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Game Thread Game Eleven: Ohio state 25, Michigan 21 (final)

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Cleveland PD

OHIO STATE INSIDER



OSU's wounds still fresh from '03 loss to Michigan



Tuesday, November 15, 2005 Doug Lesmerises

Plain Dealer Reporter
Columbus
-- The Jim Tressel era at Ohio State is rife with pleasant Michigan memories. With three wins in four tries, Tressel has more victories over the Wolverines than John Cooper managed in 13 years at Ohio State. But that one loss really stung.
Two years ago at Michigan, the No. 4 Buckeyes, who were second in the BCS ratings, lost to the No. 5 Wolverines, 35-21, losing the Big Ten title and a chance at repeating their national title. The loss was a popular topic Monday.
"To see their fans out there going crazy, and we were just feeling horrible, that wasn't a good feeling," senior safety Nate Salley said. "And then I was kind of banged up and then we had a five-hour trip home . . . that wasn't fun at all."
Linebacker A.J. Hawk hopes the Buckeyes defense has learned after allowing Michigan to go ahead, 21-0, in the second quarter in that game.
"We didn't come out ready to play that day and they jumped on us early," Hawk said, "and we were trying to play catch-up. Our offense gave us a chance to get back in that game, and then when they had to they drove the ball on us and scored."
The Buckeyes' only win at Ann Arbor in their past eight games was their 26-20 victory in 2001, Tressel's first season.
Security payback?
Last year, Michigan coach Lloyd Carr wasn't happy when the Wolverines had to wait in a long security line at Ohio Stadium while the team went through a check that included bomb-sniffing dogs. The Buckeyes denied the security measures were designed to throw the Wolverines off their game.
Tressel said he will be prepared if the same measures are in place in Ann Arbor on Saturday.
"I'm not sure that anyone thought that our players or our coaches had any gamesmanship going on," Tressel said. "In this world, when there's a hundred some thousand people at an event and maybe another 100,000 outside, there's going to be security. That's something that we have to be prepared for and understand. What's important to us, what we have to focus on, is when that kickoff goes off at 1:06 is that we take care of things at that point in time and not allow the things prior to that to infiltrate our thinking."
Notes:
Hawk on the Sunday night talk from former OSU coach Earle Bruce: "He tells a lot of good jokes in his speech that I can't remember because they're kind of long." . . . The Buckeyes will leave Columbus by bus at 1:15 p.m. Friday and hold a walkthrough practice at Michigan Stadium at 4:45 p.m. . . . Michigan leads the all-time series, 57-38-6.
To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:
[email protected], 216-999-4748
 
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DDN

Buckeyes keep mum on UM

By Doug Harris
Dayton Daily News
Columbus — When former Ohio State player Kenny Peterson was being interviewed before the Michigan game a few years ago, he navigated through a series of leading questions without saying anything remotely controversial.
<!--endtext-->
"Sorry, but I'm not going to be that guy," he said repeatedly, meaning the one supplying the headlines that would whip the Wolverines into a lather.
<!-- inset --> <!--begintext--> The current Buckeyes seem determined not to push any buttons, either.
Coach Jim Tressel let only a smattering of players meet with the media Monday — their only public appearances before the trip to Ann Arbor on Saturday — and those representing the team were careful not to pop off.
Senior safety and captain Nate Salley believes trading pre-game insults with the Wolverines would serve no purpose.
"It's a big enough game by itself," Salley said. "You don't need to be out here talking trash, trying to get them fired up. Both teams will be pumped up when it's time to play. That's all that matters."
Salley added: "You don't want to be the one doing it. But you don't mind hearing stuff from them."
The OSU coaches, like most staffs, are so fond of posting quotes from opposing teams that Salley questions at times whether the statements have been fabricated.
"Sometimes you do (wonder) if it's a little scheme by the coaches, trying to get you more pumped up," he said. "When you hear another guy talking trash and acting like he's better than you, you want to go out there and prove him wrong."
Tressel was wary enough of giving the Wolverines added incentive that he kept his more outspoken players off limits — most notably quarterback Troy Smith and linebacker Bobby Carpenter — though all of the players have been schooled on how to conduct themselves in interviews.
"We have media training, believe it or not, in preseason," Tressel said. "And we talk about what's appropriate when you have the job of visiting with the media and projecting on behalf of your team.
"You continue to talk about that all year long. And, of course, you remind them as you get ready for the last one, knowing that the media swells."
The ninth-ranked Buckeyes (8-2, 6-1) will take a five-game winning streak into their 102nd clash with the 17th-rated Wolverines (7-3, 5-2), who have won four straight times.
Although Michigan has an all-time record of 57-38-6 in the series, OSU has a 26-25-2 edge since 1952.
Former coach Earle Bruce addressed the Buckeyes on Sunday, delivering a version of his oft-quoted line about the big game: The winners can walk down main street, while the losers have to take the back alleys.
"Coach Bruce always reminds us (that) it's kind of a season unto itself and tremendous privilege to play in this ball game," Tressel said. "And I think both teams are playing the best they've been playing all season."
Hawk rumors false
Rumors were swirling Sunday that OSU star A.J. Hawk had been hurt in a car accident. News outlets picked up on it, and a reporter even called Hawk's parents in Centerville.
"I'd love to know who started that," Hawk said, laughing. "My mom didn't even believe me when I told her I didn't get in an accident."
Hawk suspected a Michigan fan with access to the Internet and too much time on his hands.
"It reminds me of playing in high school (against) your rival," Hawk said, "and both schools are pulling pranks on each other."
Hart to return
Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said running back Michael Hart, who has been hampered by an ankle injury, will play against the Buckeyes.
Hart has rushed for 573 yards in six games this season after gaining 1,455 yards and earning first-team All-Big Ten honors last year.
Contact Doug Harris at (937) 225-2125.
 
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Lloyd is still crying about last year.

Rivalry game crafts great memories

By Matt Venegoni, Daily Sports Editor

November 15, 2005

When it comes to what’s at stake this Saturday, Michigan coach Lloyd Carr put it best.

“I don’t think as a coach you ever get away from the immediate competition,” Carr said of the game consuming him. “The people that you are competing against, whether it be in recruiting, whether it be on the field, it’s a job that is consuming. If it isn’t consuming, then you shouldn’t be in it.”

It’s “The Game.”

Michigan and Ohio State is often cited as the best rivalry in college football, and Monday’s press conference revealed that, as much as players and coaches try not to worry about the game before the week of the contest, it happens.

But this year — just like many of the past matchups — the Big Ten title is potentially on the line. With a little help from a Michigan State victory over Penn State, either the Buckeyes and Wolverines can take the title with a win in the Big Ten’s preeminent rivalry.

That fact is not lost on veterans of this showdown.

“Well, if we don’t win the Big Ten title, it’s not the best of a season,” Barringer said.

Added senior Carl Tabb: “One game can make or break a season just like one play can make or break a game. I say that to say that every game is important.”

All the players know that the victory over the Nittany Lions helps turn their season around, but the game against Ohio State usually means even more. Senior left tackle Adam Stenavich admitted that for many seasons, the Ohio State game determines whether the year was a success or not.

Noted at the onset of yesterday’s conference was that every one of the players was an upperclassmen that had played — at least a little bit — against the hated-rival.

With the experience, players know what to expect.

“There’s something definitely to being a senior and there’s something definitely to being the role of being a leader on the team,” Tabb said. “And when you’ve been here three, four, five years you tend to learn the things that you can and can’t do, and you tend to not fall for some of the things that get thrown your way.”

It usually takes a little while for the importance of this game to set in — nothing can substitute for actually playing a role in the game.

“The moment for me when I began to understand the intensity of this rivalry firsthand, I’ll say was my sophomore year when I was first able to play, and Jason got hurt and I had to fill in,” Tabb said. “That was actually the first time in my life when I’ve ever had to step in and play, and I was completely nervous.”

Besides the seniors knowing the passion needed for the contest, they also know that anything can happen — even before the game starts, like last year.

While entering into the Horseshoe last year, the Michigan team was greeted by a dog checking bags. After the game, Carr expressed his displeasure about the incident, mentioning that it was “disrespectful.” Carr mentioned it Monday but did not comment much, just saying that there is a difference between gamesmanship and respect. But no matter what happens, Carr understands the importance of the next chapter in this rivalry.

“I think for the guys that are going into it for the last time or the first time they’re going to play in this game, there are a lot of things that they don’t know yet and they’re going to find out in a hurry,” Carr said. “I think, obviously, there is a sense of urgency about this week that’s very special, that perhaps is different.”
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Collegefootballnews has a bunch of good stuff on the game today......

[FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif]Ten Best Rivalries[/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=+1]
[/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif]The top ten rivalries, No. 1 - No. 3

[/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif] 1. Michigan vs. Ohio State[/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif] [/FONT] [FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=-2]
(Michigan leads all-time 57-38-6)
Alabama-Auburn is meaner and Florida State-Miami has meant more, but no rivalry has a better combination of history, animosity and championship implications than Michigan vs. Ohio State.

How dominant have these two teams been in Big Ten play? Since 1913, the two teams have combined for all or part of 71 Big Ten titles and the have finished 1-2 in the standings 16 times since 1968. Everyone else, including the University of Chicago, has combined for 81 Big Ten titles. In other words, the showdown between these two has meant everything to the Big Ten race for almost a century.

How important is beating the other team? John Cooper won 71% of his games as the OSU head coach with a string of four ten-win seasons in the late 1990s, but he went 2-10-1 against Michigan. Five of those losses cost Ohio State the Big Ten title and one cost a national championship. Cooper was gone in 2001.

As the legend/myth goes, Woody Hayes was on his way back to Columbus from a recruiting trip in Michigan when his car ran out of gas. He ignored a gas station and ended up pushing his car over the border rather than spend money in Michigan.

The Signature Game … Michigan 24 … Ohio State 12 November 22, 1969
Ohio State was the defending national champion and had its most dominant Buckeye team yet under Woody Hayes having outscored their opponents 371 to 69. The closest anyone had come to touching the No. 1 Buckeyes was Northwestern in a 35-6 loss. Michigan was on a roll of its own with a 7-2 record and a No. 12 ranking beating its last four opponents 178-22. Even after the Buckeyes got on the board early, it was Michigan's game as its defense showed early that it wouldn’t be intimidated and stopped the juggernaut costing Ohio State the national title. For Michigan, this was one of the great wins in school history paving the way to the Rose Bowl and a 10-3 loss to USC to finish 8-3 and ranked ninth. Ohio State didn’t go to a bowl and finished fourth.[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif]Tuesday Question[/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=+1]
The best rivalry, the most overrated rivalry, the most underrated rivalry, and your favorite rivalry ...

[/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif]Pete Fiutak

A: The best rivalry is ... Michigan vs. Ohio State
Auburn - Alabama is meaner, Oklahoma - Texas is very, very close, and more people seem to care about USC - Notre Dame, but Ohio State - Michigan has the best combination of all the rivalries, and it's the most important one going (although that could quickly be replaced by ND- USC, and I won't argue if you say OU - Texas). It has the history, the nastiness, and most importantly at the moment, the significance both on a national scale and in the Big Ten. A few years ago I would've said Florida State - Miami or Florida - Tennessee, and each could quickly find its way back in the top spot.


Richard Cirminiello

Your favorite rivalry is …Michigan-Ohio State has all the ingredients of a can’t-miss rivalry. There’s history, hatred and a house full of 100,000 fans. Every game is loaded with future NFL talent and more times than not, the outcome has a bearing on the Big Ten title and a trip to Pasadena. When and where you grew up certainly has a major impact on this question, so for me, no game screams college football rivalry more than the Wolverines and the Buckeyes on a cool, cloudy November afternoon.


John Harris

My favorite rivalry has got to be sweet potato casserole vs. hash brown casserole. Alright, so I’m just kidding, but they do wage war on my insides on Thanksgiving day. My ‘real’ favorite rivalry on the field has to be Michigan – Ohio State. It might be cliché, but nothing really epitomizes November college football quite like this game. Whether it’s Bo and Woody, Biakabutuka for over 300 to keep the Buckeyes and former Trophy Eddie George out of the 1996 Rose Bowl, the Earle Bruce head bands, Spielman with about a hundred tackles in the red Nikes, dotting the i (and it’s a sousaphone, people!), the winged helmets, a blue-gray November sky and the Big Ten title on the line (in most cases), Griffin, Morris, George, Desmond, Woodson, Harbaugh, Pace, Doss…man, that minor string of memorable moments and/or players alone just speaks for itself. [/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=+1]
[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif] Perspective Piece
[/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif] Ohio State vs. Michigan, Nov. 19[/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=-1]

[/SIZE][/FONT] By Matthew Zemek The television networks have helped make Ohio State-Michigan a late-November college football staple. The power, presence and primacy of this particular college football rivalry are so great that ABC, which has hurt the sport with its misguided strategy of excessive regionalization of game telecasts, annually brings this game to 100 percent of the United States. When the Buckeyes and Wolverines knock helmets, rationalization comes to an end and all of America is allowed to watch the same game on a regular broadcast network not named CBS or NBC. Imagine that.
But there’s something else that ABC and the forces of television have done for this year’s staging of a college football classic: by placing this game in its typical 1 Eastern time slot, three hours ahead of the Penn State-Michigan State kickoff time, the Bucks and Wolverines can play without having to watch a scoreboard. Had Penn State been given an early time slot on ESPN, this game’s emotional impact could have been dulled, given that the knowledge of a Penn State win would eliminate both teams from the Big Ten title chase. But since Joe Paterno’s team plays at 4 Eastern, this game will be played and finished before the first quarter ends in East Lansing. Thankfully, Ohio State-Michigan will be played without distractions.

Speaking of distractions, that’s what’s befallen these two teams for short but crucial spans of 2005. These teams are playing some exceptional football right now, but at a few points along the way, some brief lapses in concentration killed these two squads. A dropped pass against Texas and one interception by Troy Smith against Penn State proved fatal for a loaded Buckeye team that, had it beaten the Horns back in September, could have become a mentally tough juggernaut that might never have looked back this season. But as it is, the Bucks--who have done well to steady the ship and enter this game with just two losses--can still make everything right with a win and a Penn State loss.

The same would apply for a Michigan team that would win a third straight conference crown and secure a third consecutive BCS bowl bid if it can beat the Buckeyes while Michigan State stuns JoePa. Such a scenario looked virtually impossible in the middle of the season, after the Wolverines reeled because of a few untimely mistakes from a shaky Chad Henne against Notre Dame and a defense that couldn’t make key stops against Wisconsin and Minnesota. Had Michigan been able to play in September the way it has played over the past month, the Wolverines would be controlling their own destiny in the Big Ten. Yes, the fact of the matter is that Michigan needs help to win the league, but a win over the Bucks and an 8-3 season will make a lot of people rest easier in Ann Arbor this winter.

The stakes are high, the need to save face is intense, and the desire to be the team that overtakes Penn State on the final day of the Big Ten season is all-consuming. But passion and pride only go so far in this game; players need to play, and matchups need to be accounted for. What will decide this game, you might ask? The answer is simple, especially in light of last year’s tilt in Columbus: Troy Smith.

Smith has great numbers, but as a lot of Ohio State fans fail to realize, numbers only tell part of the story. Smith has been shaky at a number of points in this 2005 season. He fumbled a few times against Iowa and played a horrible first quarter against Michigan State, putting the Bucks in a big hole until an improbable blocked field goal return managed to swing that game--and OSU’s season--entirely and decisively around. Smith’s inconsistency, and more specifically, his inability to secure the ball each game, is a constant worry for Jim Tressel, who has had to wonder throughout this season which Smith will show up.
Yes, if the Troy Smith seen since the second half of the Michigan State game shows up in the Big House on Saturday, Michigan is toast. If Smith displays the same playmaking excellence he provided against the Wolverines last year in Columbus, there won’t be anything Jim Herrmann’s defense can do to stop him or OSU’s other skill position studs, particularly Santonio Holmes. But if Smith makes the poor decisions that have dogged him at times in 2005, committing untimely turnovers that electrify the throng in Michigan Stadium, a tidal wave of momentum will carry the Wolverines home to victory.

Ohio State has more potency than the Wolverines, but also more unpredictability. Jim Tressel can throw some option plays at Herrmann, but along with the added packages comes a greater level of potential volatility. Smith will have to make good reads and decisions throughout Saturday’s game, mixing production with ball security, and it’s for that reason that Smith--who has more responsibilities in his offense than Chad Henne has in Terry Malone’s offense--becomes such a central and defining figure in this game. How Smith plays will determine which team Penn State will be trying to hold off for the Big Ten title in East Lansing later in the day… and which team will have a particularly miserable winter.
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Looks like they're trying a "Blue-out"........


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Michigan Stadium Blue Out

Saturday, November 19 1:00pm
vs. Ohio State
Show your support for Michigan by wearing Blue!

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OSU_Buckguy said:
if checking their bags is such a terrible, persisting controversy, i think we should check michigan's bags every year.
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<table border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="1" width="100%"> <tbody><tr bgcolor="#ffd700"><td align="left" nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" width="20%"> SonofJorEl
Legend
Posts: 6828
(11/14/05 7:39:07 pm )
Reply


</td> <td class="m" align="left" valign="top">
270984_message_m.GIF
Re: Just talked to two buddies of mine... <hr> <!--EZCODE QUOTE START-->
Quote:<hr>Yes, the UofM players were searched. But guess what? Everyone who enters Ohio Stadium with a bag is searched. EVERYONE!<hr>​
<!--EZCODE QUOTE END-->


How about OSU's football team?
</td> </tr><tr bgcolor="#ffffff"> <td align="left" nowrap="nowrap" valign="top" width="20%"> SuperStudSteve
Freshman
Posts: 30
(11/14/05 7:40:31 pm )
Reply


</td> <td class="m" align="left" valign="top">
270984_message_m.GIF
Re: Just talked to two buddies of mine... <hr> <!--EZCODE QUOTE START-->
Quote:<hr>How about OSU's football team?<hr>​
<!--EZCODE QUOTE END-->maybe your team brings some tampons and makeup in their bags before walking into Michigan Stadium, but our players typically don't have luggage at home.</td></tr></tbody> </table> :slappy:
 
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Lloyd's pathetic. I can't believe that he's still complaining about that search last year. Then again, he's probably willing to talk about anything in the press conferences this week, so long as it's not his 1-3 record against JT.
 
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