November 20. 2006 6:59AM
Making a big statement
Ohio State Heisman Trophy candidate Troy Smith shined in his moment on the big stage.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
AL LESAR
Tribune Staff Writer
OK, this week it's Brady Quinn's turn.
Saturday, Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith appeared on a national stage and put his best foot forward against Michigan in a 42-39 victory to set a standard in the two-horse race for the Heisman Trophy.
Next Saturday night in Los Angeles, Notre Dame's Quinn will have his shot against Southern Cal to prove he's the best player in college football.
Smith, who took some devastating hits in the game, went a long way toward swaying some votes with an impressive first half against the Wolverines. The Buckeyes scored on four of their five first-half possessions, en route to a 28-14 lead, but ran the ball just 10 times.
The premise of Ohio State's first-half offense was to use a five-receiver set and let Smith pick Michigan's vaunted defense apart.
It worked.
Smith was accurate on 21-of-26 passes for 241 yards and three touchdowns. What's more amazing is that during those first 30 minutes, he connected with eight different receivers. Ted Ginn, Jr., caught six for 74 yards and a TD.
Remember, that's the same Michigan defense that bruised and befuddled Quinn (25-of-49 passing, 241 yards, three TDs, three interceptions in a 47-21 Michigan win) in September.
"I think the Heisman Trophy is a team award," Smith said. "I don't care who you are, you can be hands-down the most electrifying player in college football and lose two or three games and you're out of (the race)."
"I think he has the Heisman for sure now," said Ginn, who is very biased. "He deserves it for all the work he's done. Like Troy said, 'It's a team award,' but since they have to give it to one guy, it should go to him."
"I would think he clinched the Heisman Trophy, I don't think there'd be any question about that," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said. "You can talk about it now that the regular season is over. I think he's the best player in college football."
He finished completing 29-of-41 passes for 316 yards. His only interception came on a deflection. Smith scrambled fewer times than he normally does, running four times for 12 yards. He was sacked just once.
"Troy's No. 1 quality is toughness," Tressel said. "You can't be a championship quarterback or an All-American quarterback without being tough, and Troy is that."
"I live and play through everybody else," Smith said. "When I stare at 10 guys in the huddle, or 105-plus guys on the sidelines, their eyes are wide open and they'll do anything to support the team. There's no way I could get into a situation where I feel as if my legs hurt, my knee is hurt, my elbow is hurt, and limp like there's something wrong. I could never short-change my teammates."
The fans weren't short-changed in terms of entertainment value of the game. Sure, there were plenty of mistakes -- a couple bad snaps by Ohio State center Doug Datish that turned into turnovers and a critical roughing the passer penalty by Michigan's Shawn Crable -- but it might have been good enough to see it again in the national championship game.
"I guarantee, if we play them again, it would be a whole different game," Michigan running back Mike Hart said of the possibility of a rematch. "If it doesn't happen, that's our fault. We should have gotten them the first time.
"We're both the top teams in the country, regardless of what anybody says. On a neutral site, it would be a big game. If I won, I'd probably be like, 'No, I don't want a rematch.' Any time you lose, you want another shot."
Staff writer Al Lesar:
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(574) 235-6318
