There are 9 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.
No. 9 CHIC HARLEY, HB, S, P, K (1916, 1917 and 1919)
Born: 1894 (Chicago)
High School: East (Columbus)
Died: 1974 (Columbus)
OHIO STATE CAREER:
- The Buckeyes were 21-1-1 with Harley on the team.
- 1916 Big Ten Title.
- 1917 Big Ten Title.
- Went 1-0 against That Team (Ohio State's first victory in the series).
HONORS:
- 1916 All-American.
- 1917 All-American.
- 1918 was a pilot in the Air Force for WWI.
- 1919 All-American.
NFL DRAFT
The NFL did not have a draft in 1920.
Chic Harley's Ohio State career per ohiostatebuckeyes.com:
Charles “Chic” Harley was Ohio State’s first three-time All-American. Harley won All-America honors as a running back in 1916 and ’17. He spent 1918 in the military but then returned to OSU in 1919 and picked up where he had left off, again winning All-America acclaim. In addition to running the football, he also punted, kicked extra points (he used the drop kick) and played defense. Fans turned out in record numbers to watch Harley play.
Harley led the Buckeyes to their first Big Ten title in 1916, a repeat championship in 1917 and a second-place finish in 1919. In 1919, he was named team captain.
During his three seasons at Ohio State, the Buckeyes posted a combined record of 21-1-1. The Buckeyes played at old Ohio Field during the Harley era. But largely because of his play, Ohio Stadium was built in 1922 and has been known as the “House that Harley built.” His jersey number 47 was retired in 2004.
HE RAN LIKE A RABBIT, WAS STRONG AS AN OX, POSSESSED A SMILE THAT WOULD MELT ANYONE, AND WAS THE MOST MODEST PERSON YOU'D EVER WANT TO MEET.– FROM THE BOOK THE ONE AND ONLY
A description of the 1919 victory over That Team per Wikipedia:
The 1919 season is most remembered at Ohio State, however, for recording the school's first victory over arch-rival Michigan. Following the Buckeyes' 13-3 win, the legendary Michigan head coach Fielding H. Yost asked for and was granted a rare moment to address the Ohio State team.
"You deserve your victory, you fought brilliantly," Yost began. "You boys gave a grand exhibition of football strategy and while I am sorry, dreadfully sorry, that we lost, I want to congratulate you. And you, Mr. Harley, I believe, are one of the finest little machines I have ever seen."
Harley's pro football career and life changing illness per chicharley.com:
In 1921, following Harley’s college career, George Halas, the manager of the Decatur Staleys (later to become the Chicago Bears), football team wanted to recruit Chic so badly that he offered he and his brother, Bill, half of the season’s proceeds. But by the end of the 1921 season, everything had changed and Chic was embarking on a terrible struggle to maintain his sanity. Within days after his final game as a pro, Chic found himself confined to a sanitarium in Dayton, Ohio. It was the start of a battle with mental illness that would tragically remain with him the rest of his life.
For the next four decades, Harley lived in an Illinois Veterans Administration Hospital. While his close friends never forgot what he had done for American sport and in particular for Ohio State University, Chic’s star slowly faded into near obscurity. It was the love of his friends and, in particularly his loving sister Ruth, that gave Chic the strength and determination to live his life as best he could. It was also the love of his nephew, Richard, the only child of Ruth, who played a pivotal role in keeping Chic’s flame alive to this day.
The new book The One And Only: Chic Harley - America's Great Athlete chronicles the exhilarating ups and tragic downs of this quiet, modest sports hero as told by a family member who knew him well.
A description of how Harley played per the book The One and Only:
He ran like a rabbit, was strong as an ox, possessed a smile that would melt anyone, and was the most modest person you'd ever want to meet.
But packed into the 5-foot, 8-inch and 158 pound modest frame of Charles W. "Chic" Harley was a dynamo who by the time he played in his last football game for the Buckeyes in 1919, had almost single-handedly catapulted The Ohio State University into a national powerhouse and set the stage for the building of its famed Horseshoe stadium.
To order the The One and Only go here.
CATEGORY | POINTS |
---|---|
HEISMAN | |
NO. RETIRED / HONORED | 8 |
BIG TEN MVP | |
TEAM MVP | |
ALL-AMERICAN | 12 |
CAPTAIN | 4 |
1ST ROUND NFL DRAFT PICK | |
ALL-BIG TEN | 9 |
ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN | |
NFL DRAFT PICK | |
ACADEMIC ALL-BIG TEN | |
LETTER | 0.75 |
TOTAL | 33.75 |
For more information on other players who wore No. 47 go here.
Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide, ohiostatebuckeyes.com 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 | 0.75 |
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