There are 14 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. 14 ORLANDO PACE, OT (1994-96)
Born: 1975 (Sandusky, Ohio)
High School: Sandusky

OHIO STATE CAREER

• The Buckeyes were 31-7 with Pace on the team.
• Won the Big Ten Championship in 1996.
• Defeated Arizona State 20-17 in the 1997 Rose Bowl.

HONORS

• Big Ten Freshman of the Year 1994.
• Lombardi Award 1995 and 1996.
• All-American 1995 and 1996.
• All-Big Ten 1995 and 1996.
• Football News Offensive Player of the Year 1995 and 1996.
• Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year 1995 and 1996.
• Outland Trophy 1996.
• Chicago Tribune’s Silver Football for Most Valuable Player in the Big Ten in 1996. 
• 1999 named to Sport Illustrated's NCAA Football All-Century Team.
• 2013 Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

Pace was a finalist for the 1996 Heisman Trophy.

NFL DRAFT
Round 1 to the St. Louis Rams with the 1st pick of the 1997 draft.
 

MISCELLANEOUS

• First Sophomore to win the Lombardi Award.
• First selection in the 1997 NFL Draft.
• The B1G's Offensive Lineman of the year Award is named after Orlando Pace and Dave Rimington of Nebraska.
• Won Super Bowl XXXIV.
• Named to 7 Pro Bowls: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005.
• 5 Time All-Pro: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2004.

NFL DRAFT
Round 1 to the St. Louis Rams with the 1st pick of the 1997 draft.
 

MISCELLANEOUS

• First Sophomore to win the Lombardi Award.
• First selection in the 1997 NFL Draft.
• The B1G's Offensive Lineman of the year Award is named after Orlando Pace and Dave Rimington of Nebraska.
• Won Super Bowl XXXIV.
• Named to 7 Pro Bowls: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005.
• 5 Time All-Pro: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2004.

Orlando Pace's career per The Ohio State Team Guide:

Orlando Pace broke into the starting lineup the first day of preseason camp his freshman year and started every game the next three years before passing up his senior season to enter the NFL draft. During his stay at Ohio State, the 6-6, 330-pound left tackle became recognized as one of the most dominant offensive linemen ever to play the game.

Pace made the “Pancake Block” famous his junior year, finishing the season with 80 of those blocks (knocking his defender to the ground and on his back). He also literally redefined the role of an offensive lineman with his amazing downfield blocking. Pace did not allow a sack in either of his last two years.

In 1995, he made college football history by becoming the first sophomore to win the Lombardi Award. As a junior, he again made history by becoming the first two-time winner of that trophy. He also won the Outland Trophy and finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy balloting as a junior. The latter was the highest finish by a lineman since a second-place finish by Ohio State’s John Hicks in 1973.

Awards and honors Pace won during his football career per The Ohio State Team Guide:

Other honors for Pace included consensus all-Big Ten and All-America honors in both 1995 and ’96. He was the Football News Offensive Player of the Year and the Big Ten’s Offensive Player of the Year in 1996. He also received the Chicago Tribune’s Silver Football as the Most Valuable Player in the Big Ten. Pace was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 1994 and the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year in 1995 and ’96. He also was a finalist for the 1996 Maxwell Award.

A native of Sandusky, Ohio, Pace was selected by his teammates as Ohio State’s MVP in 1996. Taken by St. Louis as first overall pick in the 1997 NFL draft, Pace was a member of the Rams’ 1999 Super Bowl championship team. He was voted to seven Pro Bowls. In 2014 he will officially be enshrined into the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame.

The Big Ten Conference’s offensive lineman of the year award is named after Pace and Nebraska’s Dave Rimington.

PACE MAKING PANCAKES:

For more information on other players who wore No. 75 go here.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide, youtube and Wikipedia

ALL PLAYERS COVERED TO DATE