartans a 10–0 advantage. A late touchdown by the Buckeyes would do little to help their effort as Ohio State went on to lose the game 10–7. This was Ohio State's first 0–1 start in Big Ten play since 2004, as well as their first loss to Michigan State since 1999.
Nebraska
In the first match up between the Buckeyes and Cornhuskers since the 1950s, Ohio State went into Lincoln hoping to win and rebound after their previous week's loss to Michigan State. Ohio State struggling offense came out with some fire, driving down the field on their first drive for a Drew Basil field goal, giving Ohio State an early 3–0. With Nebraska kicking a field goal a few minutes later, the game was tied midway through the first quarter at 3–3. A Braxton Miller to Jake Stoneburner touchdown at the end of the quarter gave Ohio State a 10–3 lead and the momentum. The second quarter continued the Ohio State dominance with a 63-yard touchdown run from Carlos Hyde and an exchange of field goals between the two teams, allowing the Buckeyes to go into halftime with a 20–6 lead. The second half of the game began very well for the Buckeyes with another Hyde touchdown, giving Ohio State their largest lead at 27–6. However, a Braxton Miller fumble, which allowed Nebraska to score their first touchdown of the game in the third quarter, as well as an ankle injury by Miller, eventually gave the Cornhuskers the momentum back down the stretch of the game. Another Nebraska touchdown at the end of the third quarter allowed the Cornhuskers to cut it to a 7-point game, 27–20, going into the fourth quarter. Two fourth-quarter touchdowns, both by Rex Burkhead, allowed Nebraska to receive their first lead of the night, pushing them to their first-ever Big Ten victory, and the largest comeback in school history. With the loss, Ohio State dropped to 3–3 and 0–2 in the Big Ten for the first time since the 1988 season.
Illinois