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Game Thread Ohio State 3, Southern Cal 35 (Sept. 13)

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Dispatch
USC: Cast as a leading man
Father's drills helped Sanchez become top-flight quarterback
Wednesday, September 10, 2008 3:30 AM
By Bill Rabinowitz


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
0910_usc_qb_sp_09-10-08_C1_P9B9JE3.jpg
Steve Helber Associated Press
People are comparing Mark Sanchez to some of Southern California's legendary quarterbacks.




LOS ANGELES -- His father would pepper him with questions, and Mark Sanchez would wonder why. While Mark was taking batting practice, Nick Sanchez would ask him to name the 13th president of the United States.
While Mark was doing a footwork drill, Nick would ask him to remember, say, the atomic number for boron.
What does knowing about Millard Fillmore or that 5 is boron's atomic number have to do with Mark Sanchez maturing into a standout quarterback for the University of Southern California?
Maybe not a lot. Or maybe more than you might think. Nick quizzed Mark -- as he did his older two sons -- in hopes that he would be a hard-working, well-rounded person able to juggle more than one thing.
"It had nothing to do with him being a quarterback," Nick Sanchez said yesterday while watching his son practice for Saturday's showdown against Ohio State. "I thought that would strengthen their leadership abilities, to be able to do more than one thing at a time."
Mark acknowledged that he questioned the value of all the questions, of all the times he and his father would keep working when the other kids had gone home after practice.
"We wouldn't leave until it was dark," Sanchez said. "My mom would be in the car screaming in the parking lot that dinner's getting cold."
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Dispatch

Reinforcements are on the way
Offense should be helped by Wells' return, Pryor's 'opportunities'
Wednesday, September 10, 2008 3:31 AM
By Ken Gordon



Ohio State coach Jim Tressel yesterday uttered five words that should lift the flagging spirit of his team's fan base. The first two came in response to a question: Will running back Chris "Beanie" Wells and his sore right foot return to action against Southern California on Saturday?
"Yeah, uh-huh."
The other three, regarding his plans for freshman quarterback Terrelle Pryor this week:
"He'll have opportunities."
Five words, two players, one potentially big boost to the Buckeyes' confidence and offensive potency, both of which seemed largely absent in a sleepwalking 26-14 win over Ohio University last week.
The narrow victory was hardly an ideal way to propel Ohio State into its prime-time showdown against the top-ranked Trojans in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, where USC has won 38 of its past 39 games.
The Buckeyes slipped to fifth in the polls, but more important, they also seemed to lose some of their swagger. Their postgame comments had a quizzical tone, as if they had thought themselves above such a distasteful performance.
Tressel speculated that his players might have been caught looking ahead, and it seems he was right
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Dispatch
Rob Oller commentary: OSU-USC rivalry goes deeper than football

Wednesday, September 10, 2008 3:24 AM
By Rob Oller


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH



The old wounds resurface this week. Like that nagging football injury from back when, the mere mention of playing Southern California has many Ohio State fans rubbing the sore spot on their psyches. Younger Buckeyes may wonder what the big deal is and ask why anyone would despise USC. The Trojans don't play in the Southeastern Conference. Notwithstanding the occasional Carson Palmer-type diatribe, they don't express animosity toward Ohio State. Pretty cheerleaders, plus Trojans coach Pete Carroll seems like a pleasant enough guy.
Why not save the schadenfreude for Michigan? The obvious answer, understood by anyone who was around during the 1970s, is that USC broke more OSU hearts than anyone not named Schembechler. Three times during that decade, Ohio State lost a piece of the national championship by losing to the Trojans in the Rose Bowl. The less obvious but still accurate answer is that while OSU vs. Michigan is a border dispute, OSU vs. USC is a clash of cultures.
Buckeyes understand Wolverines, even if they hate them. Both hail from the heartland. With the Trojans, there are core differences concerning attitudes and ambitions.
Much of the angst toward USC comes from a sense of cultural inferiority forced upon anyone who lives in flyover country. Buckeyes always hear how it's only cool if it comes from the coasts. Since New York and New England have no powerhouse college teams to speak of, the Left Coast is left to set the agenda and seek the attention as it sees fit. So we have the West Coast offense instead of the Midwest offense, even though the short-pass philosophy was birthed by Bill Walsh in Cincinnati when he worked as a Bengals assistant under Paul Brown.
The bitterness born of resentment toward the West is not as thick as it once was, because ours is a more transient nation made closer by increases in travel and telecommunication. But while the separation between "us" and "them" is less pronounced, it still exists, especially among aging fans who think defeating the Trojans is tantamount to sticking a stake in the heart of a Hollywood crowd all too happy to look down upon Rust Belt rubes.
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Link

USC players on the mend for Saturday against OSU

Senior defensive starters Brian Cushing and Kyle Moore sit out practice as a precaution.

Josh Jovanelly

Issue date: 9/10/08 Section: Sports



Two USC defensive starters sat out of portions of practice with injuries Tuesday, potentially troublesome news for the Trojans after doctors cleared Ohio State running back Chris "Beanie" Wells to play in this Saturday's matchup between the two schools.

Linebacker Brian Cushing sustained a blow to the hip during walkthroughs and Kyle Moore suffered back spasms.

USC head coach Pete Carroll was not too concerned about Cushing's injury but was cautious with the Butkus award candidate nonetheless.

"A guy ran by him and kneed him in the hip," Carroll said. "[Team doctors] thought it would be best to make sure and rest him and find out what happened."

Cushing, who stood and watched the day's practice without his shoulder pads on, probably has an injury in the range of a hip pointer, Carroll said.

Moore was able to finish practice despite his back pain but was scheduled to see team doctors after practice along with Cushing.

The Trojans were not surprised to hear that Wells was cleared to play for the Buckeyes.

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More on the Cushing injury and other injury news....

ESPN - LB Cushing leaves practice with bruised hip - Pac-10
LB Cushing leaves practice with bruised hip

LOS ANGELES -- USC's All-American linebacker Brian Cushing, who's already nursing a wrist injury that requires a protective cast, left practice Tuesday with a bruised hip.

Defensive end Kyle Moore also missed action with back spasms.
Coach Pete Carroll said he doesn't expect the injuries to keep either player from starting against No. 5 Ohio State on Saturday.

"It doesn't look like it," Carroll said.

Cushing apparently took a knee to his hip early in practice.

Receiver Vidal Hazelton, who's nursing a sprained ankle, participated in some drills and could be ready by Saturday.

"He did pretty well today," Carroll said. "We'll see."

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greyscarlet;1254769; said:
When is tOSU heading out west?
Also, do they have a team plane or do they just book commercial? I recall seeing pics coming from port columbus but I have a hard time beliving it would be commercial. Just curious.
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I read they have a Thursday morning practice, and then leave for CA. No idea on the plane.
 
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earle on this weeks game
Ohio State football: Earle Bruce on USC and Ohio State - Buckeye Blog - Cleveland.com
"I think there's one word that will make this game a win or a loss. It's called toughness - toughness by our offensive line, toughness by our running backs, toughness by our linebackers, just toughness."
And then I asked Bruce a question to which I knew the answer, inquiring as to whether Ohio State was tough enough against Ohio.
"Oh, (heck) no. But last week is last week, remember that. This is a different week, there's a different approach. They've been smacked in the mouth, they'll be knocked down a peg. If they're made of anything, they'll get up and you'll say they don't look like the same ballclub. It's good to have that on film, because that's what USC is watching right now and they're licking their chops. But if we play like that (again), they can lick their chops. But if we play like we can play or will play, that's a different thing."
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