Trip down memory lane....
TOP INDIVIDUAL BUCKEYE PERFORMANCES IN THE GAME'S HISTORY
This Saturday at high noon Ohio State and Michigan will compete on the gridiron for the 112th time.
The Game has evolved into the greatest rivalry in sports over the years and a huge reason for that is the never ending list of spectacular individual performances turned in by players from both schools.
The Buckeyes are still on the wrong side of the won-loss ledger in The Game's history (47-58-6) though they've won 10 of the last 12 since Jim Tressel flipped the script and Urban Meyer built upon that momentum.
A sampling of the most successful Buckeye player performances in the The Game's history when Ohio State escaped victorious are outlined below.
TROY SMITH
Any conversation about Buckeye dominance in The Game should start with Troy Smith. In three starts at quarterback against the Wolverines, Smith went 3-0 with some gaudy numbers.
In unranked Ohio State's 37-21 win over 7th-ranked Michigan in 2004, Smith blew up for 241 yards passing and another 145 on the ground with three total touchdowns.
The following season in Ann Arbor, Smith racked up 337 total yards (300 passing) in a 25-21 win. The Buckeyes trailed 21-12 with just over seven minutes to play before Smith led the offense to back-to-back scores including a 26-yard touchdown toss to Santonio Holmes before a 27-yard pass with just :37 left in regulation set up an Antonio Pittman's game-winning four-yard run.
A year later, in The Game of the Century, Smith led top-ranked Ohio State over 2nd-ranked Michigan, 42-39, with 328 total yards (316 passing) and four touchdowns to cement his Buckeye legacy.
BEANIE WELLS
Serving as Antonio Pittman's backup as a true freshman, Beanie Wells introduced himself to the rivalry with a nifty 52-yard touchdown run giving Ohio State a 14-7 lead in what eventually became a 42-39 victory securing the Buckeyes' spot in the national championship game.
A year later in a wet and windy Big House, Tresselball was on full tilt as Wells rushed 39 times for 222 yards and two scores, one via a 62-yard gallop in the 3rd quarter providing all the cushion Ohio State would need in a 14-3 win.
For his swan song, Wells rushed 15 times for 134 yards and a touchdown as the Buckeyes cruised past Michigan, 42-7, in Columbus.
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Entire article:
http://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...-individual-performances-in-the-games-history