Ohio State is only halfway through the regular season, but the Buckeye offense has already made history.
The Buckeyes have scored at least 30 points in each of their first six games, something that has not happened since 1969, and that's not the only parallel between this season and that one.
The 2013 Buckeyes, like the '69 group, are in their second year of an offensive overhaul that includes new formations, fewer huddles and a desire to go fast, fast fast.
The '69 Ohio State squad was also coming off an unbeaten season and needed contributions from two quarterbacks to continue its success.
Back then, the answer to Braxton Miller was Rex Kern, an athletic junior starting quarterback who was a talented runner. Classmate Ron Maciejowski was the Kenny Guiton of his day as a super sub called upon regularly.
That '69 team of Kern and Maciejowski ended up setting a school record by averaging 42.5 points per game, a mark the 2013 Buckeyes are on pace to break with their current rate of 46.8.
As for pace of play, the current Buckeyes have a ways to go if they want to catch the '69 group. Though Woody Hayes was known for his conservative brand of football, he remade his offense multiple times through the years. The hurry-up elements he added in 1968 were inspired by what he saw at nearby Upper Arlington High school, and they paid immediate dividends.
In 1968, the Buckeyes nearly doubled their scoring average (up to 32.3 from 16.1 in 1967), ran 10.2 more plays per game (84.4) than the year before, went 10-0 and were named consensus national champions. A year later, they averaged 92.1 plays per game and in addition to the record scoring pace gained a 493.2 yards per contest, the most in school history until the '98 team went for 497.5
This season Ohio State is averaging 492.8 yards and 74.5 plays per game compared to 423.8 and 69.8, respectively, last season.
