COLUMBUS, Ohio — Few Buckeyes can match Norb Ranz’s devotion to tradition or the sheer number of games attended.

“I’ve gone to at least one game every year for 81 years,” he said.

Through the years, Ranz has witnessed history firsthand.

He saw Les Horvath, Ohio State’s first Heisman Trophy winner, electrify the crowds in the 1940s. He helped shovel snow off the lines during the famous "Snow Bowl." Ranz once drove to the Rose Bowl in 1950, and he worked as a spotter for legendary play-by-play man Jack Buck at the start of Buck’s broadcasting career.

“Fifteen dollars to point out who made the tackle,” he said.

Ranz's connections ran off the field as well. He was tasked with stocking Coach Woody Hayes’s locker and still recalls the surprise of Hayes congratulating him on getting accept

See Full Page