Ohio State vs. Eastern Michigan Game Notes

Courtesy: OhioStateBuckeyes.com



Eastern Michigan (0-3, 0-2) at #2/2 Ohio State (3-0, 0-0)
Saturday, Sept. 25, 2010 - 3:30 p.m. ET
Ohio Stadium (102,329)
Columbus, Ohio

The Broadcasts
Television: ABC (ESPN mirror) will televise the game with Carter Blackburn (play-by-play), Mike Bellotti (analyst) and Brock Huard (analyst) in the booth.


Radio: WBNS (97.1 FM The Fan) is the flagship station for the 73-station Ohio State radio network. The Jim Tressel pregame show airs 30 minutes prior to kickoff. Paul Keels will call the play-by-play with former Buckeye Jim Lachey in the booth and Marty Bannister on the sidelines. The game can also be heard live on Sirius satellite radio 127 and XM 102.


DID YOU KNOW?
Ohio State has allowed only 94 touchdowns (39 rushing and 55 passing) since the start of 2005 (67 games; 57-10 record), an average of only 1.4 touchdowns allowed per game by the Buckeyes over that time.



SERIES HISTORY
This will be the first-ever meeting between Ohio State and Eastern Michigan.


FOR STARTERS
The Buckeyes have 30 players on the 2010 roster with at least one game of starting experience. Those are: Cameron Heyward (36); Bryant Browning, Chimdi Chekwa (30); Mike Brewster, Terrelle Pryor (26); Ross Homan (22); Jermale Hines (19); Dane Sanzenbacher (18); Justin Boren (16); Brian Rolle, DeVier Posey (15); Devon Torrence (14); Dexter Larimore, J.B. Shugarts, Brandon Saine (13); Zach Boren (11); Dan Herron (8); Mike Adams (7); Jake Stoneburner (5);Tyler Moeller (4); Andrew Miller, John Simon (3); Solomon Thomas, C.J. Barnett, Nathan Williams (2); Andrew Sweat, Aaron Gant, Orhian Johnson, Marcus Hall, Taurian Washington (1).

First-time starters in 2010: C.J. Barnett, Orhian Johnson, John Simon, Andrew Sweat and Solomon Thomas.

The Boren brothers – Justin (OG) and Zach (FB) - products of Pickerington, Ohio, are the first siblings to start in the same game for the Buckeyes since John (LB) and Mike (NG) Sullivan from Mentor, Ohio, started nine games together during the 1988 season.



GO BUCKEYES!

Ohio State vs. Miami Game Info

Courtesy: OhioStateBuckeyes.com



#13/13 Miami (FL) (1-0) at #2/2 Ohio State (1-0)
Saturday, Sept. 11, 2010 - 3:40 p.m. ET
Ohio Stadium (102,329)
Columbus, Ohio

The Broadcasts
Television: ESPN will televise the game with Brad Nessler and Todd Blackledge in the booth and Holly Rowe on the sidelines. Joe Tessitore and Tim Brown will call the game on ESPN3D.

Radio: WBNS (FM 97.1 The Fan) is the flagship station for the 73-station Ohio State radio network. The Jim Tressel pregame show airs 30 minutes prior to kickoff. Paul Keels will call the play-by-play with former Buckeye Jim Lachey in the booth and Marty Bannister on the sidelines. The game can also be heard live on Sirius satellite radio 122, XM 143 and Touchdown Radio with Gino Torretta and Roxy Bernstein.



Series History
Ohio State and Miami have met three times previously, with the Buckeyes holding a 2-1 edge. Ohio State was a 10-0 winner in the 1977 season opener at Ohio Stadium, while the Hurricanes captured a 23-12 contest in the 1999 Kickoff Classic played at the Meadowlands. Ohio State won the most recent meeting 31-24, a double-overtime victory in the 2002 national championship game in Arizona.

Ohio State vs. ACC Team Record (Last meeting)
Boston College 3-0 (1995)
Clemson 0-1 (1978)
Duke 3-1 (1981)
Florida State 0-3 (1997)
Georgia Tech 0-0
Maryland 0-0
Miami 2-1 (2002)
North Carolina 3-1 (1975)
North Carolina St 2-0 (2004)
Virginia 1-0 (1933)
Virginia Tech 0-0
Wake Forest 0-0
TOTAL 14-7

Football Season Is Here!

Well I wanted to post something last week but I got busy and forgot. I thought maybe I would start by posting some pictures from Media Day/ Picture Day. For some reason they won't upload so here is the link for the photo website where I found them---

http://jwinslow.fotki.com/photos/football/college/2010-media-day/


Sorry I couldn't de-pryor them since it wouldn't let me choose which ones I posted. :)

Scarlet and Gray rosters....

Coach Jim Tressel said that Pryor will not wear a black "no contact" jersey Saturday, but he didn't answer questions about restrictions on Pryor. Which most likely means he won't play much. Pryor was the first draft pick selected by seniors for the Scarlet team. Here are the list of the players and what team they are on.



*Rosters are courtesy of the Columbus Dispatch.


SENIORS (PRE-DETERMINED)
SCARLET

OL Connor Smith

OL Scott Sika

OL Bryant Browning

OL Josh Kerr

WR Grant Schwartz

WR Dane Sanzenbacher

WR Garrett Hummel

WR Tony Harlamert (OUT, INJURED)

FB Adam Homan *

K Devin Barclay

DE Cameron Heyward

LB Ross Homan

CB Devon Torrence

S Tyler Moeller (OUT, INJURED)

S Aaron Gant

* Not a senior but placed on honorary coach John Reed's team because Reed was Homan's coach at Coldwater High School

GRAY

OL Justin Boren

OL Andrew Miller

OL Chris Malone (OUT, INJURED)

WR Taurian Washington

WR Ricky Crawford

RB Brandon Saine

LS Jake McQuaide

DT Dexter Larimore

LB Brian Rolle

CB Chimdi Chekwa

S Jermale Hines

DRAFT
(Once a position is opened all players from that position are chosen before going to the next position; Scarlet won coin toss for first pick.)

QUARTERBACK

SCARLET: Terrelle Pryor

GRAY: Kenny Guiton

S: Joe Bauserman

G: Justin Siems

CENTER

G: Michael Brewster

S: Corey Linsley

G: Jack Mewhort

DEFENSIVE TACKLE

S: John Simon

G: Garrett Goebel

S: Adam Bellamy

G: Evan Blankenship

S: Jon Lorenz

G: Dalton Britt

SAFETY

G: Nate Oliver

S: Orhian Johnson

G: Zach Domicone

S: C.J. Barnett

G: Jamie Wood

S: Nate Ebner

G: Vincent Petrella

TIGHT END

S: Jake Stoneburner

G: Reid Fragel

S: Spencer Smith

G: Nic DeLillo

S: Bryan Corkery

RECEIVERS

G: DeVier Posey

S: Chris Fields

G: Joe Cech

S: James Jackson

G: Chris Roark

OFFENSIVE TACKLE

S: Michael Adams

G: J.B. Shugarts

S: Marcus Hall

G: Sam Longo

DEFENSIVE END

G: Nathan Williams

S: Solomon Thomas

G: Melvin Fellows

S: Keith Wells

G: Stewart Smith

S: William McCary

G: Green

CORNERBACK

S: Dominic Clarke

G: Donnie Evege

S: Corey Brown

G: Taylor Rice

S: Drew Matthew

G: Travis Howard (OUT, INJURED)

STRONG-SIDE LINEBACKERS

G: Etienne Sabino

S: Jonathan Newsome

G: Tony Jackson

S: Chris Maxwell

G: Dan Bain

WEAK-SIDE LINEBACKERS

S: Dorian Bell

G: Jim Hastings

S: Andrew Sweat (OUT, INJURED)

FULLBACK

G: Zach Boren

S: James Georgiades

MIDDLE LINEBACKER

S: Storm Klein

G: Jordan Whiting

TAILBACK

G: Dan Herron

S: Jordan Hall

G: Carlos Hyde

S: Jermil Martin

G: Jaamal Berry

S: Bo Delande

PUNTER

S: Ben Buchanan

G: Derek Erwin

KICKOFF

G: Drew Basil

LONG SNAPPER

S: Makridis

G: Garrett Dornbrook

Rose Bowl Week Begans!

I know I haven't posted anything on here for a long time! Here is the latest on the buckeyes and the Rose Bowl!


Buckeyes Practice, Lift Weights & Ride Rides‏


LOS ANGELES - The members of the Ohio State football team spent just over two hours stretching, lifting weights and practicing under somewhat overcast skies but pleasant conditions Saturday morning at the Home Depot Center.

The start of the practice was split between one of the numerous practice fields at the Home Depot Center - a sprawling athletics complex in Carson, Calif., that is home to MLS Soccer's LA Galaxy and Chivas USA as well as the U.S. Soccer Federation and the U.S. Tennis Association - and the weight room at the complex. The offense ran through drills in shorts on one of the lower turf fields while the defense lifted and then the two units switched workout locations.

The latter part of the morning was a full team practice session in shorts and helmets.

Following practice, showers and a return trip to the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza - the hotel and practice facility are about 35 minutes apart - the team had just about enough time to return to their rooms and relax briefly before boarding the busses once again for the trip to Disneyland.

Tressel Confirms Players' Status A note of interest from Saturday: coach Jim Tressel confirmed to members of the media that four players from the typical team roster this season are not with the team in California: senior receiver and return specialist Ray Small; senior defensive lineman Rob Rose; sophomore running back Bo DeLande; and freshman receiver Duron Carter.

Tomorrow The team will begin a series of 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. practices for the next three days. The team will eat dinner at Lawry's The Prime Rib as part of the Rose Bowl's annual "Beef Bowl."





A Delightful Day at Disneyland‏


LOS ANGELES - Members of the Ohio State football team (and Oregon's team, too) spent about seven hours Saturday afternoon enjoying rides and having a great time as the special guests at Disneyland.

Visiting the park on what the locals say is one of its busiest days of the year, the Buckeyes had plenty of time to experience much of what Disneyland and its adjacent sister park, California Adventure, has to offer.

Toward the end of the evening the Buckeyes were treated to a welcome reception at the ESPNZone, located in the Downtown Disney District. At about 7:15 p.m. the team boarded the busses for the 43-mile trip back to the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza for team meetings before calling it a night.

Welcome Ceremony Members of the Ohio State and Oregon football teams kicked off the day at Disneyland with a nicely attended - media, Rose Bowl court, Tournament of Roses dignitaries, media and fans - welcome reception with the park's iconic Sleeping Beauty's Castle looming in the background.

Ohio State was represented by coach Jim Tressel, the team's senior tri-captains Kurt Coleman, Austin Spitler and Doug Worthington, and offensive lineman Jim Cordle. Oregon coach Chip Kelly was on hand with his team captains: senior defensive end Will Tukuafu, cornerback Walter Thurmond, center Jordan Holmes and quarterback Jeremiah Masoli.

A Majestic Symbol Each team was presented with its own trophy at the welcome reception: a "Crystal Castle" described as "a majestic symbol of a place where dreams do come true."

First a Little Work Before the welcome reception started, the four members of each team and the coaches autographed 22 footballs that will be used for charitable purposes. Ohio State was the first to arrive and sign the balls. In between the signings, the eight players had just a moment to shake hands and talk briefly with each other.

In the Director's Chairs After the welcome reception the players and coaches met with the media for a good 30 minutes of up-close interviews and photos. Each of the players was stationed at his own director's chair next to a nice-sized Disneyland sign with their name on it.

Captains Talk "The Big Game"

Courtesy: OhioStateBuckeyes.com


COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Ohio State had to beat Penn State to stay in the Big Ten race. The next week the Buckeyes needed to beat Iowa to win the conference and go to the Rose Bowl.

With those missions accomplished the last two weeks, the ninth-ranked Buckeyes now face another big game against archrival Michigan on Saturday.

What's on the line for Ohio State this week?

''I don't think I can have a good Thanksgiving without winning this game,'' defensive tackle Doug Worthington said Monday.

The month of November has brought three consecutive high-pressure games for the Buckeyes (9-2, 6-1), who have wrapped up at least a share of their fifth consecutive Big Ten title.

When offensive tackle Jim Cordle walked into Ohio State's practice facility on Monday morning, he was greeted by the team's strength and conditioning director, Eric Lichter. Lichter looked at Cordle, still limping slightly from a midseason foot injury and said, ''I think you peaked last week.''

Cordle looked at him with a smile and responded, ''No, I still have one more game in me and this team has one more game in us.''

The Buckeyes can lock up an outright conference crown by beating their bitter rivals, but that's about it.

Michigan (5-6, 1-6) has much more at stake. The Wolverines need a win to qualify for a bowl game, to end a five-game losing skid in conference play, to snap a five-game losing skid to Ohio State, to avoid the basement in the Big Ten and to take some of the heat off embattled second-year head coach Rich Rodriguez.

Ohio State's players and coaches swear they haven't been beaten down by the past two grueling games against the best the Big Ten can throw at them. The Buckeyes needed overtime to beat Iowa 27-24 in Columbus on Saturday.

''Someone described this month as tough, tougher and toughest,'' coach Jim Tressel said. ''We've battled through the tough and the tougher, and now we're excited about the toughest.''

With two-thirds of those hurdles behind them, the Buckeyes find it easier to concentrate on the task at hand.

''We knew that this was how our November was going to go,'' wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher said. ''We talked about it - all three are huge games and we were going to have to take them one at a time. The week leading up to (each) game we knew it was going to be the most important game of our year. (We were) able to take care of the Penn State and Iowa games, and now all the focus goes onto Michigan.''

Having come through so much, the Buckeyes recognize they have just one game left before getting some time off to nurse their bruises and to catch up on their sleep.

''It wears you down, that tough stretch, but what energizes you is this game,'' Cordle said. ''There's no way we won't be up for this game.''

The wear and tear has been as much mental as physical. After losing at Purdue on Oct. 17, the Buckeyes have had no margin for error in the Big Ten race.

''We couldn't turn the ball over, we could miss assignments. We had to be perfect,'' tight end Jake Ballard said. ''We did just about everything to come out with a win against Iowa and Penn State.''

Players and coaches who are a part of Ohio State teams that beat Michigan receive a small, gold charm in the shape of a pair of football pants. It's a prized possession for a Buckeye.

In addition to getting yet another one of the trinkets for beating their rivals, the Buckeyes would like nothing more than to deprive the Wolverines of a bowl trip.

''I don't think we're going to have any problem with this game as far as getting up for it or being ready for it,'' Worthington said. ''It's something that we need, something we want. We're hungry for it. ... Their seniors will go to a bowl game if they beat us, so we don't want to be the guys who lose those gold pants or catapult them to a nice little sunny trip.''

Ohio State looses to Purdue...Is this Pryor's fault??

After an ugly battle Ohio State lost to Purdue on Saturday 18-26. It wasn't necessarily a blow-out game. Ohio State still did have a chance in the 4th quarter but when your QB throws 2 interceptions and fumbles the ball two times what are the odds of that? I know I said in a previous post that I was going to try not to bash Terrelle Pryor well...I think he should be treated the same as Boeckman was last season (which would be like dirt). I don't think that I'm even going to waste my time summarizing the game or finding post game notes. We already know what happened Ohio State lost and that’s pretty much all that matters right now. I know I focus on last season maybe a little too much. But the fact that Boeckman got benched after Ohio lost to a #1 ranked team in country and the fact that Purdue wasn't even ranked and Pryor is going to remain the starter! Well that bothers me. I know that people like to pretend that it was all Todd's fault but it wasn't. So I ask myself why isn't Pryor being treated the same way that Boeckman was last year? Tressel has never explicitly said what Pryor provides that Boeckman did not. To quote one of his statements "We probably don't have enough time, nor would I share every little reason or rationale for any personnel decision ... It was just a decision based upon our compilation of data and we felt we needed to go that direction." Tressel also blamed Boeckman for not reading a backside blitz and getting rid of the ball quicker against the Trojans. I wonder what he has to say about that now? For some reason Coach Tressel would stand by Terrelle no matter what. I'll never understand why Coach tressel made the terrible decision that he did. Simply put Pryor is not the QB Jim Tressel or anyone else tried to make him out to be. Coach Tressel made everyone believe that Pryor was this great player with all this talent who never made any mistakes. Which is false. If Pryor wants all this credit and if he wants people to idol him then he better get with it. He should be benched. That's what Tressel did to Boeckman and Terrelle performed worse on Saturday then Boeckman ever did in the short time that he started.





I found those quotes from Tressel in an article on the Morning Journal website here's the link if you would like to read it it's a GREAT article! http://www.morningjournal.com/articles/2008/10/16/sports/mj129332.txt

Ohio State vs. Purdue at a glance...

This Saturday Ohio State will head to West Lafayette Indiana to take on Big Ten opponent Purdue. The game is scheduled to start at 12:00 pm EST



BUCKEYES LOOK TO TIE BIG TEN ROAD RECORD
The Buckeyes currently hold a 16-game win streak in Big Ten road games. That's the longest such string ever by an Ohio State football team. The conference record is 17 games, set by Michigan between 1988-92.

17 - Michigan (Oct. 29, 1988-Nov. 7, 1992)
16 - Ohio State (Oct. 22, 2005-current)
11 - Ohio State (Nov. 16, 1974-Nov. 5, 1977)
10 - Michigan (Oct. 6, 1945-Nov. 6, 1948)

Under Coach Jim Tressel, the Buckeyes are 26-7 (.787) in Big Ten road games overall.

PURDUE AT A GLANCE
Since a season-opening win over Toledo (52-31), Purdue (1-5, 0-2) has lost five straight, with four by an average of 4.5 points. The Boilers lost by two at Oregon, by a touchdown to NIU before two fourth-quarter, heartbreaking defeats to Notre Dame and Northwestern at home.

Despite their record the Boilermakers pose one of the top passing attacks in the Big Ten. Senior quarterback Joey Elliot leads the Big Ten in passing and total offense with 262.5 yards per game through the air and 283.7 yards per game overall. Running back Ralph Bolden is second in the conference in rushing with 99.8 ypg while receiver Keith Smith is second in the Big Ten in both receptions (7.0) and yards per game (97.5). Meanwhile, senior receiver/return man Aaron Valentine ranks first with 145.2 all-purpose yards per game.

Purdue is led by first-year head coach Danny Hope, who spent 2003-07 as the head coach at Eastern Kentucky, his alma mater, where he went 32-8 in OVC play. In 2008 Hope served as assistant head coach and offensive line coach at Purdue under former coach Joe Tiller.

SERIES RECORD
The Buckeyes and Boilermakers have met 51 times previously on the football field, with Ohio State holding a 37-12-2 advantage in the series. Ohio State leads 12-6 in all games at Purdue. Ohio State leads 24-5-2 in all games played at Columbus; the Buckeyes were 23-7 winners last season at Purdue.

Since joining the Big Ten Conference in 1913, Ohio State is 453-189-28 all-time in Big Ten games, and 257-112-18 in conference home games. The Buckeyes' all-time conference win percentage of 69.7% is the best of any Big Ten school.

Ohio State beats Wisconsin!

Sorry I'm posting this so late! I know that every true buckeye fan already knows that Ohio State beat Wisconsin 31-13!! Hopefully true Buckeye fans are reading this so I won't even waste my time and post anything about last Saturday.

OSU-IU Preview!

Head coach gives final briefing before Buckeyes head for meeting under the lights with IU



After putting together a dominant performance and watching the Big Ten's highest-ranked team get upset in the first week of conference play, Ohio State had reason to feel good about its chances to win the league.

The Buckeyes, though, aren't looking that far ahead with their next game coming against an Indiana team that nearly pulled off an upset of its own last week.

The ninth-ranked Buckeyes look to build on an impressive conference-opening performance Saturday night when they visit the Hoosiers, coming off a narrow loss to a Top 25 opponent.

Ohio State (3-1, 1-0) has bounced back from an 18-15 loss to then-No. 3 Southern California on Sept. 12 with its first back-to-back shutouts since 1996. After routing Toledo 38-0 on Sept. 19, the Buckeyes limited Illinois to 170 yards to win their rain-soaked Big Ten opener 30-0 last Saturday.

Terrelle Pryor was limited by the weather, finishing 8 for 13 for 82 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. The sophomore quarterback, though, ran 11 times for 59 yards as part of Ohio State's balanced ground attack. Dan Herron rushed for 75 yards and two TDs, and Brandon Saine had 81 yards on 13 carries.

While those players carried the offense, the defense delivered another lock-down performance, holding the Illini to their lowest yardage total since Sept. 9, 2006.

"We want a mentality that we want to get to the ball, have at least five or six guys at the minimum there," lineman Doug Worthington said. "And we did a good job doing that today."

Coach Jim Tressel has been very impressed with his defensive unit, including its showing in the loss to the Trojans.

"When you can control the trenches, which thus far we've done a pretty good job with that, you've got a very good chance," he said. "(Then) you've got guys in the back end that are very disciplined and do what they're supposed to do. They know that the other guys are going to be putting some pressure on the opposing quarterback."

Ohio State's strong performance last week, combined with conference favorite Penn State losing at home to Iowa, was encouraging for Tressel and his players. However, they refuse to look past the Hoosiers (3-1, 0-1), who gave then-No. 23 Michigan a test before falling 36-33 last Saturday.

"Obviously they watch TV. They watch the highlights," Tressel said of his players. "They see the facts and figures and they saw that Indiana had every opportunity to win their Big Ten opener and put up a lot of yards and made a lot of plays, so our guys went to work on that."

Indiana had four go-ahead scores - including Darius Willis' 85-yard run midway through the fourth quarter - and outgained Michigan 467-372, but it gave up a touchdown with 2:29 left and suffered its seventh loss in its last eight games against Top 25 teams.

"I thought about what a big win this would have been for our football team," said coach Bill Lynch, who threw his headset and tossed a piece of chewing gum toward the seats at Michigan Stadium in frustration.

Lynch said Tuesday he didn't think the gum hit anyone and he's entirely focused on the Buckeyes.

Indiana has lost 14 straight against Ohio State by an average of 22.7 points since the teams played to a 27-all tie in 1990. The Hoosiers, 2-23-1 against the Buckeyes in Bloomington, haven't won in the series since 1988.

These teams last met in 2006, when then-No. 1 Ohio State cruised to a 44-3 home victory en route to an undefeated regular

Ohio State-Wisconsin Game Time Set at 3:30 p.m. Oct. 10‏

Courtesy: OhioStateBuckeyes.com





COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Ohio State-Wisconsin football game will kick off at 3:30 p.m. Eastern on Saturday, Oct. 10, the Big Ten Conference announced today. The contest will be played at Ohio Stadium in Columbus and will be televised by ABC on a regional basis. Mirror coverage will be available in other areas through the ESPN networks.

Ohio State looses to USC

Yes I know we're all aware of what happened last week against USC @ the Horseshoe. And I'm sure nobody or at least any Ohio State fan wants to hear anymore about it. It was a close game and I'm sure from kick off up until USC scored that game winning TD. Every Ohio State fan thought they OSU was going to win.

Well unfortunately that didn't happen.


While you were watching the game did anything look familiar to you? When I saw Terrelle Pryor throw that interception I immediately thought of last year when Ohio State played USC and Boeckman threw that interception to Rey Maualuga. To this day that video is shown all over the Internet. When I went to look on youtube for the video of Terrelle Pryor throwing that interception on Saturday. I couldn't find anything! Not a thing! And don't even get me started on rude comments that Brent Musberger said about Boeckman. I don't want to say the kind of things about Terrelle that people said about Todd last year. So I'll stop before it's to late!

Look for James Laurinaitis Thursday on the Latest Big Ten Quad with Host Eddie George‏!

James Laurinaitis will host BIG TEN QUAD tonight @ 8:00 pm with Eddie George Simeon Rice and Lorenzo White. I will post more later about the Ohio State USC game. I just wanted to make sure that I got that posted before it got to late.

Tomorrow...Ohio State vs. USC!

It's finally here! Tomorrow we will have the chance to watch Terrelle Pryor prove himself. This game will say a lot about coach Tressel choice to bench Todd Boeckman. Here's a little history to explain what this game means.

The numbers themselves are staggering ...



-More than 300 all-time First-Team All-Americans

-Almost 150 NFL total First-Round Draft picks

-Close to 60 combined College Football Hall of Famers

-46 total Rose Bowl games

-18 combined recognized national titles

-7 Heisman Trophy winners ... each!

Ohio State and USC. Is there a better combination of talent and history? That's debatable, but come Saturday the only number that matters is 1 ... as in 1 more classic clash!

Here's a look at the series ...

SERIES RECORD Southern California leads the all-time series with the Buckeyes by a 12-9-1 count. The first meeting between the two schools was a 13-12 USC home victory in 1937. The latest meeting at Ohio Stadium came in 1990, a 35-26 USC victory in Columbus. Ohio State's last win was a 42-21 victory in the Rose Bowl following the 1973 season

The winner has averaged 25.3 points per game during the series, with the losing team averaging 8.6, making the average margin of victory 16.7 points. Seven of the previous 22 meetings have been shutouts. Six games have been decided by a touchdown or less. The home team has won nine of the 15 regular season matchups.

Ohio State is 50-24-2 overall against the Pac-10; the Buckeyes have faced every conference school at least twice in football. In regular season games, Ohio State is 44-17-2 against the Pac-10.

The OSU-USC Series:

1937 at USC 13, Ohio State 12
1938 USC 14, at Ohio State 7
1941 Ohio State 33, at USC 0
1942 at Ohio State 28, USC 12
1946 Ohio State 21, at USC 0
1947 USC 32, at Ohio State 0
1948 at Ohio State 20, USC 0
1949 Ohio State 13, at USC 13
1954 Ohio State 20, USC 7*
1959 at USC 17, Ohio State 0
1960 at Ohio State 20, USC 0
1963 at USC 32, Ohio State 3
1964 at Ohio State 17, USC 0
1968 Ohio State 27, USC 16*
1972 USC 42, Ohio State 17*
1973 Ohio State 42, USC 21*
1974 USC 18, Ohio State 17*
1979 USC 17, Ohio State 16*
1984 USC 20, Ohio State 17*
1989 at USC 42, Ohio State 3
1990 USC 35, at Ohio State 26
2008 at USC 35, Ohio State 3 *Rose Bowl

Jack Tatum - Saturday's honorary captainDefensive back 1968-70

Jack Tatum was one of the dominant defensive players and most intimidating forces in college football during his career at Ohio State. A three-year starter, a two-time All-American and the national Defensive Player of the Year as a senior, he was known for his tenacity and fierce style of play. The 6-1, 208-pound Tatum came to Ohio State as a running back, but moved to defense in the spring of his freshman year. He was a mainstay of the defense for the next three seasons as OSU rolled up a 27-2 record and won the 1968 national championship, two Big Ten titles and played in two Rose Bowls. The Oakland Raiders selected him in the first round of the 1971 NFL Draft. In his nine-year career, he was named to the Pro Bowl three times and was a member of the 1976 Super Bowl champion Raiders. He was inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame in 1981 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

USC Coach Pete Carroll Connected with OSU

Pete Carroll, current USC head coach, was an assistant for the Buckeyes in the 1979 season under Earle Bruce. Carroll, who coached the defensive backfield helped guide the Buckeyes to the Rose Bowl that season, ironically losing a tight 17-16 decision to USC. Read Carroll's bio from the 1979 season below.

1979 Season Glance

Former Ohio State player and assistant coach Earle Bruce is named head coach. The Buckeyes finish the regular season 11-0 and come within a point of a national championship, falling 17-16 to Southern California in the Rose Bowl. Bruce is named the Big Ten and national coach of the year in his first season.

Here's a link if you want to read a little more about the players and this game--
http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=987019

Ohio State vs. Navy Box Score

Scoring Summary


FIRST QUARTER


Ohio State- TD 12:37 Dane Sanzenbacher 38 Yd Pass From Terrelle Pryor (Aaron Pettrey Kick)



Navy- TD 5:43 Ricky Dobbs 16 Yd Run (Joe Buckley Kick



Ohio State- FG 1:30 Aaron Pettrey 23 Yd



First Quater final score 10-7 OSU



SECOND QUATER



Ohio State- TD 9:01 Terrella Pryor 2 YD Run (Aaron Pettrey Kick)


Ohio State- FG 00:55 Aaron Pettrey 25 Yd



Second Quater final score 7-20 OSU



THIRD QUATER



Navy- TD 1:24 Marcus Curry 16 Yd Pass From Ricky Dobbs (Joe Buckley Kick)



Third Quater final score 14-20 OSU



FORTH QUATER



Ohio State- FG 14:11 Aaron Pettrey 52 Yd



Ohio State- TD 11:56 Daniel Herron 6 Yd Run (Pat Failed)



Navy- TD 6:15 Marcus Curry 85 Yd Pass From Ricky Dobbs (Joe Buckley Kick)

Navy- TD 2:23 Ricky Dobbs 24 Yd Run (Two-Point Conversion Failed)

Ohio State- DC 2:23 Brian Rolle 2-point conversion return


Forth Quater Final score 31-27 Ohio State


GAME ATTENDANCE: 105,092

Boeckman Moves Up to #3 QB!

I just found out today that Todd is the #3 QB. Here's the article if you would like to read it. It's basically the same thing I posted Wednesday. But I'll post it anyways.

The Jaguars have released 25-year old QB Paul Smith. Smith played in 2 pre-season games for the Jaguars completing 8 of 15 passes (53.3%) for 87 yards with 0 TD passes and 2 interceptions. He also carried the ball 1 time for 3 yards. Undrafted rookie Todd Boeckman from the Ohio State Buckeyes moves up to the #3 job for the Jaguars. Todd Boeckman lost his starting job at Ohio State last season but he was very effective two years ago for them. Last season Boeckman completed 57 of 93 passes (61.3%) for 620 yards with 5 TD passes and 2 interceptions (130.7 QB Rating). He completed 255 of 402 passes (63.4%) for 3,085 yards with 31 TD passes and 16 interceptions in his four years at Ohio State. He should be able to handle holding a clipboard for the Jags this season.

Navy No Easy Opener for No. 6 Buckeyes; Post-Practice Interviewsþ

Well I decided today that I'm still going to post articles about Ohio State even though Todd Boeckman is graduated. After all this is an Ohio State blog too. Saturday is the season opener and I think everyone is excited for that.

By Rusty MillerAssociated Press

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- This much is certain when it comes to No. 6 Ohio State's recent series of opening-game opponents: Navy is no Youngstown State.

While the Penguins were almost grateful to open the season at Ohio Stadium the last two seasons, the Buckeyes recognize that Navy won't be nearly so star-struck.

The Buckeyes opened with 38-6 and 43-0 routs of Youngstown State, the only Football Championship Subdivision team Ohio State has ever played.

Navy is at another level.

"We've got a great Navy team coming in week one," offensive guard Bryant Browning said. "First off, those guys have won a lot of games. They go to bowl games, and they win. We're usually facing, I guess you could say, a lesser opponent sometimes -- you could say it that way. But Navy is not one of those teams. They're going to come in here looking for a big upset."

Ohio State's contest against Navy on Saturday -- the first regular-season meeting between the teams since 1931 -- is not expected to be so lopsided as recent debuts for the Buckeyes

"Navy's no pushover," quarterback Terrelle Pryor said. "And you know they're going to be tough. They serve our country. You also got to appreciate that too because they serve our nation and protect us."

There are also a couple of other reasons why the game could be a problem for the Buckeyes.

For one, the Midshipmen's triple-option attack is something foreign to a defense that regularly faces spread attacks.

"Whenever you play someone like Navy it raises the urgency because you can't look at them and say, 'Well, I know what they do. Yeah, this is what they run. We know how to stop that,"' coach Jim Tressel said. "Plus our guys have a tremendous respect for the people who choose to go into that particular world. You've got to be courageous and our guys know that. ... It'll be an eye-opener for us."

For another, a date with No. 4 Southern California, which ravaged the Buckeyes 35-3 in SoCal a year ago, is looming a week later. The Buckeyes know they can't be distracted by that, since they'll likely have their hands full with the Midshipmen.

Unlike Youngstown State or the Mid-American Conference schools the Buckeyes usually open against, the Midshipmen won't be intimidated by the more than 100,000 in attendance. They've played on big stages and in big games, winning their last 13 against Army and Air Force to take the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy the last six years.

Apparently, Ohio State's fans have noticed.

Tressel said that athletic department officials have told him that there is as much or more interest in Navy tickets as any game on the Buckeyes' schedule. He hinted that the Ohio Stadium record attendance of 105,711 could be eclipsed.

A typical cupcake in the opener wouldn't draw nearly so much attention.

Navy returns 25 letterwinners and 13 starters from a team that went 8-5 last season, led the nation in rushing for an NCAA-record fourth-consecutive season (292.4 rushing yards per game) and went to the EagleBank Bowl, losing 29-19 to Wake Forest.

Junior quarterback Ricky Dobbs leads Navy's offense. He gained 495 yards and scored eight times a year ago.

All the Buckeyes are wary of the Midshipmen's option game.

"We haven't seen this since I've been here," linebacker Austin Spitler said. "The preparation has been unbelievable and the coaches have really stressed the importance of doing our 1/11th. Since it's something we haven't seen, it is a difficult situation."

And no easy way to open a season

Jaguars sign Todd Boeckman again!

The Jacksonville Jaguars signed rookie quarterback Todd Boeckman and waived first-year quarterback Paul Smith today.

Smith was cut Sunday and replaced by former Ohio State quarterback Todd Boeckman, who is joining the Jaguars for the second time. He was originally signed June 17 and cut July 31. Now he has a shot at being a practice-squad player.

This is his new roster picture.

I know my last post was titled "This is the game everyone looks forward too" and it is. The sad part is after the game, when you realize that the college football season is winding down. This was a great year! I wish that Boeckman would have got to play more but there's nothing I can do about it...it's over now. Todd might not have got to play as much as I wished he would have. But, Todd has something that a lot of players don't have class. Both on the field and off the field. I hope that he won't just be overlooked like so many players are; but instead he will be remembered as the "classy guy" who never complained even when he was replaced by a freshman after winning the Big Ten and leading his team to the National title game the year before. Todd is everything an athlete should be and more.

Taking 1 for the team

COLUMBUS - If it seemed like he had been around forever, that's because the Ohio football journey of Todd Boeckman spanned a full decade.
It began when he quarterbacked his St. Henry High School team to the Division V state championship game as a freshman back in the fall of 1999. It concluded yesterday with a backup appearance in the fourth quarter of Ohio State's 42-7 pounding of Michigan at Ohio Stadium.
In his swan song at the Horseshoe, Boeckman completed all three of his passes for 64 yards, including an 18-yard TD strike to Brian Hartline with 13:16 remaining to cap Ohio State's fifth straight win over UM.
The play drew a sizable ovation from the crowd of 105,564, a nice sendoff for Boeckman, who received a different response from impatient Buckeye supporters early this season.
"I guess, personally, it felt pretty good to get out there just to get that back," Boeckman said. "To know that you can still go out there and make some things happen. It feels good to have people on your side and wanting to see you succeed and do things well."
Boeckman's ride had its ups and downs. His St. Henry Redskins, for instance, never again qualified for Ohio's prep playoffs after 1999, this despite his career 7,021 passing yards and 64 TDs.
Boeckman enrolled part-time at Ohio State and became what was termed a "gray shirt," participating in preseason practice in August of 2003 in the wake of the Buckeyes' national championship season. He enrolled full-time in January of '04.
Following a red-shirt season in 2004, he backed up Troy Smith and Justin Zwick in 2005, and then was behind Smith during his Heisman Trophy season in 2006. That's when OSU closed the regular season 12-0 and ranked No. 1 before being humbled by Florida in the national championship game.
Last year, Boeckman's term as understudy expired. He took the keys to the Buckeye offense and earned first-team All-Big Ten quarterback honors, guiding OSU to an 11-2 mark and a second straight trip to the BCS title game, a loss to LSU.
Boeckman started his senior season (his sixth year on campus) with the shadow of a prize QB recruit - prep All-America Terrelle Pryor from Pennsylvania. - looming large.
The 6-4, 244-pound Boeckman had completed 191 of 299 passes for 2,379 yards and 25 TDs with 14 interceptions in 2007. But, after struggling in Ohio State's 35-3 loss at USC, he lost his starting job and never got it back.
"What was hard was not being out there with my teammates," Boeckman said. "They were out there celebrating winning games. I'm excited for everybody and excited for this team, and it was kind of tough for me not being out there with them."
The Pryor era began on Sept. 20 when the Buckeyes hosted Troy. Boeckman was relegated to clipboard duty during games, pressed into service helping Pryor learn the offense, and was dubbed by some as the "best backup quarterback in thenation."
"I had to help him because I had to do what's best for this football team," Boeckman said. "Terrelle's a phenomenal athlete. I'm looking forward to see what he can do in the future.
"You can't divide a team or separate a team when something like that happens. I just figured the best thing for me would be to be a team player and do what's best for the team. Terrelle did some great things out there this year, and he's getting better each and every week. I'm excited for him."
Still, it was a bitter pill for Boeckman in his sixth year at OSU.
"When anybody loses their job to somebody else, it's going to be tough," he said. "But that's something you've got to fight through. If this is one of the worst things in my life that happens to me, I'll feel pretty good about myself.
"It's a great honor to be a part of this football team, and it's an even better honor to beat Michigan like this."
As rough as the ride was, the end came on a good note.
"It was very emotional being out there," Boeckman said. "It's been a tough year for me, but it felt pretty good to get out there and throw [for] that touchdown

This is the game everyone looks forward too...

This is the game that everyone looks forward to...
Arguably the best rivalry in all of college football – and that’s just in regards to the fans. Quite simply, don’t wear red in Ann Arbor, Michigan and don’t dare think about donning maze and blue in Columbus, Ohio. Ever.
This rivalry has been brewing since 1835, but many believe that the official fire was lit during the coaching days of Woody Hayes (OSU) and Bo Schembechler (U of M).

What kicked the hate?
Many believe that this rivalry stemmed from the two states battling over territory in 1835. The football rivalry has seemed to carry over from the Toledo War, which was a bloodless battle over the Michigan-Ohio border.

Who has the lifetime edge?
The Wolverines have a slight lead, note the word slight. The advantage was piled up during the early years of the rivalry. During the John Cooper years at Ohio State, Michigan built on their record as Cooper went 2-10-1 against the Wolverines. Lately, Jim Tressel has revived Ohio State's fortunes by compiling a 4-1 record against Michigan.