Game Thread Game Eight: #1 Ohio State 44, Indiana 3 (10/21/06)

[sandgk]

Last time I was up there for a game was the Bowling Green non-conference tilt. Drove in via 315 and man was everything screwed up. Can I look forward to any improvements in the traffic around campus coming in for the game tomorrow?

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

DDN

Ohio State vs. Indiana: Position-by-position analysis, prediction


By Doug Harris
Staff Writer

Saturday, October 21, 2006


Former Ohio State coach Woody Hayes was famous for devoting one day of practice each week to prepare for Michigan. But while current coach Jim Tressel scoffed at that idea earlier this season, saying the Big Ten has become way too balanced, the temptation has to be lurking somewhere given what's awaiting the Buckeyes the next four weeks.
Indiana (4-3) has lost to Southern Illinois, Northwestern (2-5) to New Hampshire and Illinois (2-5) to Ohio U. ? all at home. And while Minnesota (2-5) hasn't suffered any shocking defeats, it probably shouldn't get too comfortable against North Dakota State today.
Tressel, of course, is probably right. Scheming for Michigan in October would set a dangerous precedent. But right tackle Kirk Barton admitted this week that the players are keeping track of what's going on in Ann Arbor, saying, "If Michigan beats someone by 40, we want to beat them by 50."
The Buckeyes may not be doing much physically to get ready for that Nov. 18 showdown, but the mental preparations already have begun.

A position-by-position analysis:
Quarterback

IU redshirt freshman Kellen Lewis has been likened to Troy Smith, although without the polish. Lewis will probably have less of a sheen when OSU's defense is finished with him.
EDGE: OSU
Running back
Ohio State is only ninth in the Big Ten in rushing offense,
but the Hoosiers are a dismal 11th.
EDGE: OSU
Receivers
James Hardy, a 6-foot-7 sophomore, clearly is the Hoosier's top target. The Buckeyes can't say for sure whether Ted Ginn Jr. or Anthony Gonzalez is their go-to receiver.
EDGE: OSU
Offensive line
OSU's line has done relatively well at keeping Smith upright, although it helps when your QB can make pinpoint passes with bodies hanging from him like a jungle gym.
EDGE: OSU

Defensive line
Quinn Pitcock has become known as the team comic. But he's projected as a late first-round pick on Mel Kiper's board, and foes have found playing against him is no laughing matter.
EDGE: OSU

Linebackers
Nobody believed the Buckeyes would come up with a unit that could compare with last year's trio, but James Laurinaitis and his mates are gaining converts every week.
EDGE: OSU

Defensive backs
IU's Tracy Porter is one of the Big Ten's best, and safety Will Meyers is the team's top tackler. Only OSU can replace an injured Anderson Russell and make it seem like an upgrade.
EDGE: OSU

Special teams
Ginn had his first punt-return touchdown of the season last week, and
his breakaway runs have always seemed to come in bunches.
EDGE: OSU

Prediction
Ohio State 35, Indiana 3

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

ABJ

No complacency at home for OSU

Tressel wants players to harness on-road energy

By Marla Ridenour

Beacon Journal sportswriter

COLUMBUS - Ohio State coach Jim Tressel deferred to Anthony Gonzalez on a play call that resulted in a touchdown last weekend at Michigan State. So it's possible that something the junior receiver mentioned afterward raised Tressel's antenna.
``I don't know what it is about road games, but I love playing on the road,'' Gonzalez said. ``A hostile environment maybe heightens the awareness.''
As he tries to find motivation for his top-ranked Buckeyes during a six-game stretch against struggling teams, Tressel latched onto their less-than-dominant performances in the Horseshoe this year.
That in itself sounds laughable. Going into today's noon game at home against Indiana (4-3, 2-1), Ohio State (7-0, 3-0) has beaten four foes in the 'Shoe by an average of 25.8 points. Its average winning margin on the road is 22 points.
But except for Penn State, OSU opponents outside Ohio have been more formidable. And that's where the Buckeyes have been at their best -- bashing then-No. 2 Texas 24-7, thumping then-No. 13 Iowa 38-17 and rolling over Michigan State 38-7.
``We've been dominating so well away from home,'' redshirt freshman receiver Brian Hartline said. ``We need to start bringing that dominance back to Ohio Stadium.
``I even feel it when we go away, that mystique or presence that everything's going completely right. I haven't felt that at Ohio Stadium this year. In order to be champions, we need to start doing that this week.''
Hartline admitted he has caught himself talking like Tressel, so he could have been mimicking the coach's words. But Tressel can go game by game and find a few points to pound home about playing better.
For example:
? Heisman Trophy candidate Garrett Wolfe's 285 combined yards rushing and receiving for Northern Illinois.
? A 7-3 deficit after the first quarter against Cincinnati.
? A 14-6 lead with 3:02 remaining against Penn State before defensive backs Malcolm Jenkins and Antonio Smith returned interceptions for touchdowns.
? A total of 339 yards allowed vs. Bowling Green.
``As a defense, we talk about playing a dominant game at home,'' senior strong safety Brandon Mitchell said. ``I don't think we've really given the fans the type of effort we can give. Execution is what's missing.''
As junior linebacker Curtis Terry said, ``Coach Tressel has talked to us about for some reason a light comes on on the road. We need to put it all together at home.''
The Buckeyes, boasting the nation's longest winning streak at 14 games, aim to capture the BCS national title Jan. 8. Their star-studded offense, led by Heisman Trophy front-runner Troy Smith (17 touchdowns vs. two interceptions) is rolling. Their defense ranks third in the nation in scoring (9.0) and has thrived off 15 take-aways (13 by interception).
But when Tressel was asked what areas the Buckeyes need to improve, he found plenty to nitpick about.
``Until we get down to zero missed tackles, we're not going to be happy,'' he said. ``If you took each and every special team and divided it by 11, whether it be your punt return team, we need to do a better job holding up, or your snapper, the ball needs to be a little bit tighter in the window. Rather than six inches off, it needs to be zero to three.
``Offensively, name the position. And the consistency, the level at which we would like to be leaves room for improvement. I can't say there's anything that we can say, `Gosh, I hope we stay the same.' ''
Terry also found plenty of flaws.
``Tackling, breaks on the ball, being more emotional, doing your assignments, there's always little things you can tinker with regardless if you're the No. 1 defense in the country or the last one,'' Terry said.
GlenOak's Hartline sounded almost distressed over the alleged home-game malaise.
``Indiana is a dangerous team, an up-and-coming team, but so are we,'' Hartline said. ``I'm concerned we're not where we need to be. We're still rising, too. Hopefully, we stay at the top of our game and (show) that more to the nation this week.''
Judging from the players' comments, it sounded like Tressel or the captains also challenged OSU to live up to its ranking.
``A couple games I don't think we've started out or played as well as the No. 1 team in the nation should play,'' Mitchell said. ``We talked about going out and being that No. 1 team and embracing the fact we are the No. 1 team.''

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

ABJ

SCOUTING REPORT

Indiana at No. 1 Ohio State
Kickoff: Noon today.
Records: Ohio State is 7-0 overall, 3-0 in the Big Ten Conference; Indiana is 4-3, 2-1.
Coaches: Jim Tressel (57-13) is in his sixth season at Ohio State; Terry Hoeppner (8-10) is in his second year at Indiana.
Broadcast: ESPNU, WAKR (1590-AM); WHBC (1480-AM), WKNR (850-AM), WQKT (104.5-FM); replays at 11 p.m. Saturday and 8 p.m. Sunday on ONN.
Notebook: Indiana has won two straight, including a 31-28 upset of then-No. 15 Iowa last week. Redshirt freshman QB Kellen Lewis was the Big Ten's offensive player of the week, throwing for 255 yards and a career-high three TDs and running for another score. Lewis has led the Hoosiers back from 14 or more points down three times: against Iowa (trailing 21-7 in the second quarter), Illinois (25-7, second quarter) and Ball State (23-7 at halftime). Against Iowa, his favorite target was sophomore WR James Hardy (eight catches, 108 yards), whose three TDs were the most by a Hoosier since Oct. 8, 1983. The Hoosiers' biggest threat is sophomore TB/KR Marcus Thigpen, whose 129.6 all-purpose yards per game rank 21st in the nation. A converted receiver who has been clocked at 4.29 in the 40, Thigpen has scored six touchdowns, including three on kickoff returns (leading the nation) on runs of 87, 98 and 100 yards. IU has six returns for TDs, including a punt by junior CB Tracy Porter, an interception by sophomore CB Chris Phillips and a fumble by senior DB Troy Grosfield. Leading the team in tackles is senior FS Will Meyers with 46, 33 in the last four games. The Hoosiers have started 11 true or redshirt freshmen this season. In his eight seasons as a head coach at Miami University and IU, Hoeppner has never been shut out. Indiana is 0-13 against top-ranked teams, including 0-4 vs. Ohio State.
The pick: Ohio State, 45-17.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Cincy

Role he was born to play
Popular Hoeppner pushes IU football forward
BY JOHN ERARDI | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - As miracles go, seeing the red-clad tailgaters leave their beer and brats in the parking lot in the third quarter last Saturday to rush into Memorial Stadium to watch the Hoosiers upset Iowa surely qualifies.
Usually, Indiana fans are on the way out by the third quarter.
None of this was lost on IU football coach Terry Hoeppner, the former Miami University coach who is a Hoosier by birth and a Hoosier diehard by upbringing.
Even fully immersed in the game on the field, while talking through the headset to the coordinators in the booth, Hoeppner noticed.
"When the crowd grows as the game goes on, that's a good sign," he said. "Listen, you can't get another person into the basketball games here. But we have room for more in the football stadium."
INSPIRES SUPPORT
OK, so who's going to play you in the movie, Terry?
The one about the coach who turns around football at the basketball school. Who's going to play you, Terry, now that Hackman's too old, Pacino's too wiry and Dennehy's already played the gray-haired hoops coach with the paunch in the red sweater now coaching down in Texas?
De Niro.
De Niro could do it. If he could transform himself into Jake LaMotta in "Raging Bull," he could transform himself into Hoeppner as the Hurryin' Hoosier. Because Hep's nothing if not in a hurry. He didn't come to Bloomington with a five-year plan.
If the fans didn't believe it before, they believe it now. Four weeks ago, Hoeppner stood before the Indiana University board of trustees - only seven days after surgery to remove scar tissue buildup where he'd had a tumor removed above his right temple - and implored the board to expand the 52,180-seat stadium.
Unanimously, the board agreed. The north end zone will be enclosed, turning the stadium into a horseshoe. Unanimously, the student government agreed. Unanimously, the faculty-athletic committee, those crotchety paragons of academe, agreed.
Hep's taking IU football big-time.
Who's going to play the part?
A FAVORITE SON
He wasn't even looking for the job.
Three years ago, people who don't know Hoeppner figured he was just going to ride Ben Roethlisberger's coattails right on out of Oxford.
Oh, Hoeppner had offers, all right, but nothing looked better than Miami, where he'd coached for 13 years as an assistant. He'd gotten the top job at Miami when his buddy, the late Randy Walker, left for Northwestern. Hoeppner was the guy who closed the Miami deal for Roethlisberger - Big Ben had thrown six touchdown passes his first game as Findlay High quarterback, as a senior - before the Ohio State Buckeyes knew what hit them.
And then, two years ago - a year after Roethlisberger left Miami after his junior year for the NFL draft - IU came calling.
After three years of the spit-and-polish of Gerry DiNardo, the Hoosiers needed some fresh air. Somebody to say something, to do something, to get the IU faithful believing again, the way they believed back in 1987 when the last Miami guy here, Bill Mallory, knocked off Ohio State in Columbus in a wild upset Earle Bruce called "the darkest day" in the history of OSU football."
(The locals here still loathe Bruce for that line, not that they need a reason to loathe the got-it-all Buckeyes.)
Then Mallory turned around the next year and did it again, this time at Memorial Stadium.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Indiana-Ohio State scouting report
Quarterbacks



Indiana?s Kellen Lewis established career-bests with 255 passing yards and three touchdowns in the Hoosiers? 31-28 upset of Iowa last week. He completed 19-of-25 passes, and also ran for a touchdown. Lewis is the focal point of Indiana?s attack.

Ohio State?s Troy Smith is methodically moving toward winning the Heisman Trophy. Smith (116-of-170, 1,495 yards) has passed for 17 touchdowns, with just two interceptions.

Advantage: Ohio State



Running backs



The Hoosiers have two very different types of players at running back. Starter Marcus Thigpen is a 5-foot-9, 182-pound Eric Metcalf-type of player. Backup Josiah Sears is a bruising 6-0 and 238 pounds. Sears actually leads Indiana with 225 yards on just 36 carries, a 6.2-yard average, and four touchdowns. Thigpen has 202 yards on 58 carries.

Antonio Pittman had just 48 yards on 18 carries for the Buckeyes against Michigan State, but is still fourth in the Big Ten with 673 yards and eight touchdowns. Burly freshman Chris Wells is becoming more of a factor in the OSU running game, despite an early fumble last week.

Advantage: Ohio State



Receivers



James Hardy, a 6-7, 216-pounder, gives Lewis an easy-to-find target. Hardy has 21 catches for 291 yards and a team-leading four touchdowns. Look for the Hoosiers to try to find Hardy on fade patterns if they can get into the red zone against the Buckeyes.

Ohio State?s Ted Ginn Jr. and Anthony Gonzalez might be the nation?s best receiving duo. They?ve combined for 70 catches, 1,039 yards and 11 touchdowns in seven games. Ginn?s speed is so scary, he often only has to sprint deep and the rest of the field just seems to open wide for Gonzalez and the rest of the Buckeyes? receivers.

Advantage: Ohio State



Offensive line



Ohio State quarterbacks have been sacked just eight times in seven games. It helps that the Buckeyes? linemen, including center Doug Datish, are protecting a quarterback who is so adept at avoiding or escaping pressure when a defender does get through. But watch the protection on Smith?s straight drop-backs. More often than not, nobody gets close to him.

Indiana?s running game has produced just 3.4 yards per rush, and the Hoosiers? line has allowed 14 sacks.

Advantage: Ohio State



Defensive line



The Buckeyes? David Patterson had arthroscopic knee surgery on Oct. 10, but Ohio State didn?t reveal the procedure until two days later. Patterson won?t play against the Hoosiers, but that shouldn?t matter. Quinn Pitcock, Vernon Gholston, Jay Richardson and Joel Penton (Patterson?s replacement) are still a very formidable front four.

Kenny Kendal has 2.5 of the Hoosiers? 10 sacks.

Advantage: Ohio State



Linebackers



Sophomore Marcus Freeman was overshadowed somewhat by the production and development of James Laurinaitis early in the season, but is making a name for himself now. Freeman made his first career interception against Iowa, and had another last week against Michigan State. He also knocked Spartans quarterback Drew Stanton out of the game with a vicious, but clean, hit in the third quarter. Laurinaitis continues to lead Ohio State with 59 tackles and four interceptions.

Indiana redshirt freshman Josh Bailey has a team-high 7.5 tackles for loss.

Advantage: Ohio State



Defensive backs



Indiana?s top two tacklers are in its secondary. That?s never a good sign. Free safety Will Meyers (46 stops) and strong safety Austin Thomas (42 tackles) have been busy. Meyers also has two interceptions.

Ohio State still hasn?t missed free safety Anderson Russell, who is out for the season. Sophomore Jamario O?Neal has been solid as his replacement.

Advantage: Ohio State



Special teams



Thigpen is dangerous. He has returned three kickoffs for touchdowns, so Ohio State can?t afford to lose track of him. Kicker Austin Starr is 7-of-9 on field goals. Punter Tyson Beattie averages 39.9 yards.

Ohio State counters with Ginn, kicker Aaron Pettrey and punter A.J. Trapasso. Thigpen is scary, but the Buckeyes own the kicking game.

Advantage: Ohio State

? ED PUSKAS

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Indiana at No. 1 Ohio State

By Steve Warden

The Journal Gazette

When: Noon today
Where: Ohio Stadium (102,239/grass), Columbus, Ohio
TV/radio: ESPNU/93.3 FM
Line: Ohio State by 30 1/2
Records: Indiana 4-3, 2-1 Big Ten; Ohio State 7-0, 3-0
Series: Ohio State leads 64-12-5
NCAA rank, offense: IU ? 72nd, 326.29 ypg; OSU ? 29th, 391.57 ypg
NCAA rank, defense: IU ? 97th, 388.71 ypg; OSU ? 26th, 286.0 ypg
Key matchup
James Hardy vs. Ohio State cornerbacks
Indiana?s 6-foot-7 receiver James Hardy had his best game of the season against Iowa last week with 104 yards and three touchdowns. The Hoosiers will try to exploit Hardy?s size against the smaller OSU cornerbacks. Senior Antonio Smith is 5-9 and Malcolm Jenkins is 6-1. The Buckeyes will bring double-teams from safeties Jamario Neal, 6-1, and Brandon Mitchell, 6-3.
Injury alert
IU ? Receiver Ray Fisher (sore wrist) out; running back Marcus Thigpen (leg injury against Iowa), expected to return; Ohio State ? No injuries reported.
Keep an eye on ?
Many happy returns
If healthy, Thigpen will be the return man for IU. Named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week after his 98-yard return for a touchdown against Illinois, Thigpen has returned three kickoffs for touchdowns. Ohio State can more than counter with Ted Ginn Jr., who returned a punt against Michigan State 60 yards for a touchdown. It was Ginn?s sixth career punt return for a touchdown.
Indiana wins if ?
There is a mass ineligibility
Face it. After 14 consecutive wins dating back to last season, after 55 IU-Ohio State games being played in Columbus and Ohio State winning 41 of them, after 13 straight OSU wins over the Hoosiers, the chances are quite slim for an IU win. But then, Buster Douglas wasn?t supposed to beat Mike Tyson in Japan, either.
Things you should know
Nice schedule for Buckeyes
Congratulate the schedule-makers. Ohio State couldn?t have asked for a better one. After beating Iowa three weeks ago, Ohio State?s conference schedule has had ? in order ? Michigan State, Indiana, Minnesota, Illinois and Northwestern before the Buckeyes? annual showdown with Michigan. Of those five teams between Iowa and Michigan, IU, tied for fourth, is the only one in the Big Ten?s top half. Illinois comes into today in eighth place, Michigan State and Northwestern are tied for ninth, and Minnesota is last.
Two-year respite
Take heart, Hoosier fans, relief is on the way. Indiana?s trip into Columbus today will be its last until 2010. IU won?t play either Ohio State or Michigan for the next two seasons, and when the IU-Ohio State series resumes in 2009, the game will be played at Bloomington.
If IU sweeps from here on ?
OK, so Indiana and Ohio State won?t play for two years. That much is assured. No one knows about the other years. Who knows, maybe the series will be played every year after that. At the earliest, then, if Indiana were to sweep Ohio State in every game, it wouldn?t be until the year 2060 when IU would tie the series.

? By Steve Warden of The Journal Gazette​

​

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

History is not on IU?s side

14 losses in a row to top-ranked teams

By Steve Warden

The Journal Gazette

Courtesy photo
Indiana safety Will Meyers says he and his teammates are excited about the chance to the play top-ranked Ohio State.

Since 1948, when Notre Dame walloped Indiana 42-6, and then a week later the Hoosiers played Michigan when it was No. 1 and they lost 54-0, IU hasn?t had much luck with top-ranked football teams.
Chances are the trend won?t change when IU (4-3, 2-1 in the Big Ten) plays at top-ranked Ohio State (7-0, 3-0) today at Ohio Stadium.
In all, Indiana has lost 14 straight games to No. 1 teams. The best guess is that consecutive loss No. 15 is coming.
?There aren?t many times in your athletic career where you get to play the No. 1 team, and we get that opportunity this week,? Indiana coach Terry Hoeppner said this week. ?The atmosphere will be special, playing in the Horseshoe. It?s one of the top stadiums in the country to play in. The Buckeye fans are enthusiastic. It?s a hard ticket to come by, and they will be there supporting their team.?
With this being the 15th time against a No. 1 team, Ohio State has been the opposition a third of them. Four times IU has played Ohio State when the Buckeyes have been ranked first, and four times the Hoosiers have come away empty, with the last time coming Oct. 31, 1998, when Ohio State won by a respectable (for IU) 38-7 score.
The other losses to the Buckeyes came in succession ? ?73, ?74 and ?75, when the colorful Woody Hayes was on the Ohio State sideline and the even more colorful Lee Corso ? now of ?ESPN GameDay? fame ? was on IU?s sideline.
Corso would go on to play, and lose to, Michigan in 1976. A week later, Ohio State came into Bloomington, prompting one of the great Corso stories of all time when the Hoosiers broke on top 7-0 early in the first quarter.
Thrilled that his team was leading Ohio State and its legendary coach, Corso called a timeout, arranged for his team to gather in front of the scoreboard that showed IU 7, Ohio State 0, and had the team photo taken.
Ohio State, ranked No. 8 at the time, won 47-7. Corso would go on to lose six straight times to the Buckeyes, and the 35-0 loss to Michigan in 1976 would be the last time any IU team would face No. 1 until the loss to Ohio State in ?98.
?We?re excited. We?re glad they?re ranked No. 1,? IU senior safety Will Meyers said earlier in the week. ?We know all eyes are going to be on us to see how we respond.
?I think everyone?s looking at it as a challenge, so we?re just going to get a good practice week in and see what happens on Saturday.?
Indiana is coming off one of its more memorable victories in years, having beaten then-15th-ranked Iowa 31-28 last week.
?They already had our attention before they beat Iowa,? Ohio State senior defensive end Jay Richardson said in a university statement. ?They are a solid team with a good freshman quarterback (Kellen Lewis). Beating Iowa just shows how good they are. With the kind of year we are having, it is easy to get pumped for every game. We know what?s at stake if we lose.?
Added OSU freshman receiver Brian Hartline: ?Indiana is a dangerous, upcoming team. With teams like this, you never know what team you are going to get. Those are the dangerous teams, and we always think of the threat they may bring.?
Perhaps Indiana?s most memorable game against a top-ranked team was in the 1968 Rose Bowl, where the Hoosiers lost to O.J. Simpson?s Southern California team 14-3.
Simpson ran 25 times for 128 yards and two touchdowns.
The 14 points remain the fewest scored by a No. 1 team against IU.
[email protected]
IU vs. No. 1
1998 ? Ohio State, 38-7
1976 ? Michigan, 35-0
1975 ? Ohio State, 24-14
1974 ? Ohio State, 49-9
1973 ? Ohio State, 37-7
1967 ? Southern Cal, 14-3
1965 ? Texas, 27-12
1965 ? Michigan State, 27-13
1962 ? Northwestern, 26-21
1961 ? Michigan State, 35-0
1952 ? Michigan State, 41-14
1951 ? Michigan State, 30-26
1948 ? Michigan, 54-0
1948 ? Notre Dame, 42-6

Indiana at No. 1 Ohio State
When: Noon today
TV: ESPNU
Radio: 93.3 FM
Web: Steve Warden?s podcast on his blog, Eyeing IU, at
www.journalgazette.net

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

IU faces steep road to bowl
Schedule will ease in coming years

By Terry Hutchens
The Indianapolis Star



With five games to go in the regular season, Indiana University's magic number is two to have a shot at its first bowl appearance since 1993.
Making that task more difficult is the fact that two of those games are against Ohio State and Michigan, including a noon matchup today against the No. 1 Buckeyes in Columbus.
If the Hoosiers were sitting in this position in 2007 or 2008, however, the postseason odds would be significantly improved.
The next two seasons, IU doesn't play Michigan or Ohio State. Instead, because of a rotating Big Ten schedule, IU picks up Northwestern and Penn State in their places.
"We can't worry about any of that," said IU senior safety Will Meyers. "All we can worry about is playing the schedule that we have one game at a time. All of the other things don't matter. Our focus is on the team we play this week."
Perhaps, but if Indiana takes care of business with its non-conference schedule, a Big Ten road devoid of the Buckeyes and Wolverines would certainly be more appealing for a program yearning for a taste of postseason play once again. IU's last bowl appearance came after the 1993 season.
"The conference schedule is something we don't have any control over, but the next two seasons should provide an opportunity for us to continue to build toward our goals of playing one more game that we have scheduled," said IU athletic director Rick Greenspan. "It's all part of the process of getting our football program back to where we want it to be."
If IU would have defeated Division I-AA Southern Illinois, the Hoosiers would be 5-2 overall this week, needing just one victory in the their last five games to become bowl eligible. Instead, with a 35-28 loss to the Salukis, IU is 4-3 and 2-1 in Big Ten play following last week's stunning 31-28 upset of No. 15 Iowa.
Next season IU could play two current Division I-AA opponents. The Hoosiers are scheduled to open the season against Indiana State and Western Kentucky.
Western Kentucky's Board of Regents is scheduled to vote Nov. 2 on a proposal to move the Hilltoppers to Division I-A.
Greenspan has secured a contract with Western Kentucky for the 2007 and 2008 seasons based on the premise that the board accepts the proposal. If the vote doesn't pass, IU is free to find another opponent. If the vote passes, Western Kentucky would be considered a probationary Division I-A team in 2007.
That would mean IU would face Indiana State, Western Kentucky, Akron and Central Michigan in non-conference play in '07.
This season, however, Indiana's better chances for becoming bowl eligible would appear to begin next week when the Hoosiers host Michigan State for homecoming and the following week when IU travels to Minnesota. The Hoosiers are a 31-point underdog to Ohio State today.

 

[Best Buckeye]

Last time I was up there for a game was the Bowling Green non-conference tilt. Drove in via 315 and man was everything screwed up. Can I look forward to any improvements in the traffic around campus coming in for the game tomorrow?

315 is eternally doomed, get there early, Take in the skull session or party.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

LINK

Buckeyes vow not to tune out Hoosiers
By JON SPENCER
For The Advocate

COLUMBUS -- You can't spell ESPNU without PU. Ohio State football fans think it stinks that the live broadcast of today's home game with Indiana is only available on a channel most cable systems don't provide. They have Kirk Barton's sympathy, but can't have his tickets.
I gave them away for Christmas," the Buckeyes' offensive tackle said. "I'm cheap. I can't afford to buy gifts." Whether ESPN is using top-ranked Ohio State (7-0) to gain new subscribers or thought this mismatch wasn't worthy of more mainstream exposure is open to debate. So is the quality of OSU's 4-3 opponent.

But that doesn't make today's game against a 31-point underdog any less attractive to Buckeye loyalists. Disgruntled TV viewers, resigned to finding a sports bar with the right connections, will tell you a cloudy picture is better than no picture at all.
"It's hard to classify them because you don't know what to expect," defensive end Jay Richardson said of the Hoosiers. "We just have to go in with the mindset that we're going to play our style of football as hard as we can no matter who's out there."
Which IU team will show up? Will it be the one that blew a double-digit lead to 1-AA Southern Illinois, rushed for zero yards in a loss to lowly UConn and got annihilated 52-17 by Wisconsin -- all at home? Or will it be the one that has rallied from double-digit deficits to beat Western Michigan, Illinois and No. 15 Iowa and rides a two-game winning streak into Ohio Stadium?
Like Richardson, Barton doesn't think it matters.
"This is for the rest of our lives," Barton said. "You drop one (game), you remember it forever. Just like the '98 team. They dropped that one to (28-point underdog) Michigan State -- that's what they're known for. No one ever remembers they beat Michigan and Texas A&M in the Sugar Bowl. If we drop one, that's what the season is going to be defined as."
Indiana has won consecutive Big Ten games for the first time in five years and is coming off its first win over a Top 15 team since beating No. 9 OSU in 1987.
Now the Hoosiers can look down the road -- something Ohio State can't afford to do -- and know that whatever atrocity befalls them today, they still have a realistic shot at earning their first bowl invitation since 1993.
"It's significant to beat a quality team like Iowa because at some point you need confirmation that what you're doing is working," Indiana coach Terry Hoeppner said. "We're still a young team that hopefully is maturing quickly."
The uproar over this week's broadcast "blackout" also has made Tressel acutely aware of the passion surrounding his team. Actually, he's reminded every day. All the more reason not to take IU lightly. "With so much on the line, it's easy to get up for any team," Richardson said, "because with one loss we know it can all be over."

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

OHIO STATE FOOTBALL
Buckeyes laud going beyond the call
Receivers who block, corners who tackle are nice commodities

Saturday, October 21, 2006

Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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It?s a scene that will linger in Ohio State lore: Brian Hartline, a 180-pound receiver, slamming into 264-pound Iowa lineman Mitch King, who tumbled into 272-pound teammate Bryan Mattison.
The domino block was the final highlight of Anthony Gonzalez? scrambling, fieldreversing touchdown catch Sept. 30 in Iowa City.
"That?s just a guy being a football player and being a team player," Gonzalez said of Hartline. "That?s just a testament to the type of person that he is, as well as it?s almost kind of a microcosm of the personality of this team. Everybody is that way."
And that?s the point: On this Buckeyes team, everybody is that way. Receivers relish blocking. Cornerbacks like tackling.
Players on the periphery of the action, the smaller guys, are getting physical. Little things like this make the difference between a good team and a great team, which No. 1-ranked OSU (7-0, 3-0) hopes it is becoming.
"They?ve been phenomenal," receivers coach Darrell Hazell said of his group?s blocking. "They really get after it. They?ve done a good job of attacking people. They?re trying to be more aggressive in terms of cutting people and things like that."
Besides Hartline?s hit, the other notable example this season came Sept. 16 against Cincinnati, when receiver Ted Ginn Jr. leveled cornerback Mike Mickens on Antonio Pittman?s 48-yard touchdown run.
But there have been countless less-spectacular instances of receivers blocking effectively.
Last week at Michigan State, the Buckeyes were driving at the Spartans 12-yard line in a scoreless game. Pittman bounced a play outside left.
Ahead of him, Gonzalez was driving SirDarean Adams five yards downfield and Ginn was locked up with Greg Cooper. Pittman gained eight yards, and Ohio State scored two plays later.
"Coaches always say to make sure they feel us in the run game and not just catching balls and running with the ball," Hartline said. "Make sure we get the running backs out of the backfield."
Center Doug Datish said the receivers have been "unbelievable. When they?re not cut-blocking (defenders), they?re outright physically beating them. A lot of our outside runs are due to what they?ve done."
On the other side of the ball, the Buckeyes boast aggressive, physical cornerbacks who have been good at coming up in run support and making open-field tackles.
Ashton Youboty excelled at that last year, and Malcolm Jenkins and Antonio Smith have picked up the baton this season.
They aren?t like Deion Sanders, one of the best cover corners in NFL history but someone who more often than not avoided big hits.
"I think Malcolm is probably one of the better tacklers in the league from the corner spot and so is Antonio," defensive end Jay Richardson said. "We don?t have many finesse corners, we like our guys to be physical."
Two examples from last :
Jenkins came up and submarined 260-pound Michigan State running back Jehuu Caulcrick in the flat for a 1-yard gain when Caulcrick looked to have plenty of room to rumble.
And on second-and-10 with the Buckeyes leading 7-0, Spartans receiver Kerry Reed took an end-around to the left. The play appeared to be wellblocked, but Smith ? all of 5 feet 9, 195 pounds ? fought through 325pound guard Roland Martin to bring Reed down after an 8-yard gain.
The Buckeyes held firm on third and fourth downs, a key stand early in a 38-7 win.
"It?s one of those things that you?ve got to do and you?ve got to get good at it," Smith said of tackling. "Especially being a part of this defense."
Or being a part of this Ohio State team, for that matter ? a team that realizes that doing the little things may lead to big things.
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Dispatch

Saturday, October 21, 2006

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Dispatch

Indiana?s Lewis proves he can play quarterback
Redshirt freshman directs Hoosiers to two straight wins
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Bob Baptist
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

</IMG> Quarterback Kellen Lewis and his teammates celebrate after Indiana upset Iowa 31-28 last week.


When he was a high school junior completing passes to a couple of major-college-bound receivers, Kellen Lewis said schools from Virginia Tech to Florida to Louisiana State were writing him of their interest in him.
When, as a senior, those receivers were gone, a new coach changed the offense to an option set and Lewis suddenly was doing more "chucking and ducking," Indiana coach Terry Hoeppner said, it became more difficult to evaluate his talent as a quarterback. The letters in his mailbox began arriving with different postmarks.
"I started getting them from the Colgates and Furmans and Charleston Southerns and Rhode Islands," Lewis said. "I could just tell it might be a struggle to play quarterback."
Plenty of schools still wanted Lewis as an "athlete." He was adamant about playing quarterback, however, and was three weeks from enrolling at a Virginia prep school in July 2005 when Indiana offered him the chance. Two quarterbacks had left the program before Hoeppner had coached his first game there and the Hoosiers were left with only two. The coaches took a flier on the slight 6-footer and held their breath for a month before they could see what they had in preseason camp.
"We were out there watching Kellen throw the first day ? and we looked at each other and said, ?Yeah, we did good. Good for us,? " Hoeppner said.
They?re feeling even better about their gamble now.
Redshirted last season and third-string entering this one, Lewis got his shot the second week of the season after both quarterbacks ahead of him were injured. He has made the most of it, leading the Hoosiers to back-to-back Big Ten wins for the first time in five years. He will start his fourth straight game today against Ohio State.
Two weeks ago, Lewis drove Indiana 65 yards in the last 2 1 /2 minutes to set up a winning 33-yard field goal as time expired at Illinois.
Last week, he completed 19 of 25 passes for 255 yards and three touchdowns and was not intercepted in a 31-28 upset of Iowa, the Hoosiers? first win over a top-15 team in 19 years.
"He made some very nice throws," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said, "but I thought the most impressive part was he played with great poise. He?s a second-year player, hasn?t started that much, and he played with poise and led his team."
Lewis did not play sooner this season, Hoeppner said, because he was not making the plays in games that he made in practice. He also has reduced his mistakes. He has not thrown an interception in three Big Ten games and last week had, in Hoeppner?s opinion, only "two bad throws. That?s pretty efficient."
Lewis said the fact he was sitting behind a then-sophomore starter, Blake Powers, last season caused him to secondguess his decision to sign with Indiana. "That might have led to some of me not being as good as I can be," he said.
By last spring, however, coaches had redrawn more of the offense to suit his run-pass skills and "it gave me a little more confidence," he said. "I was able to compete more effectively."
Lewis averaged 233 yards total offense in his first three Big Ten games, ranking him fourth in the conference. Only Illinois freshman Juice Williams has rushed for more yards among the conference?s quarterbacks.
"I?m sure the best is yet to come, for him and for the team," Hoeppner said, "and as long as they stay together and keep being as coachable as they are, we?ll keep getting better."
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OHIO STATE NOTEBOOK
Buckeyes look for fast start vs. Hoosiers
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Tim May and Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH



Ohio State goes into a Big Ten game today against Indiana with the intent of breaking what has been a pattern of early at-homesickness.
The top-ranked Buckeyes went on the road to beat then-No. 2 Texas 24-7 only to return home and struggle for a half against heavy underdog Cincinnati. Then they won their first major road test in the Big Ten at Iowa 38-17 a couple of weeks later only to stumble early at home against Bowling Green the next week.
Now here they stand a week removed from their most dominant performance to date, a 38-7 win at Michigan State.
"I?m hoping that we just display that confidence more at home," receiver and specialteams player Brian Hartline said. "We?ve been dominating so well away from home where I think we need to start to bring that dominance back to Ohio Stadium. ? I know I feel that when we go away that other mystique or presence of how everything is going completely right. I really haven?t felt that this year in Ohio Stadium."
What might help is that Indiana, even though it?s a 30 1 /2-point underdog, showed its capability in a 31-28 upset win over Iowa last week.
"We just feel like we?ve got to get after Indiana, because Iowa ? I guess the alarm went off on them, and that opened our eyes to how good of a team Indiana is," right tackle Kirk Barton said. "We need to get after them."
A different look

Since the Hoosiers made the switch two games ago to quarterback Kellen Lewis, an athletic redshirt freshman, it?s obvious they are playing with more confidence on offense, Ohio State safety Brandon Mitchell said.
"He kind of reminds me of how Troy Smith was when he first got in there," Mitchell said. "He?s not really as polished as Troy is now. But when Troy first got in there a couple of years ago, he was just making things happen, whether it was with his feet or with his arm.
"Any time you have a quarterback who is coming in and making plays, and the team has rallied around him, that?s a dangerous team."
But today Lewis will go against a defense that is first in the Big Ten in sacks per game (3.43 average, tied with Michigan) and interceptions (13).
Washington state of mind

Defensive backs coach Tim Beckman said he can sense this is an important game for freshman defensive back Donald Washington, who is from just outside Indianapolis.
"Whenever you?re playing against that home state team, Indiana, Purdue or Notre Dame, it would be something big for Donald," Beckman said. "I know he is trying to get himself better, and that he?s real excited about this game."

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