When Ohio State fans and football players walk by the new statue of Archie Griffin outside Ohio Stadium, the two-time Heisman Trophy winner doesn’t want them to think about what he accomplished as an individual.
Instead, Griffin hopes the statue makes people remember the Ohio State teams he was a part of.
“They opened the holes and carried out the play fakes that allowed me to run for two Heisman Trophies. I hope when people see this statue, they think about the great teams we had the four years I played and not just the guy who wore No. 45 who got too much credit,” Griffin said. “I was just blessed to be in the right place at the right time with the right people to accomplish what I did.”
On a day when everyone else sitting or standing in the North Rotunda of Ohio Stadium was there to honor Griffin, who is being recognized in multiple ways at Ohio State this weekend to commemorate the 50th anniversary of his first Heisman Trophy season, the humble-as-ever Buckeye legend deflected credit to everyone else who played a part in his success.
Griffin thanked his late mother and father and his coach at Ohio State, Woody Hayes, saying he still thinks about all three of them every day. He said his parents “laid a foundation for my success with their strong moral values, enduring spiritual faith and dedicated work ethic.” He said Hayes “taught us all about the importance of paying forward.”
“He would say you can never pay back those who have helped you but you can always pay forward to the next generation,” Griffin said of Hayes, the only other former member of the Ohio State football program to have a statue on campus. “But he also taught us so many lessons about the value and importance of teamwork, how you must hold each other accountable for your responsibilities, about how you must sacrifice a piece of yourself to be a part of a greater good, about how you must trust other people to do their job as you do your job to help the team win.”
Griffin then doted on his Ohio State teammates, with whom he won four Big Ten Championships and played in four Rose Bowls as the Buckeyes went 40-5-1 with a 3-0-1 record against Michigan during his four seasons at OSU (1972-75). Griffin also thanked his teammates from his high school, Eastmoor Academy in Columbus, before turning his gratitude to Ohio State’s fans.
“I've always felt like winning the Heisman at Ohio State meant it belonged as much to you as it did to me,” Griffin said, addressing Buckeye Nation. “And I want you to really know how much I appreciate the conversations, the meals and moments that we've shared. I appreciate that you still remember me 50 years later. 50 years is a long time, so I really appreciate you remembering me that long.
“I was just a slew-footed, chubby little kid right here from Columbus, Ohio, who they once called Tank, because I was so slow running around Maryland Park when I played for the Maryland AC, the first organized football team that I played for. But you've shown me the greatest affection when I became No. 45, and that love from Buckeyes everywhere has meant the absolute world to me.”
Ohio State unveiled a statue of Archie Griffin placed in the rotunda outside Ohio Stadium Friday morning, celebrating the only two-time Heisman Trophy winner in the history of college football. pic.twitter.com/9GQUZWahLs
— Garrick Hodge (@Garrick_Hodge) August 30, 2024
Receiving a statue outside Ohio Stadium – which came just one day before Griffin will dot the “i” in Script Ohio at halftime of the Buckeyes’ season opener against Akron – is “the icing on top of all the great cake that I've eaten over the years,” Griffin said in appreciation of all the honors he’s been humbled to receive dating back to his time as a Buckeye. It’s all the more meaningful to Griffin because he was born and raised in Columbus.
“I was born maybe four or five hundred yards from here at the university hospital,” Griffin said. “I lived over in the Linden area, played little league football over in that area. Again, I played on the east side of Columbus and went to Eastmoor High School. Just think about all of your friends, the people that you grew up with, the people you played with, all being able to see that.
“But even more important, to let young people right here from Columbus come and see that statue. Maybe it'll make them believe that ‘Hey, I can do that, too.’ And that's what's so very, very important to me.”
“I hope when people see this statue, they think about the great teams we had the four years I played and not just the guy who wore No. 45 who got too much credit.”– Archie Griffin on receiving a statue outside Ohio Stadium
While Griffin spent his time at the microphone speaking about everyone but himself, there were plenty of other Ohio State dignitaries in attendance who were happy to speak about Griffin’s greatness – particularly his greatness off the field.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day took a few minutes out of preparing for Saturday’s season opener to make a surprise appearance at the ceremony because he felt it was important to be there.
“They've been playing college football a long time; there's only one two-time Heisman Trophy winner. He’s sitting right here. But more importantly, it's the impact you've made off the field,” Day said to Griffin. “I didn't have an opportunity to see you play. I've seen the film, and you look fast, and you look powerful. But I have seen the impact that you've made off the field, and your family's made off the field, and it's tremendous. And it's an unbelievable example to our players, the impact you've made in the community, the charities, it's been unbelievable.
“To see the statue being unveiled today is a great representation of the legacy that you've left, and you'll continue to leave as we move forward. So thanks for both of those things. And you've done it with unmatched class. When I think of Archie Griffin, that's what I think of.”
Ohio State president Ted Carter said “there have been few better ambassadors for Ohio State than Archie Griffin,” while athletic director Ross Bjork said “Archie defines what being a Buckeye means.”
“Archie is the people, he's the culture, he's the excellence, the Ohio native, the definition of a Buckeye,” Bjork said. “It's easy to read the stats and the accolades and those things are nice, but what I've learned is that anyone who's ever interacted with Archie, they walk away not saying he's a great football player but that he's a great man. And they remember how Archie made them feel. And that's, I think, what legacy is all about.”
“I have seen the impact that you've made off the field, and your family's made off the field, and it's tremendous. And it's an unbelievable example to our players, the impact you've made in the community.”– Ryan Day to Archie Griffin
Dedan Brozino – the president of the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation, which funded the statue as well as an identical statue that was unveiled outside Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena earlier this month – said Griffin has taught him to be a better father, husband and friend.
“There's nobody better than Archie Griffin, no person better than Archie Griffin; you deserve a statue just for that alone,” Brozino said. “While these two statues in Pasadena and Columbus celebrate his football impact, I see it like most of you and like Coach Hayes said. He's made an even bigger impact as a human, as a citizen and there's a permanency to that that is forever lasting as well, just like his football greatness.”
