There are 11 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 metric* listed at the bottom of this article.

*THERE ARE TWO PLAYERS LISTED AT NO. 11 BECAUSE THEY ARE TIED IN POINTS AND I INEXPLICABLY LEFT A PLAYER RANKED HIGHER ON THE LIST OFF. I CAUGHT THE ERROR AROUND NO. 30 IN THE COUNTDOWN. INSTEAD OF BUMPING EVERY PLAYER ONE SPOT, TOM COUSINEAU AND A.J. HAWK WILL SHARE NO. 11. MY APOLOGIES.
 

Tom Cousineau was Ohio State's first No. 1 NFL Draft pick.

NO. 11 TOM COUSINEAU, LB (1975-78)
Born: 1957 (Fairview Park, Ohio)
High School: Lakewood St. Edward

OHIO STATE CAREER

• The Buckeyes were 36-10-1 with Cousineau on the team.
• 1975 Big Ten Title.
• 1976 Big Ten Title.
• 1977 Big Ten Title.
• 1977 Defeated Colorado 27-10 to win the Orange Bowl.

HONORS

• 1978 Captain.
• 1978 Team Captain.
• 1978 All-American.
• 1978 All-Big Ten.
• 1977 All-American.
• 1977 All-Big Ten.
• 1977 Orange Bowl Defensive MVP.
• 1976 All-Big Ten.
• 1995 Inducted into the Varsity O Hall of Fame.
   

NFL DRAFT
Round 1 to the Buffalo Bills with the 1st pick of the 1979 draft.
 

Tom Cousineau's Ohio State career per The Ohio State Team Guide:

Tom Cousineau was a two-time All-American for the Buckeyes. In 1977, he was named the top defensive player in the Orange Bowl. His 211 tackles in 1978 still stands as a single season school record. Against Penn State in 1978, Cousineau was in on 29 total tackles, at the time an Ohio State record that was tied by Chris Spielman.

Cousineau also holds the school record for most solo tackles in a single game (16 against SMU in 1978). Six of the Top 10 single game tackle performances in school history are held by Cousineau. He ranks second on both the all-time OSU tackle list with 569 (three behind Marcus Marek) and on the career solo tackles list with 259. 

The start of Cousineau's pro football career per Wikipedia:

Cousineau was drafted first overall in the 1979 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills, who acquired the pick from the San Francisco 49ers in a trade for O.J. Simpson. Cousineau never played a game with the Bills. He instead signed with the Canadian Football League Montreal Alouettes where they offered double the money that the Bills originally offered. Cousineau became a star there, becoming the Grey Cup Most Valuable Player in the 1979 season.

Cousineau wanted to return to the NFL, and in 1982 the Houston Oilers attempted to sign him, but the Bills (who still held Cousineau's NFL rights) matched the offer.

He was then traded from the Bills to the Cleveland Browns for a first round draft choice (14th overall) in the 1983 NFL Draft. That pick was used on future Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly. Cousineau signed a five-year contract for 2.5 million dollars, the most ever for a Cleveland Brown player at the time.

Life after football per Wikipedia:

...On February 8, 2006, Cousineau announced plans to run for a seat in the Ohio House of Representatives as a Republican in the Akron, Ohio area. He won the May primary but lost the November election to Democrat Brian Williams by a margin of 58% to 42%.

For more information on other players who wore No. 36 go here.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide, ohiostatebuckeyes.com and Wikipedia

The Buckeyes were 4-0 in bowl games with Hawk on the team.

NO. 11 A.J. HAWK, LB (2002-05)
Born: 1984 (Kettering, Ohio)
High School: Centerville

OHIO STATE CAREER:

• The Buckeyes were 43-8 with Hawk on the team.
• 2002 National Champions.
• 2002 Big Ten Title.
• 2005 Big Ten Title.
• 2003 defeated Miami 31-24 (2OT) to win the Fiesta Bowl National Championship.
• 2004 defeated Kansas State 35-38 to win the Fiesta Bowl.
• 2004 defeated Oklahoma State 33-7 to win the Alamo Bowl.
• 2006 defeated Notre Dame 34-20 to win the Fiesta Bowl.
• Went 3-1 against That Team.

HONORS:

• 2005 Captain.
• 2005 Team MVP.
• 2005 Lombardi Award.
• 2005 All-American.
• 2005 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year.
• 2005 Jack Lambert Trophy.
• 2005 All-Big Ten.
• 2004 All-American.
• 2004 All-Big Ten.
• 2003 All-Big Ten.

NFL DRAFT
Round 1 to the Green Bay Packers with the 5th pick of the 2006 draft.

 

A. J. Hawk capped a brilliant senior year by becoming Ohio State’s fifth Lombardi Award winner, presented annually since 1970 to the best player in college football who lines up within five yards of the snap.

The 6-1, 247-pound Hawk finished the 2005 campaign with a team-high 121 tackles, marking the third consecutive year he had paced the Buckeyes in that category. His tackle totals included 16.5 tackles-for-loss and 9.5 sacks, both best on the team.

In addition to the Lombardi Award, Hawk was the 2005 Big Ten pre-season and post-season Defensive Player of the Year and Defensive MVP of the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. 

A first-team All-American both as a junior and senior, Hawk closed his career as the fifth leading tackler in Ohio State history with 494 career stops, 41 tackles-for-loss and 9.5 sacks. His 141 tackles in 2004 were the most by an Ohio State player since 1986.

Hawk led the team in tackles in 10 of 12 games in 2005, including a season-high 19 stops against Michigan State. A four-year letterman, Hawk was elected co-captain as a senior, receiving a vote from every player on the team except for himself.

[...]

Following the season, Hawk was the fifth player taken in the 2006 NFL draft, going to the Green Bay Packers, his current team.

For more information on other players who wore No. 47 go here.

Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide

Today's article is brought to you by A.J. Hawk laying the wood on a Quinn:

ALL PLAYERS COVERED TO DATE