There are 51 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.

Jim Parker paved the way for Hopalong Cassady and the Ohio State offense during the 1954 championship season.

NO. 51 JIM PARKER, OG (1954-56)
Born: 1934 (Macon, GA)
High School: Scott (Toledo)
Death: 2005 (Columbia, MD)
 

OHIO STATE CAREER

• The Buckeyes were 23-5 with Parker on the team.
• 1954 National Champions.
• 1954 Big Ten Title.
• 1955 Big Ten Title.
• Defeated USC 20-7 in the 1955 Rose Bowl.
• Went 2-1 against That Team.

HONORS

• 1956 Outland Trophy.
• 1956 All-American.
• 1956 All-Big Ten.
• 1955 All-American.
• 1955 All-Big Ten.
• 1973 Inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame.
• 1974 Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
• 1977 Inducted into the Varsity O Hall of Fame.
• 1999 Named first-team offensive guard for the Sports Illustrated All-Century team.
• All-Pro: 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965 and 1966.
• Pro Bowl: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961,1962, 1963, 1964 and 1965.
• Colts No. 77 retired in Parker's name. 

NFL Draft
Round 1 to the Baltimore Colts with the 8th pick of the 1957 draft.

MISCELLANEOUS

• NFL Champion 1958.
• NFL Champion 1959.

Parker's blocking helped Hopalong Cassady win the 1955 Heisman Trophy.

Parker's Ohio State career per The Ohio State Team Guide:

Jim Parker was Ohio State’s first Outland Trophy winner as the nation’s top interior lineman. He also is the standard by which his former coach, the late Woody Hayes, measured all other offensive linemen.

“Jim Parker was the greatest offensive lineman I ever coached. I’m not sure there has ever been a better offensive guard,” said Hayes upon Parker’s induction into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame. “He was everything an offensive lineman should be.” Indeed, Parker could do it all.

A tremendous athlete, the 6-2, 200-pounder could pull and
run block with the best of them. And on the relatively few occasions when the Buckeyes decided to throw the ball, getting around the agile, quick-footed Parker was next to impossible.
Parker was a three-year starter and two-time All-American for the Buckeyes. He won the Outland Trophy as a senior in 1956.

During his three years as a starter, Ohio State won 23
of 28 games, captured the 1954 national championship and won back-to-back Big Ten titles in 1954 and ’55.

Parker, who was born in Macon, Ga., but played his last two years of high school football in Toledo, Ohio, was the Buckeyes’ MVP in 1956. A first round pick of the Baltimore Colts the following spring, he went on to enjoy a distinguished career in the NFL as a perennial all-pro pick.

In addition to being a charter member of the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame, Parker also is a member of the College Football (1974) and the Professional Football (1973) halls of fame. His play set a standard of excellence for all future Ohio State linemen.

Parker passed away in July, 2005, at age 71.

For more information on other players who wore No. 62 go here.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide and Wikipedia

ALL PLAYERS COVERED TO DATE