2005 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

2005 Ohio State Buckeyes football
Big Ten co-champion
Fiesta Bowl champion
Fiesta Bowl, W 34–20 vs. Notre Dame
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 4
APNo. 4
Record10–2 (7–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJim Bollman (5th season)
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorJim Heacock (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinatorLuke Fickell (1st season)
Base defense4–3
MVPA. J. Hawk
Captains
Home stadiumOhio Stadium
2005 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 3 Penn State $+   7 1     11 1  
No. 4 Ohio State %+   7 1     10 2  
No. 15 Wisconsin   5 3     10 3  
Michigan   5 3     7 5  
Northwestern   5 3     7 5  
Iowa   5 3     7 5  
Minnesota   4 4     7 5  
Purdue   3 5     5 6  
Michigan State   2 6     5 6  
Indiana   1 7     4 7  
Illinois   0 8     2 9  
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2005 Ohio State Buckeyes football team was an American football team that represented the Ohio State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2005 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their fifth year under head coach Jim Tressel, the Buckeyes compiled a 10–2 record (7–1 in conference games), tied with Penn State for the Big Ten championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 392 to 183. Against ranked opponents, the Buckeyes lost to No. 2 Texas (see 2005 Texas vs. Ohio State football game) and No. 16 Penn State, and defeated No. 21 Iowa, No. 16 Michigan State, No. 25 Northwestern, and No. 17 Michigan. They concluded the season with a 34–20 victory over No. 5 Notre Dame in the 2006 Fiesta Bowl. The Buckeyes were ranked No. 4 in the final AP and Coaches polls.

The Buckeyes gained an average of 196.7 rushing yards and 225.7 passing yards per game. On defense, they gave up 73.4 rushing yards and 207.9 passing yards per game. The team's statistical leaders included Troy Smith (2,282 passing yards, 62.9% completion percentage), running back Antonio Pittman (1,331 rushing yards, 5.5 yards per carry), wide receiver Santonio Holmes (53 receptions for 977 yards), kicker Josh Huston (110 points scored, 44 of 45 extra points, 22 of 28 field goals), and linebacker A. J. Hawk (69 solo tackles, 121 total tackles). Hawk won the Lombardi Award (the sixth Ohio State player to do so), was a consensus first-team All-American, and won the team's most valuable player award. Eight Ohio State players received first-team honors on the 2005 All-Big Ten Conference football team: Holmes; Hawk; Huston; guard Rob Sims; defensive lineman Mike Kudla; defensive backs Nate Salley, Ashton Youboty, and Donte Whitner.

The team played its home games at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.