Ohio State's Tommy James plunged to the three-yard line leading up to the sixth Ohio State touchdown in the second quarter.

2017 is the 75th anniversary of Ohio State's first national championship season. To honor the achievement, this series will post articles from the Columbus Citizen Journal on the day they ran in 1942.

The Citizen Journal did not run a preview the day of the game. Due to this, let's take a look at the front page article by Lew Byrer that ran on Sunday. Think of this as the Instacap. Tomorrow you will get to read the multiple articles that were in the CJ's Sunday Sports section.

 

Ohio State smothered an outclassed Pitt team 59 to 19 before a Dad's Day crowd of 34,893 fans yesterday afternoon in Ohio Stadium.

Bouncing back from an off-form day against Wisconsin which saw them defeated, 17 to 7, at Madison the previous Saturday, the Bucks unleashed a terrific power attack which buried the Panthers under a 41-to-0 score at the end of the first half.

By the time Coach Paul Brown had benched his first stringers and most of his second stringers for the day.

The third stringers played the entire second half and Pitt had one point the better of it against the replacements, scoring 19 points in the second half to 18 for Ohio.

It's always good when Ohio State beats a team that doesn't have as much talent. 59 points for the Buckeyes is what we're used to seeing in games like this. 

Fry Suffers Broken Leg

The Bucks suffered one major casualty in the game. Bob Frye, junior halfback from Crestline, suffered a broken leg in the second quarter and will be out for the season. Frye is one of the better halfback replacements, a strong runner and excellent passer.

Pitt showed only one player of the caliber Ohio State put on the field. Bill Dutton, 175-pound back from Weston, W. Va., was all that advance notices said of him as a runner, passer and punter.

Offensively he was a ball of fire although not exactly a sensation on defense. But he was out-numbered as long as the Buckeye first stringers were in there.

OHIO STATE/PITTSBURGH GAME STATS

STAT CATEGORY	OHIO STATE	PITTSBURGH
FIRST DOWNS BY RUSH	13	6
FIRST DOWNS BY PASS	8	5
FIRST DOWNS BY PENALTY	0	0
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS	21	11
NUMBER OF RUSHES	42	43
RUSHING YARDS	371	211
PASS ATTEMPTS	20	19
PASSES COMPLETED	11	6
PASSING YARDS	239	158
PASSES INTERCEPTED	1	0
NUMBER OF PUNTS	2	7
AVG PUNT	34.0	33.0
NUMBER OF KICKOFFS	10	4
AVG KICKOFF	48.0	33.0
KICKOFF RETURNS	2	10
KO YARDS RETURNED	41	15
NUMBER OF FUMBLES	5	4
FUMBLES LOST	2	1
PENALTIES	5	1
PENALTY YARDS	45

139 In Three for Fekete

Fekete, varying his usual style of play, raced around the Pitt ends like a halfback to be the individual star while the Buck starters were putting the game on ice.

Fekete carried the ball three times for a total of 139 yards. 

Horvath and Sarringhaus weren't far behind and even Capt. George Lynn blossomed as a smacking ball carrier once when he received a forward pass and bowled over four prospective tacklers before being downed.

Little Tommy James also ripped off some fine runs and sparkled on defense and Frye was starting the second string when he was injured. In fact it was on an 11-yard gain that the Crestline lad was hurt.

The starting Bucks were playing almost perfect football and just overwhelmed the Panthers from the opening kickoff.

Box Score

Ohio State	21	20	6	12	59
Pittsburgh	0	0	7	12	19

While the Bucks were coasting to victory their chance for a tie for the Big Ten title became good again as Wisconsin, their conquerors of last Saturday, lost to Iowa, at Iowa City, 6 to 0.

A week after suffering a difficult loss, Ohio State gets new hope after the Hawkeyes drop Wisconsin.

First Half Detail

The Bucks took over form the start. Taking the ball on Pitt's opening out-of-bounds kickoff on their own 35-yard line, they marched 65 yards on six plays in two minutes and 28 seconds for the first touchdown.

Runs of 23 yards each by Horvath and Sarringhaus and a 16-yard ramble by Fekete featured this drive. Fekete kicked the extra point.

The second touchdown march also started on the Ohio 35-yard line where the Bucks received a Dutton punt. A nine-yard gain by Sarringhaus and a 38-yard end run by Fekete followed by a 15-yard touchdown run by James gave the Buckeyes the second touchdown after six minutes and 40 seconds of play.

Then Pitt tried to rally and a 28-yard forward pass from Dutton to Dillon and a 19-yard pass from Dutton to Rosepink made it Pitt's ball and first down on the Ohio 17-yard line. Four Pitt plays gained a net zero and Ohio took over on downs.

On the next play Fekete smashed through center and then swerved to his right and toward the west goal line on a beautiful 83-yard run for a touchdown.

That was the clincher, Fekete kicked the goal and it was Ohio 21, Pitt 0 after 13 minutes and 37 seconds. That's how the quarter ended.

Fekete was a one-man wrecking crew in the first quarter.

Sarringhaus Again

A Horvath-to-Lynn pass on which the Buckeye captain bowled over four potential tacklers after receiving the ball started the Bucks on their march to the fourth touchdown early in the second quarter.

Another pass, from Sarringhaus to Shaw gained 37 and made it first down on the Pitt one-yard line. On the next play, Sarringhaus plunged over for the touchdown. Again Fekete's kick was good and it was Ohio 28, Pitt 0 with only 25 seconds of the quarter gone.

Second Team Goes In

Then Coach Brown sent in his second team and the second stringers took up where the startes left off.

Taking the ball on their 47-yard line after a Pitt punt the Bucks started. It was Palmer for three, Frye for eight and a Slusser-to-Frye forward pass for a touchdown. That was after three minutes and 43 seconds of play in the second quarter.

Then Pitt tried again. Taking the ball on the Pitt 31 after receiving the kickoff, Stetler raced around Ohio's right end for 12 and Dutton smashed the Buck right tackle for 36 and first down on the Ohio 21. Four plays netted a Pitt loss of three yards and Ohio took over on the Buckeye 24-yard line.

Palmer Scores Next

Then Frye ripped through center for 11 and first down on the Ohio 35. Frye's left leg was broken on the play and he had to be carried to the Ohio training quarters.

Slusser, Palmer and Cleary ripped off gains before Ohio was penalized 15 for holding. Then James replaced Slusser and passed to Palmer for first down on the Pitt 40.

Then it was James for 12 and James for three and a Palmer-to-White forward pass for first down on the Pitt five. Then Palmer for three, James for one and Palmer over for the touchdown. James' kick for the extra point hit the side bar, leaving it Ohio State 41, Pitt 0.

The Buck third stringers took over and from there on it was more nearly an even battle.

The second half featured six touchdowns with each team scoring three. The Buckeyes missed all of their extra points and the Panthers missed two of their three.

In 1942, Pitt's starters might have had a chance to win the game if they faced Ohio State's three-deep players for the entire 60 minutes.