There are 28 days that separate us from Ohio State's march to Blacksburg. To help pass the time until the Buckeyes put the Sandman to bed I will countdown Ohio State's top 100 players according to the rubric* listed at the bottom of this article.
No. 28 STEVE TOVAR, LB (1989-92)
Born: 1970 (Elyria)
OHIO STATE CAREER
- The Buckeyes were 31-15-2 with Tovar on the team.
- Played in four bowl games.
- 1990 led Ohio State in tackles (125)
- 1991 led Ohio State in tackles (97)
- 1992 led Ohio State in tackles (128)
HONORS
- 1992 Team Captain.
- 1992 All-American.
- 1992 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year.
- 1992 All-Big Ten.
- 1991 All-American.
- 1991 All-Big Ten.
- 1990 All-Big Ten.
- 2001 Inducted into the Ohio State Varsity O Hall of Fame.
NFL DRAFT
Round 3 to the Indianapolis Colts with the 59th pick of the 1993 draft.
Tovar's Ohio State career per The Ohio State Team Guide:
Steve Tovar was another in the great line of Ohio State linebackers. A two-time All-America selection in 1991 and 1992, he had the distinction of being the first of 21 players recruited by John Cooper to earn All-America status at Ohio State.
Tovar led Ohio State in tackles for three consecutive seasons (1990-92), one of only two Buckeyes ever to accomplish that feat. In his senior year, Tovar was elected team co-captain and earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year honors (selected by the conference coaches) after recording 128 tackles. A three-time all-Big Ten selection, Tovar ranked fourth in school history with 414 total tackles and 239 solo tackles.
The Elyria, Ohio, native was a third-round selection of the Cincinnati Bengals in the 1993 NFL Draft. After playing eight years in the NFL, Tovar began a career in college coaching. He was elected to the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001.
Steve Tovar's coaching career per Wikipedia:
Tovar spent the 2004 and 2005 football seasons with the Army Black Knights, coaching linebackers under head coach Bobby Ross. He then joined the Miami Dolphins staff, under coach Nick Saban. In 2007, Tovar joined the coaching staff of University of Kansas Jayhawks under Mark Mangino aslinebackers coach. Following the 2008 season, Tovar was replaced at Kansas by Louisville's Bill Miller.
Tovar's biography while coaching at Army.
| CATEGORY | POINTS |
|---|---|
| HEISMAN | |
| NO. RETIRED / HONORED | |
| BIG TEN MVP | |
| TEAM MVP | |
| ALL-AMERICAN | 8 |
| CAPTAIN | 4 |
| 1ST ROUND NFL DRAFT PICK | |
| ALL-BIG TEN | 9 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN | |
| NFL DRAFT PICK | 2 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-BIG TEN | |
| LETTER | 1 |
| TOTAL | 24 |
For more information on other players who wore No. 58 go here.
Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide and Wikipedia
| CATEGORY | POINTS |
|---|---|
| HEISMAN | 8 |
| NO. RETIRED / HONORED | 8 |
| BIG TEN MVP | 6 |
| TEAM MVP | 5 |
| ALL-AMERICAN | 4 |
| CAPTAIN | 4 |
| 1ST ROUND NFL DRAFT PICK | 4 |
| ALL-BIG TEN | 3 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN | 3 |
| NFL DRAFT PICK | 2 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-BIG TEN | 1 |
| LETTER | 0.25 PER YEAR |
