Clemson Football: 11 biggest villains in Tiger history

COLUMBIA, SC - SEPTEMBER 26: Head coach Steve Spurrier of the South Carolina Gamecocks watches as his team takes on the University of Central Florida Knights during the second quarter on September 26, 2015 at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina. (Photo by Todd Bennett/GettyImages) /

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Ohio State Buckeyes logo (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /

Biggest villains in Clemson football history: 3. Woody Hayes

How can you have a list of absolute supervillains pertaining to Clemson football and not include Woody Hayes?

Hayes led the No. 20-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes into the 1978 Gator Bowl against Danny Ford’s No. 7-ranked Clemson team.

The Buckeyes had the ball near midfield trailing 17-15 with a little over two minutes left in the game. What happened next will has Hayes near the top of the enemies list forever for Clemson football fans.

Clemson nose-guard Charlie Bauman intercepted Art Schlichter’s pass and was shoved out of bounds on the Ohio State sideline.

After Bauman got up, Hayes grabbed his jersey, punched him in the throat and had to be restrained from hitting him again. The incident sparked a short bench-clearing fight between the two teams and Hayes was penalized just a couple of plays later after he stormed onto the field and pulled on an official’s shirt. The legendary OSU coach was fired the next day, ending his 28-season career with the Buckeyes.

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