It Seemed Like the Right Thing to Do at the Time

In the split-second it took for one punch to travel to a football player’s facemask, one of college football’s great coaching careers was over.

Woody Hayes, infuriated that his Ohio State Buckeyes were trailing Clemson in the Gator Bowl, toppled over the edge when a Clemson player intercepted a late pass to kill an Ohio State rally.

The player, Clemson sophomore linebacker Charlie Bauman, intercepted freshman Art Schlichter’s pass and was tackled at the Buckeye sideline. Clemson led at the time, 17-15 (the final score), but Ohio State was within field-goal range before Bauman’s play with four minutes to go.

When Bauman got up, Hayes grabbed him, then punched him, touching off a sideline brawl. The next day, Hayes, who had won 238 games in 27 seasons, was fired.

The Gator Bowl punch wasn’t an isolated incident in Hayes’ career. At the 1973 Rose Bowl game, Hayes charged Times photographer Art Rogers, shoving his camera into his face, leaving Rogers with temporary double vision. Ohio State lost to USC, 42-17.

Rogers filed a complaint with Pasadena police and Hayes was questioned by two detectives before he returned to Columbus, Ohio. Ohio State officially apologized to The Times, but Hayes never apologized to Rogers.

Hayes was 73 when he died in 1987.

Charlie Bauman, 41, is a real estate developer in Westchester, Ohio.

Art Rogers, 81, now retired, is a Morro Bay albacore fisherman.

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Also on this date: In 1957, Detroit’s Tobin Rote threw four touchdown passes as the Lions thrashed the Cleveland Browns, 59-14, in the NFL championship game at Detroit.