There are 59 days that separate us from Ohio State's march to Blacksburg. To help pass the time until the Buckeyes put the Sandman to sleep I will countdown Ohio State's top 100 players according to the rubric* listed at the bottom of this article.
 

NO. 59 JOHN HICKS, OG (1970-73)
Born: 1951 (Cleveland)

OHIO STATE CAREER

• The Buckeyes were 34-7-1 with Hicks on the team.
• Won the 1970 National Championship.
• Won 3 Big Ten Titles.
• Defeated USC 42-21 in the 1974 Rose Bowl.
• Went 2-1-1 against That Team.

HONORS

• 1973 Lombardi Award winner.
• 1973 Heisman runner-up.
• 1973 All-American.
• 1973 All-Big Ten.
• 1972 All-American.
• 1972 All-Big Ten.
• 1985 Inducted into the Varsity O Hall of Fame.
• 2001 Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
• 2009 Inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame.

NFL Draft
Round 1 to the New York Giants with the 3rd pick of the 1974 draft.

John Hicks was the first player to start in three Rose Bowl games.

John Hicks' Ohio State career per The Ohio State Team Guide:

Freshmen were not eligible that year, but it didn’t take the Ohio State coaching staff long to figure out the Cleveland native was destined for greatness.

Hicks became a starter at right tackle as a sophomore in 1970, helping the Buckeyes to the Big Ten title and a berth in the Rose Bowl. A loss to Stanford in Pasadena cost the No.-1 ranked and previously unbeaten Buckeyes the national championship.

Hicks missed the entire 1971 season because of a preseason
knee injury. Not coincidentally, the Buckeyes struggled to a 6-4
record that year.

But he returned in 1972 and was a starter the next two years,
winning consensus All-America honors both of those seasons and
helping the Buckeyes to two more Big Ten titles and back-to-back
Rose Bowl appearances. During his three years as a starter, Ohio
State posted a combined record of 28-3-1. Hicks was the first
player ever to start in three Rose Bowl games.

Hicks almost won the Heisman per The Ohio State Team Guide:

John Hicks came within an eyelash of pulling off one of the biggest
triple plays in college football history in 1973. That year Hicks, a 6-3, 258-pound offensive tackle, won the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award
as the nation’s best interior lineman and also finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting.

How close did Hicks come to becoming the first interior lineman ever
to win the Heisman? Well, while he finished second that year, teammates
Archie Griffin and Randy Gradishar were fifth and sixth, respectively, in
the balloting. By combining Ohio State’s total votes, Hicks would have had
enough votes to move ahead of winner John Cappelletti.

For more information on other players who wore No. 74 go here.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide and Wikipedia

ALL PLAYERS COVERED TO DATE