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Fall Practice 2006

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craigblitz said:
Far from needing to jump off the bridege for sure, but reading between the lines it does sound like our LB's have a lot to learn. I am not looking too much into the postion switches because I think at LB you need to know what the other 2 are doing and this is giving them that opportunity to get reps to understand that.

Does anyone know when Homan is going to be back in action? Also anyword on Thadeus?
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flashback,the same talk about hawk, carpenter and d'andrea before there soph years as the maybe,starters and would they be the needed help or do they need some more experience. LB'ERS school is back and all it takes is finding the top 3 but, OSU has A GREAT PROBLEM WITH 7-8 DEEP

About Gibson, my thoughts only, saving him a year of waste.They are so deep with a bunch of youth. Like they did with Freman last year.He could have played but, did that medical redshirt instead. He has all the talents
 
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Honestly the guy I would be suprised to see step up and take one of the roles in Terry. He has been in the system for a couple years now and might be ready to take on a starting role.

I kinda like the idea of James L in the middle and Freeman and Terry on the outside. And then Kerr could play anyone of the 3 positions or have Kerr in the middle and JL as the utility guy.
 
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Big Ten preview: Ohio State
Reloading just fact of life for No. 1 Buckeyes

By Teddy Greenstein
Tribune staff reporter

August 18, 2006, 11:36 PM CDT

Sixth in a series

Maurice Clarett did not exactly make the most of his educational opportunities at Ohio State. But even he probably could tell you the word "rebuilding" does not exist in the Buckeyes' lexicon.



Consider that Ohio State had five players—A.J. Hawk, Donte Whitner, Bobby Carpenter, Santonio Holmes and Nick Mangold—snapped up in the first round of the NFL draft, two more in the third round and another pair in the fourth.

Then consider where Ohio State begins this season—ranked atop the Associated Press media poll and USA Today coaches' poll and rated No. 1 by a slew of preview magazines.

It's hard to believe a school could lose so many studs and still earn so much acclaim.

"It says a lot about our coaching staff and recruiting ability," center Doug Datish says. "Since I've been here, we have had to reload two different times and each time they said, 'There's no way.' Then all of a sudden, we're third or first in the country."

If Ohio State gets to first in the country this season, voters might have a challenge choosing between two Heisman Trophy candidates: quarterback Troy Smith and receiver Ted Ginn Jr.

Ohio State:

Will contend for a Big Ten title if … A bunch of linebackers you never have heard of make Buckeyes fans forget about Hawk, Carpenter and Anthony Schlegel. Brainy Big Ten observers actually might remember John Kerr, who led Indiana with 114 tackles as a freshman. Then he sat out as a transfer, played on the scout team in 2004 and relieved Hawk&Co. last season.

The Buckeyes also have to break in an entirely new secondary. While casual fans recall Ohio State's offensive explosions at Michigan and in the Fiesta Bowl against Notre Dame, the reality is that the Buckeyes won with defense. They allowed 73.4 rushing yards per game, fewest in the nation, and their 44 sacks led the conference.

Will drive coach Jim Tressel nuts if … The Buckeyes continue to cough up the football. They easily could have lost to Michigan after fumbling four times, losing the ball twice. And backup quarterback Justin Zwick fumbled on the first play of the last significant drive in a loss to Texas.

The Buckeyes' indispensable players are … Defensive tackles Quinn Pitcock and David Patterson—the only returning starters on "D"—and right tackle Kirk Barton. Smith and Ginn have the most talent, but they have able backups in Zwick and Roy Hall, respectively.

In a word, the schedule can be described as … Electric. And it's all because of one date—a Sept. 9 clash at Texas. On stubhub.com, the cheapest ticket is being sold for $410. And the best will set you back around $2,000. The Buckeyes' first two Big Ten games also are intriguing—vs. Penn State and at Iowa in prime time.

Last season's defining moment was … Smith's 26-yard completion to Anthony Gonzalez during the game-winning drive at Michigan. After avoiding the rush, Smith fired to Gonzalez, who held on at the 4-yard line despite getting upended. The subsequent touchdown landed Ohio State a spot in the Fiesta Bowl.

This season will be considered a success if … The Buckeyes win the national championship. That's the reality when you enter the season ranked No. 1 and you have beaten Michigan four times in the last five years.

Toughest player to replace is … Kicker Josh Huston. Maybe. Huston nailed 22 of 26 field-goal attempts inside 49 yards last season, and the Buckeyes figure to play close games again in '06. Standout rugby player Ryan Pretorious is the favorite to replace Huston.

One player who needs to step up is … Ginn. He might be the nation's best return man and most exciting player, but the Buckeyes need him to replace Holmes' production (53 catches, 977 yards). After being invisible in the early-season loss to Texas, Ginn had three dominant performances: vs. Illinois (138 receiving yards), at Michigan (eight catches, 89 yards) and against Notre Dame (touchdowns on 56-yard pass and 68-yard reverse).

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Dispatch

8/20/06

OHIO STATE FOOTBALL
Effort, hunches help pick starters
Biggest, fastest don’t always get the nod when coaches choose lineups
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
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Sometimes, Luke Fickell longs for the sweaty Darwinism of the DeSales High School wrestling room, where there were winners and losers and that was that.
The Ohio State co-defensive coordinator feels this way most often while watching uncounted hours of practice film, trying to decide who should play for the Buckeyes. It is not an easy task.
"The hard thing about football is there’s so much indecision as to who’s the better player, who’s better at this position," Fickell said. "I’m used to a wrestling background. It’s simple: You put two guys on the mat (and) they wrestle. Whoever wins is the better guy.
"You can’t do that day in and day out in practice."
Pitting two linemen in a one-on-one beatdown might be entertaining, but pointless when it comes to determining a starter.
Yet Fickell and his colleagues still must make those decisions, and they have to do it fast. The Buckeyes are looking for 12 new starters (two on offense, nine on defense and a kicker) and they have 13 days until the season opens.
The jersey scrimmage Friday gave coaches 175 plays of semilive game conditions to grade, which is helpful. But coach Jim Tressel said, "when you’ve got battles going on at positions, you don’t decide them on one scrimmage in the preseason."
So how are starting spots decided? There is no one answer, but here are some factors that go into it:
Production

Coaches grade every player on every play of every practice. That translates to a production chart, using a grading system and updated daily, that quantifies exactly how everyone is doing.
That doesn’t mean the top players on the board automatically are the starters, but it gives everyone an idea of their status — "direct feedback (so that players) know exactly where they stand," as cornerbacks coach Tim Beckman put it.
Players seem to appreciate it. "You get graded on effort, you get graded on technique and your production goes right next to it," fifth-year safety Brandon Mitchell said. "You know what you’re doing every day.
"It’s straightforward, so you can look on there and say, ‘Wow, this freshman has better effort and better technique than me and he’s making more plays. I need to step up.’ I like the way it’s done."
Improvement and effort

It isn’t as straightforward as Mitchell thinks, though. Coaches notice all sorts of things when they watch how players practice and prepare.
One of those is whether a player has, in the sports vernacular, "upside."
"A key factor (is) you try to get better," cornerback Antonio Smith said. "We can all improve on something, so if a guy is getting better and you can see improvement, that’s definitely noticeable."
Several players mentioned the importance of what happens in the offseason, in places such as the weight room, or with players who know they aren’t going to play much but still work hard.
Linebacker Marcus Freeman said, "Even (in) the years people don’t start, well, what did they do in practice? "
Consistency

This is a big one. It’s not about making a few eye-opening plays, it’s about doing the right things more often than not, day in and day out.
"Anyone can go out and have a good day and then turn around and have a bad day; that’s football," cornerback Andre Amos said. "Everyone is not going to have great days, but it’s how you bring yourself back together after those bad days that really matter the most."
That leads to a very important factor when deciding who should play:
"I think the starting position is determined on the guys (coaches) can trust," Amos said.
Intangibles

Amos is right. Coaches talk about the grades and production, but there is a human factor that’s impossible to quantify. Call it trust or gut instinct. Not all decisions can be made by consulting the charts.
Offensive coordinator Jim Bollman said this is especially true on the offensive line.
"The best five individuals may not be the best five as a group," he said. "Guys have to be able to be alert and aware and sense how the guy next to them is going to play. It may be a situation where one guy may not quite be as good physically, but he can help the two guys on the other side of him better than the next guy.
"So there’s not one particular thing."
Game time

The bottom line is coaches do the best they can do from evaluating practices, but there’s a reason that with young teams in particular, the starting lineups change during the season.
Certain players emerge when it’s for keeps. That’s why you hear coaches spouting clichés such as "gamers" who "just make plays."
It’s the closest Fickell can get to his wrestling-room analogy.
"When the scoreboard is on," he says, "that’s about the only time you can really truly measure the competition."
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Five to watch
Sunday, August 20, 2006
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Here are five of Ohio State’s most fiercely contested competitions for starting jobs:
• Left guard: Tim Schafer has a slight edge, but Steve Rehring is pushing him and Jon Skinner is getting a shot.
• Kicker: It’s hard to judge much from the scrimmage Friday, played in a driving rain, but Aaron Pettrey and Ryan Pretorius still have much to prove.
• Defensive end: Jay Richardson (below) and Vernon Gholston started Friday. But Lawrence Wilson, who sat out because of a minor injury, and Alex Barrow are squarely in the fight.
• Cornerback: Fifth-year senior Antonio Smith was solid Friday and may hold onto his spot. If he doesn’t, promising redshirt freshman Andre Amos or true freshman Kurt Coleman might be reasons why. • Safety: Brandon Mitchell, another fifth-year senior, played well Friday. Nick Patterson may hold an edge on Jamario O’Neal.
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Dispatch

8/20/06

OHIO STATE NOTEBOOK
No. 2 QB behind Smith should be named this week
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
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Ohio State coaches stress to their quarterbacks to use their minds, their arms and their feet, and it appears a couple of the young hopefuls in the competition to back up senior Troy Smith have gotten the message.
Sophomore Todd Boeckman and redshirt freshman Rob Schoenhoft are tall and brawny, with more the appearance of pocket passers, like one of their predecessors, Craig Krenzel. But one reason Krenzel was able to lead OSU to the 2002 national championship was his proclivity to tuck the ball and run at opportune times. In a rain-soaked scrimmage Friday in Ohio Stadium, Boeckman and Schoenhoft showed the same trait.
Boeckman even scored one of three touchdowns on an option keeper with the cutback move of a tailback. Neither showed a desire to slide either, not even Schoenhoft after he was popped at the sideline by freshman defensive back Kurt Coleman at the end of a decent scramble.
That whatever-it-takes attitude evidently helped mollify some of the sloppy play by the quarterbacks in the extended scrimmage because, as coach Jim Tressel said, "For the most part I thought we saw some progress."
He did not like seeing senior Justin Zwick go down because of a left shoulder injury. Zwick was working to hang on to his job as backup to Smith, giving the Buckeyes the assurance of a nine-game starter in the bullpen.
Now the competition for No. 2, at least for the opener Sept. 2 against Northern Illinois, probably is between Boeckman and Schoenhoft.
How tight is it? Tressel didn’t really say, though he indicated a pecking order will be established within a week.
"I think we’ll have to watch the film and keep watching practice," Tressel said. "When you start getting into game weeks, the numbers of snaps that the guy behind the starter gets aren’t as many. So it is just something we are going to have to figure out."
Kicking it around

Ryan Pretorius and Aaron Pettrey are in a duel for the No. 1 kicking job, which probably won’t be decided until the kick scrimmage Thursday, which is closed to the public. Tressel said he wasn’t ready to name a starter after the first two weeks of camp.
"We’ve got a big kick scrimmage coming up, which gives them a lot of opportunities," he said. "It is kind of their big day in front of everybody.
"Not unlike the way we felt in the spring, we’ve got two solid guys that we’re going to see who emerges."
Tickets in perspective

The retail price of a singlegame ticket to an Ohio State game costs $58 this season, but good luck trying to find one for that price, even for the opener against Northern Illinois. But a Northern Illinois season ticket, located near the 35-yard line on row 47 on the west side of Huskie Stadium, could be purchased for $99 yesterday on Ticketmaster.
Meanwhile, on the Tick-Co.com ticket brokerage site yesterday, the lowest-priced ticket available for the soldout Ohio State game at Texas on Sept. 9 was $469. The prices ranged all the way to $2,016 for a lower level club seat in Darrell K. Royal Stadium.
By comparison, tickets for Texas’ annual grudge match with Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on Oct. 7 could be had for as little as $300.
Talk about a bargain

With those ticket prices in perspective, the autograph session and practice that will be open to the public Monday night in Ohio Stadium should be considered an absolute bargain. Admission is free, and so is parking. The gates will open at 6 p.m., with the autograph session in the stadium concourse from 7 to 8 and the practice from 8 to 9:45.
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Reloading just fact of life for No. 1 Buckeyes
Despite losing 9 defensive starters, Ohio State is the preseason darling

By Teddy Greenstein
Tribune college football reporter

August 20, 2006

<!-- START LEAD --> Maurice Clarett did not exactly make the most of his educational opportunities at Ohio State. But even he probably could tell you the word "rebuilding" does not exist in the Buckeyes' lexicon.

Consider that Ohio State had five players--A.J. Hawk, Donte Whitner, Bobby Carpenter, Santonio Holmes and Nick Mangold--snapped up in the first round of the NFL draft, two more in the third round and another pair in the fourth.



<!-- END LEAD --><!-- START REST --> Then consider where Ohio State begins this season--ranked atop the Associated Press media poll and USA Today coaches' poll and rated No. 1 by a slew of preview magazines.

It's hard to believe a school could lose so many studs and still earn so much acclaim.

"It says a lot about our coaching staff and recruiting ability," center Doug Datish says. "Since I've been here, we have had to reload two different times and each time they said, `There's no way.' Then all of a sudden, we're third or first in the country."

If Ohio State gets to first in the country this season, voters might have a challenge choosing between two Heisman Trophy candidates: quarterback Troy Smith and receiver Ted Ginn Jr.



Ohio State:

Will contend for a Big Ten title if . . . A bunch of linebackers you never have heard of make Buckeyes fans forget about Hawk, Carpenter and Anthony Schlegel. Brainy Big Ten observers actually might remember John Kerr, who led Indiana with 114 tackles as a freshman. Then he sat out as a transfer, played on the scout team in 2004 and relieved Hawk & Co. last season.

The Buckeyes also have to break in an entirely new secondary. While casual fans recall Ohio State's offensive explosions at Michigan and in the Fiesta Bowl against Notre Dame, the reality is that the Buckeyes won with defense. They allowed 73.4 rushing yards per game, fewest in the nation, and their 44 sacks led the conference.

Will drive coach Jim Tressel nuts if . . . The Buckeyes continue to cough up the football. They easily could have lost to Michigan after fumbling four times, losing the ball twice. And backup quarterback Justin Zwick fumbled on the first play of the last significant drive in a loss to Texas.

The Buckeyes' indispensable players are . . . Defensive tackles Quinn Pitcock and David Patterson--the only returning starters on "D"--and right tackle Kirk Barton. Smith and Ginn have the most talent, but they have able backups in Zwick and Roy Hall, respectively.

In a word, the schedule can be described as . . . Electric. And it's all because of one date--a Sept. 9 clash at Texas. On stubhub.com, the cheapest ticket is being sold for $410. And the best will set you back around $2,000. The Buckeyes' first two Big Ten games also are intriguing--vs. Penn State and at Iowa in prime time.

Last season's defining moment was . . . Smith's 26-yard completion to Anthony Gonzalez during the game-winning drive at Michigan. After avoiding the rush, Smith fired to Gonzalez, who held on at the 4-yard line despite getting upended. The subsequent touchdown landed Ohio State a spot in the Fiesta Bowl.

This season will be considered a success if . . . The Buckeyes win the national championship. That's the reality when you enter the season ranked No. 1 and you have beaten Michigan four times in the last five years.

Toughest player to replace is . . . Kicker Josh Huston. Maybe. Huston nailed 22 of 26 field-goal attempts inside 49 yards last season, and the Buckeyes figure to play close games again in '06. Standout rugby player Ryan Pretorious is the favorite to replace Huston.

One player who needs to step up is . . . Ginn. He might be the nation's best return man and most exciting player, but the Buckeyes need him to replace Holmes' production (53 catches, 977 yards). After being invisible in the early-season loss to Texas, Ginn had three dominant performances: vs. Illinois (138 receiving yards), at Michigan (eight catches, 89 yards) and against Notre Dame (touchdowns on 56-yard pass and 68-yard reverse).



Buckeyes at a glance

Coach: Jim Tressel, 50-13, in sixth year; 185-70-2 overall, in 21st season.

Coordinators: Jim Bollman, offense; Jim Heacock, defense.

Ohio Stadium, Columbus; grass

Avg. att. (cap.): 105,017 (102,329)

2006 schedule:



D OPPONENT SERIES
S2 Northern Illinois, 2:30 1st game
S9 at Texas, 7 0-1
S16 Cincinnati, 11 a.m. 12-2
S23 Penn State, TBA 10-11
S30 at Iowa, 7 43-14-3
O7 Bowling Green, TBA 3-0
O14 at Michigan St., TBA 24-12
O21 Indiana, TBA 64-12-5
O28 Minnesota, 2:30 38-7
N4 at Illinois, TBA 59-29-4
N11 at Northwestern, TBA 56-14-1
N18 Michigan, 2:30 39-57-6</pre>
 
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OZone

FootballThe-Ozone Note and Quotebook
By John Porentas​
Team, Team, Team: Fifth-year senior offensive lineman Tim Schafer has had his ups and downs in his Buckeye career. Schafer arrived at OSU a defensive lineman, was a starter on the offensive line early in 2004, then disappeared until this year when he re-emerged as a front-runner for the right guard spot this season. This is Schafer's last go-round as a Buckeye. You can bet the wants that starting job badly, but not so badly that he wants to be out there if its not the right thing for the Buckeyes. ​
<table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="50"> <caption align="bottom"> [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Tim Schafer [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Photo by Jim Davidson[/FONT] </caption> <tbody><tr> <td>
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"Of course I want to start, but I still want what's best for the team," Schafer said of his desire to be on the field.​
"If Steve's (Rehring) the better man or Jon's (Skinner) the better man then so be it, I still want the best for the team no matter what," Schafer said.​
Schafer has no regrets over the way his career has gone, and is looking forward to his senior season despite having bounced back and forth as a defensive lineman and an offensive lineman. After practicing with the defense last year Schafer sees his move back to offense in this his final season as an opportunity. ​
"Once I moved back to offense I figured I might have a chance for some playing time, so I figured I better do it right this time," Schafer said.​
"Two years ago I liked defense better because I felt like there was more action going on with all the stunts and stuff. But now I feel right at home on offense now for some reason. Every guy on the offensive line, I feel like they're my brother and I love coach Bollman. I like being on the offensive line right now," he continued.​
Schafer has been a model of persistence in his Buckeye career and feels like he's ready to contribute in a significant way this season. ​
"My dad told me the story of Abraham Lincoln and how he failed at everything you possibly could fail at, but he just never gave up and finally he was on top. I just never give up no matter what," Schafer said.​
"I feel like I'm in the best shape of my life. We had Eric Lichter come in and he brought in a whole new program and I took it to heart. He's a really smart guy. He helped us with our diets and our explosiveness ands strength. I feel like I got a lot stronger and faster."
Dealing with Camp: Fall camp can be absolute drudgery for the participants. It's early mornings, long days, late nights, lots of work, and not much contact with the outside world. Players find ways to cope with the grind of camp, some of them involving a little bit of good-natured harassment of teammates.​
"This is by far the toughest part of camp," said junior running back Antonio Pittman.​
"You beat your body up. You're up early in the morning and it's hard," Pittman said.​
<table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="50"> <caption align="bottom"> [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Antonio Pittman is surrounded by the media at a fall-camp media session last week.[/FONT]
Photo by Jim Davidson </caption> <tbody><tr> <td>
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</td> </tr> </tbody></table> "In order to get through it mentally we try to have fun with it as much as possible.
"We mess with each other at night so people can't go to sleep, banging on doors, just trying to make it fun just so we can get through.
"It's hard going through this whole process but if you're not having fun with it it makes it even worse."
The football part of camp is certainly a grind, but players have to put up with more than just the football. They also put up with the media crush that always comes with fall camp, and which is more intense than usual this season with the Buckeyes' number-one ranking.
Shake and Bake: The Buckeyes have three capable running backs this season in Antonio Pittman, Maurice Wells and Chris Wells. All three bring their own style and skills to the field, but when it comes to shake and bake, one of them stands out according to someone who has to tackle those runners on a regular basis at practice, linebacker Marcus Freeman.
"Pitt by far," said Freeman.
<table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="50"> <caption align="bottom"> [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Marcus Freeman [/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Photo by Jim Davidson [/FONT] </caption> <tbody><tr> <td>
freeman.jpg
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> "He has by far the best shake and bake. He's made a lot of people miss. He's made me get yelled at a couple of times. I remember a couple of times in camp coach saying 'You can't miss that tackle' but I was thinking in my head 'Coach, this guy is fast. His shakes are good and it's hard to get him down,' but to play in our league you have to be able to take down backs like Pitt," said Freeman.
Freeman is a Pittman fan, but definitely is an admirer of the other two OSU backs as well.
"Pitt is just so quick. He sees holes that other backs don't see. He has great vision," said Freeman.
"I think the more Maurice (Wells) gets on the field the more he can show how good he is. I see him every day in practice and I think he's a great running back," said Freeman.
"Beanie is so big, but people don't realize that he can outrun a lot of people.
"He broke a touchdown the other day at practice for 70 yards and he outran a lot of people.
"Maurice Wells is kind of like Pitt. He's a fast back that sees holes fast, but he runs hard too, real hard," Freeman said.
Handling the Hype: Ohio State freshman running back Chris Wells arrived on campus with much hype and ballyhoo leading many onlookers to assume that Wells would quickly replace Antonio Pittman as the starting running back. Wells may someday live up to all that hype, but according to another player who arrived on campus with a big rep, linebacker Marcus Freeman, it's probably going to take a little time. Freeman knows, because he himself had to wait his turn despite his big rep coming out of high school.
"Coming out of high school you want to come in and play as a freshman, but as you get older you realize you can't do that." said Freeman.
"They recruited people just as good as you are who are already there. I learned behind three great linebackers," Freeman said.
"I think its a wake up call," Freeman said.
"So many people come out of high school thinking they're going to start, but you come to realize that this is a whole different game at this level. There's so much to learn and then you have to add your game to what you learn. I think its a wake up call for a lot of people when they get to this level."
Freeman says that despite the difficulty in early, Wells may have what it takes to be an exception.
"That's one guy that had a lot of hype coming out of high school and I understand why. He's a big guy and he's hard to take down," said Freeman.
Coping with the step up in competition and ignoring his hype is something that Wells will have to deal with. It's also something Antonio Pittman must deal with. Pittman certainly hears the talk about Wells taking his job, but Pittman has not taken any umbrage with the talk. Instead of of sulking over the talk and brooding, he has embraced Wells' presence as something good for the team.
"Him signing was great," said Pittman.
"It was a great addition to the team and I'm looking forward to playing with him."
Leadership Evolving: Captains have not yet been named this season, but there is little doubt that Troy Smith is one of the leaders on the offensive side of the ball.
"Troy is a great leader. The quarterback should be the leader of the team. Everybody has to put trust in him. He did a great job of leading us last year," said tailback Antonio Pittman.
With Smith back this season finding leader on offense isn't big problem. On defense, however, it's a different story where team leaders A. J. Hawk, Bobby Carpenter, Nate Salley and Anthony Schlegel have moved on, and with the youth of the defense, the leadership on that side of the ball is probably going to be critical for the Buckeyes this season. According to Marcus Freeman, the leaders on defense are beginning to emerge.
"I think our seniors are doing a great job (as leaders), especially Dave (Patterson) and Quinn (Pitcock), they're making sure everybody is fired up, especially when we're down," said Freeman.
"Jay Richardson is doing a great job as is Brandon Mitchell. Those seniors are out there making sure everybody is in the right position, and when we need somebody to step up and say something to a younger guy that's not doing their job, they're stepping up and doing it."
​
 
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CPD

OHIO STATE FOOTBALL
Priming a one-two punch


Monday, August 21, 2006Doug Lesmerises
Plain Dealer Reporter
Columbus -- It was near midnight early in Ohio State's preseason camp when Chris Wells was awakened by his roommate.
Given that Wells was the top running back recruit in the country and his camp roommate is junior starting tailback Antonio Pittman, perhaps you'd imagine sabotage at this hour, the old guy seeking to shake up the competition.
Not so. This was professor waking the student.



"He'll quiz me," Wells said. "He'll wake me up for no reason and be like, What do you do on this play?' "
In what had been imagined as a potential veteran-rookie showdown for the status as the Buckeyes' primary rushing threat, Pittman has consistently offered aid, mindless of the consequences.
"That's who he is," Wells said. "There'd be times this summer when I'd go over to Pitt's house and he'd throw me the playbook and make me study, and that's what I did. When we were back home on a week's break, he'd make me get up and go run. He'd make me go lift.
"People assume it's a competition thing, but they really don't know how it is off the field. Antonio Pittman, that's my brother. He wants me on the field as much as I want to be on that field. That's what people don't realize."
It helps the vet's cause that OSU coaches have been shouting since the spring that there is no competition for this backfield spot between the two Akron natives, that to imply that Pittman is anything but the rock solid starter is an insult. He gained 1,331 yards last season, averaged 5.5 yards per carry and scored all of his seven touchdowns in the final five games.
But Wells is huge news and, at 6-1 and 225 pounds, huge. Even if the players aren't truly fighting for a job in the eyes of the coaches, a fight could have started in their heads.
"If Pitt was a selfish guy, which I knew he's not, it really could be [a problem]," linebacker Marcus Freeman said. "He could get mad, 'Why is he getting reps when I should be?' but Pitt is so unselfish, when Chris Wells gets his reps, Pitt is always back there coaching him up."

There won't be an honest answer on how carries will be distributed between Pittman, Wells and sophomore Maurice Wells, who is No. 2 on the depth chart, until the games start. But Pittman has a clear understanding of how Chris Wells and Maurice Wells could make him better.
In Ohio State's four biggest games last season - Texas, Penn State, Michigan and the Fiesta Bowl against Notre Dame - Pittman carried 76 times for 354 yards. Other Ohio State running backs had a total of five carries in those games. Quarterback Troy Smith was the team's second-leading rusher on the season with 611 yards.
"He can come in and spell me at times and I think that's going to help me a lot," Pittman said. "We'll have a nice one-two punch. We don't have to rely on Troy's feet as much."

You can see the possibilities there. In Friday's scrimmage, Pittman rushed for 33 yards on nine carries while Chris Wells got more work, rushing 20 times for 98 yards. The starter remains so secure in himself, though, he's set a goal of 1,700 rushing yards for this season.
"I feel as if I'm coming in here as a freshman. I'm hungry for the spot, too," Pittman said. "But if there's anything I can help [Chris] with, I help him if I can. We're around each other a lot, so I've got to look out for him."
Maybe Pittman can handle it because he's been preparing for it. Wells first remembers hearing about an 8-year-old Pittman ripping up Pop Warner football. As they grew close, Pittman playing at Buchtel High and Wells at Garfield, the possibility of playing as teammates one day emerged.
"When Pitt committed to Ohio State, I was like, 'Pitt, I'm coming with you,' " Wells said.
What does Wells remember as Pittman's response?
"He was like, 'Come on.' "
Practice tonight:
Ohio State's only public practice of the season is tonight at Ohio Stadium. Gates open at 6 p.m. Players will sign autographs from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Practice is from 8 p.m. to 9:45 p.m. Admission is free.
To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:
 
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I got chills reading that. These guys can really be the wheels we lacked until Pitt stepped up last year. Something very unique seems to be about to happen to Buckeye football and I can't wait to see it.
 
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Thanks

bkochmc said:
FYI, the Dispatch's articles are free... I believe they keep the past 7 days or so free before they archive them. I could be wrong with that time period thoguh.
Click to expand...
I read some on bucknuts and buckeye sports. and now i discovered their story website . Thats what i wanted, to be able to read all their stories. I have a lot of other ones from around Ohio too.
Here is the dispatch link if anyone would like it.
http://www.dispatch.com/football/football.php


:oh: :io:
 
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