Buckeye Rosters

Recap

SAN DIEGO — Tailback Tim Spencer ran for 167 yards and two touchdowns, including a dazzling 61-yard scoring burst, Friday night to power 16th-ranked Ohio State to a 47-17 rout of Brigham Young in the fifth annual Holiday Bowl.

Jimmy Gayle also scored a pair of TDs for Ohio State as the Buckeyes closed out their season with their seventh consecutive victory following an unprecedented three-game losing streak at home at the start of the season. The Buckeyes, who were beaten out by Michigan for the Big Ten crown despite a 7-1 conference mark (Michigan was 8-1), finished the season at 9-3.

The Cougars, champions of the Western Athletic Conference, finished at 8-4. It was BYU’s fifth appearance in the Holiday Bowl and its third loss.

BYU quarterback Steve Young completed 27 of 46 passes for 343 yards while Ohio State’s Mike Tomczak completed 11 of 19 for 132 yards.

Leading 17-10 at halftime, Ohio State took the second-half kickoff and scored at 8:51 of the third period on Vaughn Broadnax‘ 1-yard run to make it 24 10. The Buckeyes’ Garcia Lane intercepted a pass on BYU’s next possession and Ohio State then made it 31-10 on a 17-yard run by Spencer.

BYU fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Ohio State recovered. continuing the rout at 34-10 on a 37-yard field goal by Rich Spangler.

In the final period, Ohio State scored again on Gayle’s 1-yard plunge and BYU scored its only points of the second half on a 13-yard touchdown pass from Young to Gordon Hudson to make it 41-17. But the Buckeyes closed out the scoring In the last two minutes on Gayle’s 5-yard run.

Ohio State took a 3-0 lead midway through the opening period on Spangler’s 47-yard field goal after BYU broke up a Buckeyes reverse on third down at the Cougars’ 20, throwing the play for a 9-yard loss.

BYU took a 7-3 lead two minutes into the second period on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Young to a wide-open Ned Balholm in the end zone.

Spencer brought the Buckeyes back with the most spectacular run of the game on the next series, bursting through the BYU line and romping 61 yards into the end zone to give the Buckeyes a 10-7 lead.

The Ohio State defense then turned in another sparkling play as linebacker Rowland Tatum surged through the defense and blocked a Mike Meese punt at the Cougars’ 18. The Buckeyes recovered and took a 17-7 lead when Tomczak faked a handoff up the middle and rolled out Into the corner of the end zone for a 2-yard run.