The 1981 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented the Ohio State University in the 1981 Big Ten Conference football season. The Buckeyes compiled a 9–3 record, including the 1981 Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee, where they won, 31–28, against the Navy Midshipmen.
Several Ohio State players ranked among the Big Ten leaders, including the following:
Placekicker Bob Atha led the conference with 88 points scored and 44 extra points made and ranked second with 13 field goals made and a 68.4% field goal percentage.Garcia Lane led the conference with 205 punt return yards and ranked second with an average of 8.9 yards per punt return.Running back Tim Spencer led the conference with 12 rushing touchdowns and ranked second with 1,217 rushing yards and 1,427 yards from scrimmage.Quarterback Art Schlichter ranked third in the conference with 2,551 passing yards and 2,509 total yards and fifth with a 52.3 pass completion percentage.Gary Williams ranked third in the conference with 50 receptions and fourth with 941 receiving yards.
