Game Thread THE GAME: #1 Ohio State 42, #2 Michigan 39 (11/18/06)

[Best Buckeye]

ok whoever is in charge of recording decimal levels in here tell me what it was during Beanies 52 yard touchdown run please.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

CPD

<H1 class=red>Sunday Morning Quarterback

</H1>

Sunday, November 19, 2006



1. Chris Wells: Reel good
The legend of Chris Wells has begun. The freshman had just five carries, but his 52-yard touchdown run, after spinning away from a tackle in the backfield, has to go down as one of the greatest runs in Ohio State history. We knew he was big, but moves like that, and the speed to pull away -- can't you see Saturday's touchdown winding up on a promotional Heisman reel in two years?
2. Throwing it out there
You can throw on Ohio State, you really can. Somebody's going to have more than a month to devise a deep passing game plan for the national title game, whether it's Southern Cal, Florida, Arkansas, Brady Quinn and Notre Dame or even Michigan again. Mario Manningham had six catches for 86 yards, and the Wolverines should have gone to him even more, especially against Antonio Smith. Ohio State's pressure on Henne saved the day, the Buckeyes sacking him four times, but with a little time to throw, the Buckeyes can be beaten through the air.
3. Senior passes tough test
What a day for linebacker John Kerr. The senior had been reduced to special teams duty the past six weeks or so, with the Buckeyes going with James Laurinaitis, Curtis Terry and Marcus Freeman in almost every situation. But Ohio State looked determined to stop the run first Saturday, and Freeman's specialty is pass coverage, so Kerr was in there a lot, making four tackles. Mike Hart still sliced up the Buckeyes for 142 rushing yards and three touchdowns, though.
4. Shotgun misfires
If this game had gone the other way, the "Datish Divot" would have entered the lexicon of Ohio State misery. Hard to believe that Doug Datish, an unflappable fifth-year senior center, could whiff on a shotgun snap and not even get it off the ground, creating a crucial late game turnover, but it's easy to believe it got stuck in a divot after all the field problems the Buckeyes have had this year. The third field of the season seemed OK in its one and only game, but it was completely shredded by the postgame celebration. Bring on the fake stuff.
-- Doug Lesmerises

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Pics from the game....

The Ohio State Marching Band heads out of Ohio Stadium to nearby St. John's Arena for their skull session before the start of the big game against Michigan.

Marvin Fong/ The Plain Dealer

Ohio State tailback #28 Chris Wells dives into the endzone for a second quarter touchdown over Michigan defenders #29 Leon Hall and #14 Morgan Trent, at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, OH, Saturday, November 18, 2006.

Marvin Fong/ The Plain Dealer

The southend goalpost at Ohio Stadium is protected from fans after the Buckeyes defeated Michigan 42 to 39 in Columbus, OH, Saturday, November 18, 2006.

Marvin Fong/ The Plain Dealer

Buckeye fans invade the field at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, OH, Saturday, November 18, 2006. Ohio State defeated rival Michigan 42 to 39.

Marvin Fong/ The Plain Dealer

Ohio State #2 Malcolm Jenkins attempts to make an interception against Michigan's #86 Mario Manningham in the third quarter, at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, OH, Saturday, November 18, 2006. The play was ruled incomplete.

Marvin Fong/ The Plain Dealer

Ohio State #25 Antonio Pittman heads to the endzone for a touchdown, past Michigan free safety #21 Ryan Mundy in the third quarter at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, OH, Saturday, November 18, 2006.

Marvin Fong/ The Plain Dealer

Antonio Pittman breaks for a touchdown in the 3rd quarter, leaving Michigan's Ryan Mundy grabbing at air.

Thomas Ondrey/The Plain Dealer

Ohio State's Ted Ginn, Jr. beats Michigan's Leon Hall for a 2nd quarter touchdown. Oho State beat Michigan 42-39.

Chuck Crow/The Plain Dealer

Ohio State's Brian Robiskie screams after scoring what was the deciding touchdown as the Buckeyes defeated the Michigan Wolverines, 42-39.

Chuck Crow/The Plain Dealer

Ohio State's Chris Wells busts by Michigan's Kyle Plummer for a Ohio State's 2nd touchdown.

Chuck Crow/The Plain Dealer

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Cincy

OSU's 'O' does it again
Thriller raises the question: Should there be a rematch?

BY JOHN ERARDI | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

COLUMBUS - Tell us, oh wise ones of the Bowl Championship Series:
Who on Earth - and we do mean Earth, because the Ohio State-Michigan game was telecast to 177 countries - wouldn't want to see a game like this again?
OSU beat Michigan 42-39 Saturday in a game so good that it is hard to imagine a national championship game being better. So why not do it again?
"I know why they (football fans) would want to see it (again), but I don't know if I necessarily want to," said OSU defensive end Jay Richardson. "But as good as Michigan is, as much hype as surrounds this game, playing them again would be just as amazing. It would be the biggest game ever. I'm just saying I'm not super-excited to do that if we have to."
In other words: Once is enough.
That kind of, sort of, seemed to be the attitude of the Buckeyes here, although nobody exactly came out and said it.
They have beaten Michigan three years in a row to end the regular season, and have won five of the last six meetings. Do they really need to try to do it again? What would it prove?
OSU offensive lineman Kirk Barton doesn't think OSU-Michigan will be reprised Jan. 8 in Arizona.
"The game I'm looking at is probably USC-Notre Dame to see probably who we're going to go against," Barton said. "That, in all likelihood, is going to be our opponent."
How good was Saturday's game?
"Are you kidding me? It's going to be on ESPN Instant Classic at noon (today)," joked Barton as he smoked a victory cigar.
He articulated the case against Michigan playing in the national title game exactly as it probably will be stated in the coming weeks.
"If you're coming off a loss, I don't really think you deserve to go to the national championship game," Barton said.
But how often does a game live up to the hype, especially Armageddon-type hype?
Michigan took the lead 7-0 on a seven-play, 80-yard drive that began with a running play (a tribute to former coach Bo Schembechler who died Friday, perhaps?). U-M then threw the ball three straight times - 24, 9 and 9 yards - before running it once and then hitting a 25-yard pass before running back Michael Hart (23 carries for 142 yards on the day) scored easily.
The sheer execution of the drive left the record Ohio Stadium crowd of 105,708 stunned.
All that throwing set the tone for the day. The Buckeyes threw the ball their first eight plays from scrimmage, the last of those a huge one for 27 yards on third-and-16 to Roy Hall. Then, almost just to prove they could do it, the Buckeyes ran Antonio Pittman (18 carries for 139 yards on the day) up the middle. He picked up 5 yards, 2.7 less than his average lug.
OSU's 14-play drive covered 69 yards and took 6:10. No other OSU TD drive took that long: 57 seconds, 1:44, 2:08, 37 seconds and 5:05.
The Buckeyes led 28-14 at halftime, but the Wolverines scored the first 10 points of the third quarter.
"You could see the (concern) in the young guys' eyes," Richardson said, "but we told them, 'There are going to be ebbs and flows. Relax, breathe deeply.' "

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

TheMorningJournal

OSU takes Big 10, BCS berth
JIM INGRAHAM, Morning Journal Writer
11/19/2006


COLUMBUS -- The giant scarlet tsunami crested and then cascaded out of the stands and flooded the playing field, amid the deafening roar that was equal parts elation and relief.


There were still 25 seconds left in the game, but it didn't matter. The winning team had the ball and the losing team had no more timeouts.

That was the signal for thousands of celebrating Ohio State fans to come pouring over the walls and onto the football field that on Saturday afternoon-into-evening hosted perhaps the wildest, most historic, game in the storied 103-year rivalry of these two college football superpowers.

Final score: Ohio State 42, Michigan 39.

No. 1 beat No. 2. It got a little dicey at times, but Ohio State, which was ranked No. 1 in the country going into the game, emerged from the game still undefeated, at 12-0, still No. 1, and, for the first time since 1984, the outright Big 10 champions.

When it was over, 105,000 exhausted fans stormed the field, quickly swallowing up the players on both sides, even the two coaches -- Ohio State's Jim Tressel and Michigan's Lloyd Carr -- who disappeared under the tsunami as they shook hands.

And on and on it went. Unbridled joy after three hours of nerve-wracking football.

Nearly an hour after the end of the game, the crowd, having saluted the Ohio State players, having gathered in front of the Ohio State marching band for the playing of the alma mater, having just generally milled about in delirium, hugging students, police officers, total strangers, and trombone players, finally -- slowly, but finally -- began to exit the giant horseshoe shaped stadium.

Their exit revealed a playing field that was pockmarked by dirt -- souvenir seekers having ripped whole chunks of sod off the hallowed ground, to either take home and show the family, or to open the bidding with on E-bay.

Saturday, Nov. 18, 2006 was equal parts history and electricity. For once, the game lived up to the hype.

''It's the happiest moment of my life,'' said Ohio State defensive tackle David Patterson, one of the team's captains.

''I still can't believe we're 12-0,'' said fellow defensive lineman and captain Quinn Pitcock.

Believe it.

Ohio State has accomplished the highly improbable feat of going wire to wire as No.1 in this college football season. They were ranked No. 1 at the start of the season, won every game, and are still No. 1 today, at the end of the season.

The regular season, that is.

Still to come is the National Championship Game, which will be played on Jan. 8 in Arizona against a still-to-be-determined opponent.

It may take Ohio State fans that long to catch their breath from Saturday's unexpected track meet, in which the two teams combined to score 81 points.

The game had all the trappings a game for the ages should have, starting with the omnipresent blimp that hovered over Ohio Stadium Saturday morning like a pregnant exclamation point, marking the way for approaching pilgrims to the center of the football universe.

Not that many of them needed any help.

They started arriving, and staking out their turf in the acres around the giant horseshoe starting at day break. The weather cooperated, so by mid-morning it was full-tilt tailgating.

Scarlet and gray tents sprouted up and down all the streets on campus, and everyone, it seemed, was wearing an Ohio State jersey.

Two hours prior to the start of the game, Ohio State's players, dressed in sport coats and ties, made the walk from their team hotel up the street and then into Ohio Stadium. Fans lined the street to shout encouragement and high-five the players, who proceeded into the north end of the stadium, and then walked the length of the field to their locker room, with Tressel leading the way.

There seemed to be less than 1,000 Michigan fans squeezed into the stadium, and half of those were members of the Michigan marching band, whose pre-game program was greeted with, and drowned out by, a cacophony of boos from the partisan crowd.

Prior to the start of the game the giant crowd fell silent as a video tribute and moment of silence was held for former Michigan coach Bo Schembechler, who died on Friday.

Former Ohio State great Paul Warfield was on hand to flip the coin at midfield.

Then it was three hours of madness, followed by another hour of post-madness madness.

When all of that was over, and only after the last of the Ohio State fans had finally filed out of the stadium, there remained just one final group sitting quietly in the stands behind the north end zone.

It was the Michigan marching band. Only then did the band members rise and quietly exit the stadium.

The time had come for a long ride back to Ann Arbor.

[email protected]

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

TheMorningJournal

Game over, time to mourn
By PAULA PASCHE, Journal Register News Service
11/19/2006


COLUMBUS -- Lloyd Carr's emotions nearly got the best of him following yesterday's 42-39 loss to Ohio State.


It wasn't so much about the game as it was about the loss of friend and mentor Bo Schembechler on Friday.

Schembechler had spoken to the team on Thursday prior to their practice.

Carr said he tried to tried to convince the legendary coach not to address the team because when Carr went to get him, he was having trouble breathing -- which had become a regular occurrence since Schembechler's second pacemaker was installed three weeks ago.

''But he said, ?Nah, I'm going to talk to them,''' Carr recounted.

He spoke to them about controlling the line of scrimmage and other Boisms about team play.

Then, less than 24 hours later, Carr had to tell his team Schembechler had died of heart failure. Carr said he found out about the death two minutes before he was to meet with the team at noon on Friday.

''Yeah, that was hard and it was emotional. And yet, you know, I think all of us have challenges that, you know, we've got to, you've got to move on,'' Carr said, his voice quivering.

Carr was very clear that he did not use Schembechler's death as any type of motivation for the game.

''We have no -- it would not be fair to Bo -- I'm a little mad at him because he didn't stay around for this game,'' Carr said. ''But it wouldn't be fair to him to use that in any way, and we don't.

''All I can say about him is I loved that man.''

Even though Schembechler retired from coaching after the 1989 season, the current team was well acquainted with him. He kept an office at Schembechler Hall and followed the team closely.

''When I was recruited I had an opportunity to talk to him,'' defensive end LaMarr Woodley said. ''I'd sit in his offices a few times and he'd go in there and coach me up. He actually coached me up on Wednesday of this week, telling me the things I need to do, how I need to get the defense going.''

''You know no one's ever going to forget about him on this team and what he's done for this team,'' tailback Mike Hart said. ''He was still a big part of this program.''

Prior to the game, a video tribute to Schembechler was displayed on the scoreboard. Afterward, even the die-hard Buckeye fans applauded to honor him.

Band breaks up

The Dead Schembechlers, a Columbus band, announced Friday night they were playing their final concert after a 16-year run. The band will send the proceeds from the event to a charity in honor of Bo Schembechler.

''Bo Schembechler was the most valued opponent Ohio State ever had. We are terribly sorry that this has occurred,'' spokesman Bo Biafra said in a press conference, according to a Columbus Dispatch report.

Schembechler had been made aware of the band recently and held a certain pride that he still mattered in this city.

Loud and unfriendly

The Ohio State crowd lived up to its reputation of making Ohio Stadium one of the toughest places to play in college football.

It's not like it caught the Wolverines by surprise. Many of them experienced it two years ago.

But they survived pretty well.

''I mean, to come in here and only have one penalty for illegal motion, when honestly you couldn't hear. I mean to have 11 guys on the football field and perform like they did in that type of crowd, to me that is a remarkable thing,'' Carr said.

Right guard Alex Mitchell was experiencing the atmosphere for the first time. He had a false start on Michigan's second possession of the game.

Odd statistics

The team on the wrong end of the turnover margin rarely wins, but such was the case here yesterday.

Ohio State lost the ball three times -- one interception and two fumbles lost -- and Michigan never turned the ball over.

Yet the Buckeyes won the game.

Michigan led in time of possession in every game until yesterday. But it was close. Ohio State controlled the ball for 29:51 while Michigan had it for 28:58.

The teams combined for 81 points, marking the most combined points in the series since Michigan won 86-0 in the fourth meeting between the schools in 1902.

?The Morning Journal 2006

 

[Best Buckeye]

Tressel's total speech at the St. Johns skull session;
"It's here...we're ready,"
and he turned and left.
I have goosebumps.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

ToledoBlade

ToledoBlade


Quote:
SHOWDOWN IN COLUMBUS
OSU-Michigan border clash is a thriller for both sides

By JOE VARDON
BLADE STAFF WRITER


The Game, and the fun surrounding it, lived up to the hype.

Why not do it again in early January?

That was the idea circulating among many patrons of Buffalo Wild Wings on Mellwood Avenue in Toledo after No. 1 Ohio State's thrilling 42-39 triumph over No. 2 Michigan yesterday.
Whether they were wearing the scarlet and gray of the Buckeyes or the maize and blue of the Wolverines, fans on both sides of this border rivalry were clamoring for an Ohio State-Michigan rematch in the BCS National Championship Game Jan. 8 in Glendale, Ariz.
"These were the two best teams in the country today, and they'll be the two best teams in the country tomorrow," said Buckeyes fan and Toledo resident Marty Rood.

Wolverines fan Ron Schrecongost of Toledo said he was the first to enter the West Toledo bar near Laskey and Jackman roads yesterday when he strolled in shortly before noon. He wanted to get what he said were the best seats in the house, right in front of several big-screen televisions and next to the restrooms.

Mr. Schrecongost said he was there in plenty of time to save seats for the more than 15 family members who joined him for the game, and he would do it all again if the rival schools were to meet again in January.

"I'd love it," he said. "It's been a great day, and I'd love to do it all again."
The Buckeyes guaranteed themselves a spot in the national title game by beating the Wolverines. But it will take luck for the Wolverines to skip past other contenders in the BCS standings and force a rematch.

Some fans felt the Wolverines' luck already has run out.

Buckeyes fan Howard Foor of Toledo said yesterday's game was for the "real" national championship, and the loser shouldn't get a second chance. "This was it for Michigan," Mr. Foor said. "We've already beat them once now; we shouldn't have to do it again."

Wolverines fan Matt Sanner, a University of Toledo student who was at a table with mostly Buckeye fans, agreed his team shouldn't be given another crack at Ohio State.

"No rematch," he said. "It was a hard-fought game, and Michigan had some answers, but it was all about [Buckeyes quarterback] Troy Smith. I hope he wins the Heisman [Trophy]."

One who is definitely rooting for an Ohio State-Michigan rematch is restaurant General Manager Chris Hunt.

Mr. Hunt said his place was slightly more packed yesterday than for previous Buckeyes-Wolverines games, but the demand for takeout seemed to be at an all-time high. He said the event wouldn't top St. Patrick's Day or the Super Bowl in sales, but a second Ohio State-Michigan tilt wouldn't be bad for business.

"And I don't think there are any other teams out there that are as good as Ohio State and Michigan," Mr. Hunt said. "Notre Dame is pretty good, and we do well business-wise when they play, but today even Notre Dame fans are Ohio State or Michigan fans."

More people were rooting for Ohio State than Michigan inside this Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant, but enough Wolverines were in the crowd to make some noise when their team scored.

When Michigan cut a 28-14 halftime deficit down to four points in the third quarter, a pack of female Wolverines fans started a "Let's Go Blue" chant. Thirty seconds later, the Buckeyes scored to go up 35-24, and the Michigan cheers were replaced by the famous "O-H-I-O."

The chants, cheers, moans, and groans remained constant until the Buckeyes ran out the clock, and their fans began to celebrate a third consecutive triumph over their archrival.

"This gives me so much bragging rights at work," Toledo resident Otis Bragg said with his hands raised. "It was a close game, but [Ohio State] won."

The thrills, chills, chicken wings, and cold beers likely felt and tasted the same no matter where one watched The Game, whether it was at home or another bar or restaurant.

The Rev. Chris Bazar, an associate pastor at Christ the King Catholic Church in West Toledo, wouldn't know about that.

Father Bazar, a Michigan fan, drew a 3:30 p.m. assignment hearing confessions, and was scheduled to say Mass at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. With yesterday's kickoff scheduled for 3:30 p.m., there was almost no way the priest was going to catch any of the action.

"That's OK," he said. "My first job is to be here to take care of people's spiritual needs. I told some parishioners I would be here at church with the 10 people who didn't care about the game." Father Bazar will likely be among the group of fans praying for a rematch.

The final score, 42-39, ended up being lucky for more than the Buckeyes. The Ohio Lottery will pay out $2.2 million to lottery players after 4-2-3-9 were chosen as the Pick 4 numbers shortly after the game.

Contact Joe Vardon at: [email protected] or 419-410-5055.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

ToledoBlade

STILL THE ONE
No. 1 OSU tops No. 2 UM in classic for Big Ten crown

By MATT MARKEY
BLADE SPORTS WRITER


COLUMBUS - Troy Smith came into Ohio Stadium five years ago with nothing but a chip on his shoulder, and a lot to prove.

The senior quarterback played his final game here yesterday, displaying a dynamic arm, a steely will to win, and a resiliency that allowed him to carry his team through a sea of adversity on the grandest stage.
Smith led top-ranked Ohio State to a 42-39 win over No. 2 Michigan that reaped a treasure trove of booty.

The Buckeyes are 12-0, won their first outright Big Ten championship in 22 years and secured their place as the No. 1 team in the country from the regular season's start to finish. OSU earned a January trip to Arizona to play for the BCS national championship.

In the process, Smith allowed the engraver who handles the nameplate for the Heisman Trophy to get his work done before the Thanksgiving holiday. Smith passed for 316 yards and four touchdowns against Michigan, completing 29 of 41 passes, and in the process made the upcoming Heisman vote a foregone conclusion.

"I'll probably be wearing this smile for another week," Smith said after the game that pitted the bitter rivals for the first time as the nation's No. 1 and No. 2 teams.

"You've got to fight to persevere, and the Ohio State Buckeyes did just that."

Ohio State never trailed after matching Michigan's early touchdown midway through the first quarter, but the Buckeyes limited their breathing room by turning the ball over three times. Smith threw an interception and had a fumble on one of two bad snaps that resulted in possession changes, but the senior quarterback said his spirit never wavered.

"Things didn't go the way we wanted them to at times, but I was constantly reminded by my teammates that 'we follow you', " Smith said. "No one was going to let me get down."

As two of the country's best defenses took the field, a stunning offensive blizzard broke out. After Michigan (11-1) surged right over Ohio State with an 80-yard drive and a quick 7-0 lead on a short Mike Hart scoring run, the Buckeyes scored three straight touchdowns and went on to hold a 28-14 advantage at the half.

Michigan made it 28-24 midway through the third quarter with a 39-yard Garrett Rivas field goal and the second of Hart's three touchdowns, this one following an interception where 330-pound tackle Alan Branch picked off Smith's deflected pass.

The Buckeyes opened it up to 35-24 with an explosive 56-yard touchdown run by Antonio Pittman, the Buckeyes second long scoring run, the first was authored by Chris Wells' 52-yarder in the second quarter. A fumbled exchange from the shotgun two possessions later set Michigan up at the OSU 9-yard line.

The Wolverines punched it in on another Hart run, closing to within 35-31 with the bulk of the fourth quarter to play. The second bad snap never got to Smith, ending a long drive at the Michigan 32 when LaMarr Woodley recovered the ball for the Wolverines.

"There were a lot of good playmakers out there today, and some of the points Michigan scored, we gave them the ball down there pretty darn close," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said. "But guys stepped up there and made plays."

After the Buckeyes' defense forced Michigan to punt the ball away, Smith orchestrated an 11-play, 83-yard drive for what proved to be the winning touchdown.

Aided by a personal foul call on Michigan linebacker Shawn Crable for smacking Smith out of bounds, the Buckeyes marched to the 13 yard line where Smith threw a dart to Brian Robiskie on the edge of the end zone. That score made it a 42-31 edge with 5:38 to play.

"I've said for however many years we've been talking about Troy that his number one quality is his toughness," Tressel said about Smith, who was sacked four times by Michigan's frenetic pass rush.

"If you want to be a champion as a quarterback, toughness is number one, and he has that."

Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said the Buckeyes were a difficult team to rein in, since Smith is a talented veteran who can often create something out of nothing.

"They're a particularly outstanding offensive football team because they do a good job protecting the quarterback, and it's hard to get to him because of his mobility," Carr said. "He made a couple of plays scrambling where he had decent field position, and then let him out. That's what he does."

Michigan refused to fold after the Smith touchdown pass to Robiskie, and scored a touchdown on a 16-yard pass from Chad Henne to Tyler Ecker with just over two minutes to play. The Wolverines got within a field goal with a two-point conversion on a pass from Henne to Steve Breaston.

Ohio State's Ted Ginn Jr. recovered Michigan's onside kick that followed, and the Buckeyes ran out the clock to secure the muti-layered victory.

"It was a hard-fought game, but we're not disappointed," Henne said. "We played well, but I think there were some points when we could have executed better and took advantage of some of their turnovers at the end."

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

ToledoBlade

Record crowd salutes seniors


COLUMBUS - The record crowd of 105,708 fans at Ohio Stadium gave the Buckeyes' 19
seniors an appropriate send-off yesterday before the 42-39 win over Michigan.

"I was extremely emotional because when I heard the roar of the crowd I knew it was my last time to play in front of the best fans in the land," senior safety Brandon Mitchell said. "It is something to tell my children about.

"I'll tell them how it was an honor to get the win for our team, our school and the city of Columbus."

TIES DYE: Troy Smith is just the second Ohio State quarterback to go 3-0 against Michigan, joining William H. "Tippy" Dye, who beat the Wolverines three times from 1934-36. Now 91 and living with a daughter in California, Dye was in attendance.

The Buckeyes shut out Michigan all three years Dye played, 34-0 in 1934, 38-0 in 1935 and 21-0 in 1936. Dye earned his spot in the Ohio State athletic hall of fame also by lettering in basketball and baseball those three years.

He returned a punt one year for a touchdown - and almost brought back a second one but was brought down at the 4

Smith is the first Ohio State player to throw for four touchdown passes against Michigan in the 103 meetings in the history of the series.

One of the opposing Michigan players during Dye's years was Gerald Ford, an All-Big Ten center who went on to become President.

NO SHARING: Ohio State won its 31st Big Ten championship, but its first outright Big Ten title since 1984.

That team, which included such eventual NFL mainstays as Cris Carter, Jim Lachey, Keith Byars, Pepper Johnson, Mike Tomczak and Chris Spielman, earned the solo title by beating Michigan 21-6 in the season finale. Current Ohio State coach Jim Tressel was an assistant on coach Earle Bruce's staff that year.

BUCKEYE BITS: Jim Tressel's record with the Buckeyes now is 62-13 and his career record is 197-70-2. He has won five of six match ups against Michigan . . . . this year's Buckeyes matched the record of the 2002 national championship team by going 12-0 in the regular season . . . Ohio State and Michigan met for the 103rd time and the Buckeyes took just their 40th victory in the series. Michigan leads the all-time series 57-40-6. But Ohio State leads the series 28-26-2 dating back to 1951 - the first year Woody Hayes became coach. . . . Ohio State has beaten Michigan three straight times and that has not happened since the Buckeyes won four in a row from 1960-63 . . . the two teams combined for 900 yards of total offense (Ohio State 503, Michigan 397), the most since their 1988 meeting .

- Matt Markey, Associated Press

 

[LordJeffBuck]

The depth of the receiving corps has been a yearlong theme, so four guys catching a touchdown pass each from Smith was nothing new. Roy Hall Jr. and Brian Robiskie are supporting players for Ted Ginn Jr. and Anthony Gonzalez, but only in the sense that the third and fourth plagues of Egypt vividly strengthened the effects of the first pair.

Well, Notre Dame has the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and now we have the Seven Plagues of Egypt (Troy, Pitt, Beanie, Ginn, Gonzo, Robo, Hartline).

 

[Buckeye86]

ok whoever is in charge of recording decimal levels in here tell me what it was during Beanies 52 yard touchdown run please.

I personally went the craziest during Pittman's long run, but the stadium was rocking the whole game (as was I). The crowd was going crazy on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd (and 4th) down the whole game when tsun was on offense.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Cincy

Michigan's defense makes Hart's game vs. Ohio State moot

BY LARRY LAGE | THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

COLUMBUS - Mike Hart finally had a big game against Ohio State.
Michigan's defense made it moot.
Hart ran for 142 yards and three touchdowns, but the top-ranked Buckeyes scored easily in a 42-39 victory Saturday over the second-ranked Wolverines to earn a spot in the national championship.
Michigan's supposed vise-like defense gave up 28 points in the first half, more than it had in any of its previous 11 games.
"I never expected that to happen," Michigan defensive end LaMarr Woodley said.
The Wolverines gave up 187 yards rushing - six times the average they were allowing to lead the nation against the run - and more than 100 of those yards came on two scoring runs.
Antonio Pittman's 56-yard run midway through the third quarter was Ohio State's fifth play of at least 20 yards, matching the number of 20-yard plays Michigan allowed in any game this season.
"Big plays simply were the biggest factor in the game," Wolverines coach Lloyd Carr said.
If Michigan is fortunate enough to get a rematch Jan. 8 in Arizona with the national title at stake, Hart guaranteed it will be a different game.
Why?
"Because the defense gave up big plays; they don't usually," he said.
Hart failed to make many plays in the previous two losses to Ohio State, which limited him to 76 yards on 27 carries.
He entered the game averaging 124.8 yards a game - sixth in the nation - and surpassed that on 23 carries against the Buckeyes' defense that was geared to stop him.
"Their defense played good, but they're not as good as people thought," Hart said. "We didn't put enough points on the board. There's nothing special about that defense."

 

[k_stone_69]

Does anybody feel like that was the real NC game or is it just me?

I watched The Game with a couple tsun fans and all they were saying before and after was Rematch and I firmly believe what Tress said If you don't win your conference you shouldn't be in the NC game.

Guess what we will have a rematch....



In november 2007.

:osu:

 

[Best Buckeye]

Does anybody feel like that was the real NC game or is it just me?

:osu:

No, it was THE GAME.
It was between the 2 best teams though.

Did anyone notice that it seemed like Pitt put up a jump shot to a meech player after his 56 yard td run and did'nt get a flag?:)