Ohio State football: Meyer signs 7-year contract

“It’s a great opportunity to come back to my home state where I was born and where I grew up, where I went to school and where I met my wife,” said Meyer, an Ashtabula native who attended the University of Cincinnati.

Luke Fickell, who had been elevated to head coach May 30 after Jim Tressel was forced to resign in the wake of an NCAA investigation, will remain on the Ohio State coaching staff under Meyer as defensive coordinator, the Dispatch has learned.

Fickell and his current coaching staff with lead the Buckeyes in whatever bowl game they play this year. Meyer will concentrate on recruiting and assembling a staff.

Meyer, who had been coaching at the University of Florida, left coaching after last season, citing health concerns, and became an analyst with ESPN. He acknowledged that he’d lost balance in his life.

At the same time, Ohio State was in the midst of its tattoo-and-memorabilia scandal that cost Jim Tressel his job as coach and contributed to the Buckeyes’ 6-6 season. But Meyer said he did not think he might end up as Ohio State’s coach.

“A year ago, in my mind I was convinced I was done coaching,” Meyer said.

But the coaching bug did not leave him.

Though rumors of Meyer coming to Ohio State have swirled for weeks, Ohio State athletics director Gene Smith said he didn’t have his first conversation with Meyer until Nov. 20 and didn’t meet with him until Nov. 23. A deal was offered Sunday and Meyer accepted today. The assistant coaches were told of the coaching change this morning.

He said he will have a football team that will “go hard. I mean, like relentless. I want a bunch of coaches that coach like their hair’s on fire, and I want a football team that goes 4-6 seconds of relentless effort. You do that, you have a chance to win in every game you play.”

As an Ohio native, he understands the importance of the Michigan game, even referring to their next encounter “362 days away.”

The six-year contract for Meyer includes $4 million in annual pay, plus bonuses based on achieving certain milestones, including academic accomplishments for the football program and retention payments of $450,000, $750,000 and $1.2 million if Meyer is still employed as head coach on Jan. 31, 2014; Jan. 31, 2016; and Jan. 31, 2018, respectively. The agreement was reached based on benchmarking of comparable contracts, OSU officials said.

The news of Meyer's hiring caused excitement in Buckeye Nation today.

“I am beyond elated about this hire,” said former OSU quarterback Kirk Herbsteit, long-time college football analyst for ESPN. “I have always privately wondered what Urban Meyer would be like at Ohio State, just because of his Ohio ties, and because of his personality.

“He will recruit at a level that I think will be exciting to a lot of people in the Buckeye community, just how intense he is when it comes to recruiting. Talk about some wars between Michigan head coach Brady Hoke and Urban Meyer, it’s going to be outstanding to see how that goes. That’s because you know the first thing Urban Meyer is going to want is to own the state of Ohio in recruiting.

“He also will put together a staff that will be outstanding. I think that is one thing he really learned in his time at Florida, how important the coordinators and the staff are. That’s something he mentioned to me a couple of weeks ago when we were talking, of making sure the staff is taken care of in a good way (financially) to make them want to stick around in Columbus.”

Former OSU and all-Pro lineman Jim Lachey, analyst for the Buckeyes’ radio broadcasts, was just as elated about the hiring of Meyer.

“He’s an outstanding coach. That’s proven,” Lachey said. “We had the chance to see him go head to head with Ohio State in the national championship game, and obviously they were pretty impressive in that game.

“I also got to see him in the week building up to that in the press conferences and things like that, and in the back of your mind you’re kind of thinking, ‘That guy’s pretty good.’ Certainly the results are there.”

And as Herbstreit alluded, Meyer has proven to be stout in the bringing in of talent.

“He’s got a name out there nationally that’s huge, that will certainly help recruiting, and that’s the name of the game,” Lachey said. “When you can get the best players, it’s going to make the coaches appear to be a lot better.”

The 47-year-old Meyer, who won two national championships in six seasons at the University of Florida before spending this season as an analyst for ESPN, has been unavailable for comment. He spent the Thanksgiving weekend off the air and with his family.

Funds used to hire Meyer or his assistant coaches would come from the self-sustained OSU athletic department. Tressel was paid an annual total of $3.7 million before his ouster.

Ohio State still is awaiting word from the NCAA committee on infractions concerning final penalties from an NCAA investigation over the past 11 months that, among other things, caused the school to seek the resignation of 10-year coach Tressel on May 30.

Fickell, 38, was elevated from assistant head coach to interim head coach that day. At the same time, the university made it clear that at regular season's end it intended to reassess the head-coaching position and that it would consider candidates -- including Fickell -- for the permanent job. However, it also said it would honor Fickell's two-year contract as assistant head coach, which runs through February 2013.

Fickell was a nose guard for the Buckeyes in the mid-1990s who became an OSU assistant coach in 2002.

Like Fickell and Tressel before him, Meyer would bring an Ohio-native feel to the job. Meyer grew up in Ashtabula, went to the University of Cincinnati and was a graduate assistant coach at Ohio State in the mid-1980s under Earle Bruce before leaving on a journey to several assistant-coaching jobs, including at Notre Dame.

After becoming a head coach for the first time at Bowling Green in 2001, he swiftly turned the Falcons into a winner, going 17-6 over two years before leaving for Utah. He worked the same magic with the Utes, leading them to an undefeated season in 2004, including a win over Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl. Utah was the first team from a non-Bowl Championship Series conference to earn a spot in a BCS bowl.

After being courted by Florida and Notre Dame near the end of that season, Meyer took the Florida job in 2005 and a year later led the Gators to a national-championship win over Ohio State. In 2008, the Gators won the national title again, this time over Oklahoma.

Meyer tried to step away from coaching in December 2009 because of health concerns, but he quickly changed his mind. He took a leave of absence but returned for the 2010 season, only to retire again in December.

"I have been a Division I football coach for the last 25 years and, during that time, my primary focus has been helping my teams win titles," he said. "I have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it, and I am a fierce competitor to my core. At this time in my life, however, I appreciate the sacrifices my 24/7 profession has demanded of me, and I know it is time to put my focus on my family and life away from the field. The decision to step down was a difficult one.

"But after spending more than two decades motivating and celebrating the young men I've been so proud to coach, I relish the opportunity to cheer for my three terrific kids as they compete in their own respective sports. I know how fortunate I am to be in a position to make this choice and to have a family that is as loving and supportive as my amazing wife and children have always been."

Ohio State football: Fickell to be defensive coordinator for Meyer

Luke Fickell will remain on the Ohio State coaching staff under new coach Urban Meyer as defensive coordinator, the Dispatch has learned.

Fickell served as coach this year after Jim Tressel’s resignation. With a new head coach, there’d been speculation about whether Fickell would be offered a spot on the staff or whether he would pursue a head coaching job elsewhere.

A DeSales and Ohio State graduate, Fickell decided to stay put.

Before taking over for Tressel, Fickell served as co-defensive coordinator with Jim Heacock and linebackers coach. Heacock is not expected to return.


	UNDEFEATED OSU SEASONS: 1916 (7-0), 1944 (9-0), 1954 (10-0), 1968 (10-0) and 2002 (14-0)
SLAGLE DIE HARD BUCKEYE FANS PICTURES:
11-22-2002 Jim, Jerry, Jim, John and Nelson Slagle at Bill and Betty Huckaba's home in Worthington, Ohio prior to leaving for Ohio State 13-9 victory over Michigan running there record to 13-0 and earning a spot vs Miami in the National Championship game.	11-22-2002 Jim, Nelson and John C deck of Ohio stadium during halftime of Ohio State 13 Michigan 9 game.
1-3-2003 Jerry Slagle and others celebrating at the National Sports Bar in Santa Ana, California after OSU stops Miami on 4th and 1 in 2nd overtime to win 31-24 and claim the National championship. Miami was consensus #1 going into the game and an 11 point favorite. Jerry, Jim, John and Nelson watched almost all of the games at the National that season with the OSU alumni group of around 100-300 fans.	11-2006 Nelson, Phil Hensley, Jim and John tailgating after #1 Ohio State defeats #2 Michigan 41-39 in Columbus, Ohio. We would tailgate with Phil and his friends when attending Ohio State games.

PRE SEASON: OHIO STATE RANKED 19TH. WISCONSIN PICKED TO WIN OSU DIVISION
GAME 1 September 3, 2011 vs Akron - OSU 42 AKRON 0 Carlos Hyde rushes 19 times for 93 yards Rod Smith runs for 74 yards and a TD on 18 carries	AKRON 0 0 0 0 0 OSU 7 14 7 14 42 FICKELL ERA STARTS WITH 42-0 SHUTOUT Jim who? Terrelle who? The 2011 season started with a new cast but old results as Buckeye fans have become accustomed. Although the opponent was very weak, OSU looked like past seasons. Very efficient offense and a suffocating defense. Two quarterbacks played and two quarterback excelled. Joe Bauserman in first start since playing outfield in the minor leagues in 2007 and Braxton Miller, a true freshman playing in his first game combined for 20 of 28 for 293 yards, 4 touchdowns and no interceptions. They also ran 12 times for 62 yards and a TD. Last year Terrelle Pryor threw for 4 TD's once, passed for over 270 yards once, and completed 71% of his passes 5 times, but Pryor never accomplished each of these feats in the same game as the duo of Bauserman and Miller did today. OSU held Akron to 90 total yards including -10 yards in the 2nd half. Only one time in the prior two seasons have they held an opponent to fewer than 100 yards. They held New Mexico to 65 yards in the 2009 season. OSU held Akron to 5 first downs, the 2nd fewest in the last two seasons. New Mexico was held to 2 first downs. And OSU out gained Akron by 427 yards, the 2nd most in the last two season to the 494 yard differential vs New Mexico. Akron's deepest penetration was the last 2 minute drive in the first half when they gained 51 of their 90 yards for the day to move to the OSU 24 yard line. Akron missed a 41 yard field goal on the final play of the first half. Carlos Hyde and Rod Smith combined for 37 rushes for 167 yards (4.5 yard average) and a TD. The only two minuses today were a fumble on the 4 yard line by Rod Smith and a missed field goal. Temperatures hit 97 degrees for what some said was the warmest day ever for a home OSU football game. Two referees left the game due to the heat and didn't return. OSU had 10 tackles for loss including 5 sacks. Jake Stoneburner became the first tight end in Ohio State history to catch 3 TD passes in one game. He is the first OSU receiver to catch 3 or more TD passes in a game since Bob Grimes caught 4 TD passes vs Washington State in 1952. He is tied for 5th in nation after one game with 18 points. Luke Fickell was first OSU coach to win first game with a shutout since Woody Hayes in 1951. OSU has won 33 straight home openers. After the first week, Joe Bauserman is 3rd in the nation in passing efficiency (PE) with a 222 rating. Miller fell short of the 15 minimum pass attempts to be rated but would have been about 20th in the nation. Barkley, USC, is ranked 33rd with a 154 PE and Heisman Favorite Luck of Stanford is ranked 39th at 146. Is it to soon to start the Bauserman for Heisman chant?? After a week OSU is tied with Alabama for best total defense as both teams allowed 90 yards in their first game. Big Ten favorites Nebraska is 18th with 230 and Wisconsin is 40th with 292 yards allowed. Is OSU now the team to beat in the Big Ten?? OSU is 12th in the nation in total offense with 517 yards. Wisconsin is 18th with 499 yards and Nebraska is 68th with 364 yards. OSU is in a 4 way tie for first with 0 points allowed. Congrats to Luke Fickell for becoming head coach during the most difficult of times and running a well oiled machine into the Ohio Stadium for a convincing victory despite 5 first stringers and three 2nd stringers out of action due to suspensions. The Buckeyes only started 6 seniors.

GAME 2 September 10, 2011 vs Toledo - #15 OSU 27 TOLEDO 22 Devin Smith 15 leads the Buckeyes with 119 yards on 5 catches for the first two games. Hankins celebrates a sack vs Toledo. OSU 7th in nation in both sacks and tackles for a loss	TOLEDO 15 0 7 0 22 OSU 7 14 6 0 27 OHIO STATE SURVIVES TOLEDO 27-22 OSU had not lost a game to an instate opponent since they lost to Oberlin in 1921. But the Buckeyes had to survive a 4th and 5 from the 17 yard line to finally nail down the win. It wasn't pretty from an OSU standpoint. Toledo out passed OSU 292 to 189 yards. OSU out rushed Toledo 112-46, but the key statistic was Ohio State was penalized twice for 13 yards while Toledo was penalized 14 times for 102 yards. OSU survived by letting Toledo beat themselves. The most penalty yards by an opponent last year was 74 by Illinois, in 2009 it was 87 yards by Indiana and in 2008 it was 85 yards by Northwestern. Thus in the last 41 games OSU has played, no opponent was penalized more than 85 yards while Toledo amassed 102 yards, a couple penalties leading to OSU touchdowns. It was apparent watching the game, that Joe Bauserman won the quarterback position for OSU as Braxton Miller never got in the game. The vast majority of fans are not pleased that Miller never played. It would seem like OSU needs to get Miller ready to play in the event Bauserman is injured or having a poor game. Many would say Bauserman's game against Toledo was a poor game. He was 16 for 30 for 189 yards and 1 TD. The one plus for Bauserman was he had no interceptions. It made two straight games with no interceptions for OSU, the first time that has happened to OSU since the first two games last season. Joe B dropped from 3rd in the nation after the first game to 35th in the nation in passing efficiency (PE) and 6th in the Big Ten after two weeks. Wilson of Wisconsin is 2nd with a 238 PE, Schellhaause, Ill is 7th at 192, Cousins, Michigan State is 14th at 181, Robinson, Mich. is 21st at 173 and Vandenberg, Iowa is 29th at 159 are the top 5 quarterbacks after week 2. If Braxton Miller had enough passing attempts he would be 10th in the nation with a 185 PE!! Joe B is one of four quarterbacks in the nation that has at least 30 passing attempts with no interceptions and no sacks. OSU had only one turnover, a fumble by Smith for the second straight week. However, it is an amazing that for at least 15 straight games OSU has not lost a fumble by a starter. OSU is 4th in nation in rushing defense at 40.5 yards a game and tied for first allowing no sacks. OSU is 10th in nation in total yards allowed.

GAME 3 September 17, 2011 at Miami - Miami Fla. 24 #17 OSU 6 Hall (7) was one of few bright spots with 87 yards in 14 carries Devin Smith has one of several drops by wide receivers Wide receivers and tight ends and 0 receptions.	OSU 0 6 0 0 6 MIAMI 14 3 0 7 24 PASS CHALLENGED OHIO STATE EASY FOR MIAMI Miami easily scored touchdowns on their first two possessions to take a 14-0 lead and coasted to a 24-6 win while OSU started with two three and outs. Enough about the game, lets go to the stats: OSU passed for 35 yards for the game!! And 22 were in last 25 seconds of game. Fewest passing yards in last 3 seasons were 77 on 10 of 18 vs Illinois in a 28-13 win in 2010, 9 for 17 for 67 yards in 21-10 win vs Michigan in 2009, and 6 for 10 for 49 yards in 30-20 win over Illinois in 2008. The low point in passing each of the last three seasons were games where passing wasn't needed to win. Bauserman was an amazing 2 for 14 for 13 yards, less than one yard per attempt!! OSU was never worse than 4 yards per attempt in last 3 seasons. Joe B also gained -3 yards in 3 attempts thus his total offense was 10 yards! Miller played close to 20 plays and was 2-4 for 22 yards and one INT. He also ran 7 times for 32 yards, but he fumbled 3 times on 7 runs losing one. The four completion's matched the worst (3 times) in the last 15 years. And all four catches were by running backs. No receiver or tight end caught a ball although they dropped several. OSU didn't have a first down by pass until 10 seconds left in the game. Wow, there sure a lot of Buckeye fans that would like to have Pryor this season so they could tell you how bad he was. Bauserman and Miller are making Pryor look like a legend! Bauserman did have one positive, the third straight week without an interception. Pryor had one such streak in 2009 (3 games leading up to Michigan). It seems to me that Bauserman is taking the 'make no mistakes' to far. He throws 35% of the passes away rather than trying to complete some. Bauserman and Brehaut of UCLA are the only quarterbacks in the nation with at least 40 pass attempts with no interceptions and one or fewer sacks. OSU have fallen out of the top 25 for the first time in 7 years. Their streak of 103 straight weeks in the top 25 was the longest in the NCAA. Now the longest streaks are 53 by Alabama and 49 by Boise State. It is the first time OSU lost on the road to an unranked non conference team in 23 years when they lost to Pittsburgh. Miami had 28 yards passing in the first half to 4 for OSU. No idea how long it has been since two teams managed only 32 yards passing in a half. Jacory Harris was only 16 of 23 for 125 yards, 2 TD's and 2 INT. But Miami rushed for 240 yards on 42 attempts with Lamar Miller gaining 184 yards on 26 carries, 116 yards in the first quarter, and 54 yards on Miami's first play. It was the most yards gained by an individual vs Ohio State in over 10 years. And I thought the defensive line was OSU strength! In 2010 the most yards rushing by an OSU opponent was 184 by Wisconsin, in 2009 it was 186 yards by Navy and 2008 it was 220 by Illinois. Another bizarre move was not using any of their time outs on Miami's last drive when OSU was down 17-6 and only an errant Harris throw from being back in the game. They never used any of their 3 time outs. OSU extended their streak of not losing a fumble by a starter to 16 regular season games in a row. No idea what the OSU record is but 16 may be it. Unfortunately, OSU has lost 3 fumbles by second string players this season. If Miller starts the next couple of games the streak may be coming to an end.

GAME 4 September 24, 2011 vs Colorado - #30 OSU 37 Colorado 17 Braxton Miller huge success in first start but if they don't limit his runs, hits like this will bring back Joe B by default! Devin Smith catching one of two touchdown passes of 17 (above) and 32 yards from Braxton Miller	COLORADO 0 7 3 7 17 OSU 10 10 14 3 37 MILLER ERA STARTS WITH EASY WIN Braxton Miller started his first game for the Buckeyes and didn't disappoint as he led OSU to a 37-17 win over Colorado. Miller's running was spectacular and his passing was great when needed. Miller was only 5 of 13 for 83 yards but two of the completions were for TD's. And 2-3 more passes were dropped. And unexpectantly he had no turnovers, but was sacked 3 times. He ran 17 times for 83 dazzling yards. Miller is extremely quick. Miller played almost the entire game and never fumbled although he was still carrying the ball loosely on a couple of occasions. The -0- turnovers was extremely gratifying after watching last week. I was disappointed that they didn't have Miller pass more and run less. He didn't complete a pass until his 4th or 5th attempt 5 minutes into the 2nd quarter. At that point OSU was 4-22 for 35 yards in the last 5 and 1/2 quarters! Michigan and OSU have the same problem. Their quarterbacks run too much and will end up getting hurt. Robinson left several games early last year due to injury and Miller already missed a week this year with an injury and was injured every year in high school. I would predict that neither quarterback will play the first 3 quarters of the OSU-Michigan game as they will be unable to start due to injury or get injured during the game. As a result I think Fickel needs to rethink how he uses Miller. Have him pass more, run less and bring in Bauserman for most of the 4th quarter if the game is in hand not only to protect Miller, but to prepare Joe B when Miller goes down. Miller ran 16 times today and is often hit several times as he keeps slipping tackles and seldom runs out of bounds. Fickel needs to use Miller running when they need it to win a game. Michigan has ran Robinson 44 times in two blowouts the past two weeks! Crazy. Robinson passing stats yesterday vs San Diego St were worse than Miller. He was 9 for 17 for 93 yards, no TD's and 2 INT. He did run for 199 yards. It was nice to see Bauserman come in late and throw 2 passes, neither out of bounds and both completions for 27 yards. He drove them to the one yard line as time expired. OSU played their 16th consecutive game without a starter losing a fumble. Of course the Wisconsin running backs have handled 600 consecutive rushes without not only losing a fumble but they haven't even fumbled! OSU had allowed over 20 points in the last two games. This was the first time in 7 years that they had given up 20 or more points in consecutive games. Today was the first time OSU allowed 300 yards of offense for the third consecutive game since 2004. Devin Smith led the Bucks in receptions with 3 for 63 yards and two TD's. He easily leads the Buckeyes this season with 8 catches for 183 yards. Stoneburner is next with 8 for 93 yards. No one else has more that 51 yards in receptions this season. Jordan Hall had 231 all purpose yards including a 90 yard kickoff return. OSU outrushed Colorado 226 to 76 but both teams gained exactly 4.8 yards per rush. OSU had 4 backs including Miller gaining over 4.5 yards a carry. Colorado out passed OSU 238 to 110 but half of the Colorado yards were in the last 20 minutes when the game was in hand. OSU starting QB's have not thrown an interception this year in 4 games, the longest streak at least since 2007 and likely years before then. Colorado lost their 20th straight game played outside the state of Colorado and 19th straight road game. Colorado lost any chance to stay in the game by getting crushed in field position. OSU started 6 of their first 9 possessions in Colorado territory and started 2 other possessions on the 40. Colorado started 8 possession inside their 20 yard line with the average starting position the 18 yard line! The Buckeye defense was awesome early on as they held the Buffalo's to 9 yards of total offense in the first quarter and did not allow a Colorado first down until up 17-0. Colorado had 13 yards of offense when the Buckeyes reached 17 points, thus OSU had more points than Colorado had yards in the first 20 minutes of the game. Miller has now thrown 3 TD passes this season, all to freshman Devin Smith. Bauserman has thrown 4 TD passes, all to junior Jake Stoneburner. Slow footed Joe B has been sacked once and nimble Miller has been sacked 4 times. Fickel is the first OSU coach to start 3-0 at home since Earl Bruce. OSU has won 57 consecutive home games against non conference foes not ranked in the AP top 25. Since the beginning of the 2005 season the Bucks have allowed only 127 TD's, three less than the second best in college football by TCU. Buckeyes first four opponents are 4-11. OSU will need more than 110 yards passing to defeat Michigan State next week. Conference records vs non conference opponents through week 4 are: Big 12 26-2 SEC 25-4 Big Ten 34-12 Big East 21-9 ACC 22-11 PAC 12 20-12 Big 12 and SEC dominating. Pac 12 worst of six listed conferences. Have to vote for Robert Griffin, Baylor for Heisman. After 4 games he is 70 for 82 (85%) for 962 yards, 13 TD's, 0 INT and 2 sacks for a ridiculous 236 Passing efficiency rating. Wilson, Wisconsin is 2nd at 218 and Moore, Boise St is 3rd at 193. Luck, Stanford is 11th at 173, Barkley, USC is 33rd at 149, Robinson, Mich is 63rd at 132 and Bauserman, OSU is 73 at 126. Miller does not have enough attempts to qualify but his PE is estimated at about 150.

GAME 5 October 1, 2011 vs Michigan State - #24 Michigan State 10 #30 Ohio State 7 Miller sacked, one of Spartans 9 sacks on Miller and Bauserman Hyde was lone OSU offensive bright spot with 33 yards on 5 carries	Michigan State 7 0 0 3 10 Ohio State 0 0 0 7 7 MICHIGAN STATE SACKS BUCKEYES 10-7 Just when we thought the offense couldn't get worse, a real defense showed up. Not only didn't the Buckeyes get within 34 yards of the goal line for the first 59 minutes or so, they also didn't score until 10 seconds remained in the game. They totaled 87 yards in the first half and 6 more in the 3rd quarter. Only when Michigan State went to a prevent defense in the last two minutes did the Buckeyes move the ball picking up 62 of the 178 yards for the game. A few stats: Miller played the first 46 minutes and Bauserman the last 14 minutes of the 4th quarter. They were sacked a combined nine times! For the game OSU rushed 39 times for 35 yards. That was misleading as they lost 75 yards on sacks. Miller ran 9 times for -27 yards including 4 sacks and Bauserman ran 7 times for -16 yards including 5 sacks. The Spartans stuffed any sign of a run by Miller. He only had positive yards a couple times all game. Similar to the Colorado game Miller seldom passed, attempting 10 in three quarters . He completed 5, two were knocked down at the line of scrimmage, one was dropped by a defender, one was incomplete and one intercepted. His 56 yards passing included a 33 yard completion to Fields gave him 29 total yards of offense for 3 quarters. Bauserman didn't look any better on his first three series (3 and out) as Michigan State kept blitzing and sacking Joe B. The few times he passed they were way off the mark. Then on their final possession the Spartans moved into a prevent defense and Bauserman was able to drive them down field and complete a 33 yard TD pass to Evan Spencer with 10 seconds remaining. This is the same Spencer that had one of the best catches I have ever seen along the sidelines in the Akron game when he did a 180. leaped and snagged the ball with one hand and fell to the ground never clutching the ball with both hands. Hall was also stopped although he did gain 45 yards on 18 carries while Hyde gained 33 yards on 5 carries. OSU defense held Michigan State to one TD pass and a 50 yard field goal despite giving up 321 yards, 250 by QB Kirk Cousins. But Cousins made two horrible plays one an interception with 3rd and goal in the 3rd quarter when it looked like any score would clinch the game by increasing their lead to 10-0. Then he threw an interception on a terrible pass with 4:24 left and a 10-0 lead. The Buckeyes had no answer for B. J. Cunningham from Westerville, Ohio who caught 9 passes for 154 yards, including a 33 yard TD catch. OSU last 10 second touchdown prevented their first home shutout since a 6-0 loss to Wisconsin in 1982 The 178 yards of offense was the worst of year. Prior worse was 209 vs Miami. The only other time OSU gained less than 200 yards in the last 3 seasons was in 2009 when they were held to 184 yards in a 31-13 win over Wisconsin. OSU held Michigan State to 4 of 13 on third down conversions and won the turnover battle 3-1, stats that would normally get you a win. Michigan State was #1 in the nation in total defense and passing defense and 10th in rushing defense against a weak schedule coming into the game. They improved their stats against an even weaker OSU offense. Robert Griffin of Baylor came with 2 minutes of unheard of stats. With 2 minutes left in the game he was 22 for 27 for 340 yards and 5 TD's and no INT. Thus after almost 4 games he had passed for 18 TD's and had 17 incomplete passes. In the last two minutes he was 1-4 and threw his first interception of the season when hit from behind costing Baylor the game, a 36-35 loss to Kansas State. His passing efficiency fell to 230. Wilson is 2nd at 216 and 3rd is 182! OSU is now 105th out of 120 teams in passing offense, tied for 106th in sacks allowed, 54th in rushing offense, 108th in total offense, 11th in total defense and 13th in scoring defense. Michigan State now 1st in total defense, 2nd in pass defense and 6th in rushing defense. Next week is Nebraska who is 104th in passing offense and their QB, Martinez is 87th in nation in passing efficiency with a 118 rating, lower than both Miller and Bauserman!

GAME 6 October 8, 2011 - at Nebraska - #14 Nebraska 34 - Ohio State 27 Miller stripped to start Nebraska 28 point rally than is injured on next possession Fickell can't bear to watch collapse	Ohio State 10 10 7 0 27 Nebraska 3 3 14 14 34 OSU LEADS 27-6, NEBRASKA WINS 34-27 For 35 minutes the Buckeyes offense looked fine while scoring 27 points behind an efficient and exciting Braxton Miller and the defense played as we were accustomed in past years, pretty much lights out. Miller passed for 68 yards on 4 of 7 and ran for 79 yards on 7 carries in the first half and the defense only allowed 130 yards and two long field goals. Then Miller fumbled (actually stripped) with 7:54 left in the 3rd quarter and Nebraska converted into 7 points and the momentum was all Nebraska the reminder of the game. Martinez, with a 118 passing efficiency entering the game then carved the Buckeyes up with his passing and running as Nebraska gained 293 yards and 28 unanswered points in the 2nd half after the Bucks took a 27-6 lead. After the Miller fumble he was hit hard on the next possession for the ump teenth time on on a rare loss and this time he stayed down for the count and so did the Buckeye offense. Sub Joe Bauserman threw 10 times finding a Buckeye once and a Cornhusker once. No offense and no defense turned the game into a no contest dispute the score being close. Nebraska scored 4 TD's in four possessions after the Miller fumble. Miller's stats were good, 5 for 8 for 95 yards, 1 TD and and he ran 10 times for 91 yards with one lost fumble, the first lost fumble by a Buckeye starter in 19 regular season games. He also made some other freshman mistakes, fumbled snap and numerous motion penalties but moved the ball and put up 27 points in 35 minutes. It was his most effective outing since the opening Akron game and allowed us fans to see a bright future. But it sure would be nice if he could trade hands with Pryor and avoid all those hits. Otherwise we are going to have an exciting QB in the future that will lead the Buckeyes to a lot of points, hopefully not to many game changing fumbles and not to many injuries. Buts I am afraid with Miller we will have to take the bad with the good and hope the good wins out. Per Bob Hunter, Columbus Dispatch - Buckeye Dilemma: Miller was hurt at one time or another every year in high school, and the shots he is taking here come from bigger, faster and stronger players. Can the Buckeyes take a chance of losing him to a more severe injury next time? And given their 3-3 record and a season that is rapidly deteriorating, how can they have a successful season if they do otherwise? The Buckeyes held Nebraska QB Taylor Martinez to 9 yards rushing and 80 yards passing in the first half. Martinez responded with 93 yards in the 2nd half rushing and 111 yards passing and 2 TD's in the second half as Nebraska gained 293 yards in the 2nd half. Nebraska rushed for 37 yards on 19 carries in the first half, but gained 229 yards on 32 carries in the 2nd half. Nebraska came back from a 21 deficit to win, their largest comeback in their history. It exceeded their previous largest comeback victory of 17 points vs Texas A&M in 2002. It was also the biggest lead given up by OSU in the modern era of football. Nebraska is 17-1 vs Big Ten opponents at home since 1962. Hard to believe - as OSU was giving up 28 consecutive points to Nebraska to lose by 7, Michigan was scoring 28 straight points to beat Northwestern by 14! OSU is 3-3 and 0-2 in the Big Ten and have lost back to back games for the first time since 2004 Twenty-one of the top 25 teams played and won, two lost to higher ranked teams and two had byes. So much for upsets!

GAME 7 October 15, 2011 at Illinois - Ohio State 17 #16 Illinois 7 Stoneburner congratulated on 17 yard TD reception Hankins closes in on one of 9 tackles	Ohio State 3 0 7 7 17 Illinois 0 0 0 7 7 OSU BEATS ILLINI 17-7 WITH DEFENSE Ohio State didn't attempt a pass until 7 minutes were left in the 2nd quarter and didn't complete a pass until 13 minutes left in the game, but it was a 17 yard TD pass from Miller to Stoneburner for a 17-0 lead. With wind at 20 MPH and a effective running attack it was clear early that this would be a 'Woody' game. Fickel welcomed back Herron and 114 yards to provide enough offense for a great OSU defense. OSU won the turnover battle 3-0. OSU won the first half 3-0 thanks to a great defense. Ohio State out gained Illinois 105 to 95 yards despite QB Braxton Miller being 0-3 passing and -8 yards on 9 carries thanks to 3 sacks. He also fumbled once but OSU recovered. Miller never attempted a pass in the 1st quarter as the rushing attack was effective. Herron gained 70 yards on 12 carries and Hall added 43 yards on 8 carries in the first half. Although OSU can win some games with the 'no pass' approach, I would like them to let Miller throw some just for the experience. Obviously, they will need to pass most games to win, so why not give Miller some practice? It looks like they are afraid to let Miller pass due to not being very accurate or poor decision making. He won't improve much throwing 4 or 8 passes a game. He has started the last 4 games completing 16 of 35 for 251 yards so we really don't know what kind of passer he is. Buckeyes two touchdowns were on drives of 22 and 12 yards thanks to two Illini turnovers. Herron's 12 yard TD run gave Herron TD's in 13 consecutive games he has played. Ohio State went 2 of 2 in the red zone against Illinois and is now 18 of 21 on the season. The only three times Ohio State has failed to score inside the red zone was on a fumble and on two end-of-game possessions to run out the clock against Akron and Colorado. John Simon finished the game with 2.0 sacks and 4.0 TFL, the most by a Buckeye since 2007. The 4.0 TFL also is tied for second best on OSU's all-time single game list. Illinois failed to force a turnover for the first time in 22 games, ending the longest consecutive game streak in the FBS. … The Illini’s 6-0 start was its best since 1951, when it started 7-0. … Illinois has lost nine straight games to Ohio State in Memorial Stadium. Its last win at home against the Buckeyes was in 1991. Ohio State is the third team since 2000 to win a game completing only one pass. Georgia Tech has done it twice. It was the first time OSU only completed one pass since 1976 when they completed one pass and lost to Missouri 22-21. In two of last 3 games Miller's total offense was 29 and 51 yards. Pryor's worst total offense in his freshman year was 124 yards in a 16-3 victory over Purdue. And Miller passes less each game. He has 13, 10, 8 and 4 attempts in his four starts. However, Miller has had no interceptions the last two starts and no turnovers today although he fumbled once. And Miller has threw only 3 incompletions in two straight games, probably years since that happened. Pryor had 3 incompletions or less once in three seasons! Of course if the Bucks would have rushed 55 times and not attempted a pass, Miller would have no incompletions. As it was OSU ran 51 times and passed 4 times. Robert Griffith, Baylor, passed for 430 more yards today on 28 of 40 for 3 TD's and one INT. Unfortunately, Baylor defense gave up 681 yards and 6 TD passes as Texas A&M beat Baylor 55-28! Darnell Robinson of Michigan had a rough day as Michigan State beat Michigan 28-14 despite two lost fumbles and 124 yards of penalties Robinson ran 18 times for 42 yards and completed 9 of 24 passes for 123 yards one TD and one INT that was returned for a TD. It is the 2nd year in a row that the Spartans have stuffed Robinson. Meanwhile, Kellan Moore of Boise State was 26 of 30 for 338 yards and 4TD's and no INT in a 63-13 win over Colorado State. Looks like Griffith, Moore and Wilson (Wisc) will wage a great battle for Passing Efficiency leader for the season.

GAME 8 October 29, 2011 vs Wisconsin - OSU 33 #15 Wisconsin 29 Devin Smith catching game winning 40 yard TD pass with 20 seconds remaining Herron runs 33 times for 160 yards Simon sacks Russell Wilson for one of his two sacks S Braxton Miller rushes for 99 yards and two TD's on 19 carries	Wisconsin 7 0 7 15 29 Ohio State 0 3 14 16 33 MILLER, DEFENSE AND HERRON TOO MUCH FOR WISCONSIN Two weeks ago it appeared that Ohio State had no chance against the powerful Wisconsin Badgers who were #4 in the nation and leading the nation in scoring 50 points a game with a pro sized offensive line that couldn't be stopped. Then Michigan State slowed them down enough to throw an improbable Hail Mary on the games final play to knock the Badgers from the undefeated ranks. Than Ohio State stopped the Badger rushing attack like it was a high school rushing attack rather than a pro attack. For the first 56 minutes of the game OSU's defense looked like the best defense ever holding the Badgers to 14 points, 7 of which was set up by a muffed punt return. But than the defense looked like the one we saw against Nebraska in the last 20 minutes of that game and the Badgers scored 14 unanswered points in 3 minutes to take the lead. But the Buckeyes behind the Freshman quarterback Braxton Miller threw a 40 yard strike to Devin Smith set up by a scrambling Miller. Here are some of the improbable stats. In the first half OSU held the mighty Badgers to 10 yards rushing on 12 carries!! In the first half it was the same old Buckeye offense. They passed 7 times, completing 4 for 42 yards and somehow were only down 7-3 to the 4th highest scoring team in the nation. Everyone all week. including me said OSU would have to pass to beat the Badgers. I guess Fickel didn't get the message. He passed 5 more times in the 2nd half and they scored 30 points!! The Badgers finished with 89 yards rushing but 40 of those was on a run with 4 minutes left when the Buckeyes were playing a prevent defense as the Badgers were 12 points down. The great Monte Ball was held to 45 yards and one TD in 16 carries if you don't include the late 40 yarder. Freshman Braxton Miller ran for 99 yards including two touchdowns of 2 and 44 yards where he wasn't close to being touched and walked into the end zone. These two scores were his first TD's this season. The 2 yard run on 3rd and goal put them ahead 10-7 in the 3rd quarter and the 44 yard run put them ahead 26-14 in the 4th quarter with 4:39 remaining. On the two yard run he faked a hand-off to Hall and kept the ball and ran right. One defender was waiting on him but he faked him out and then walked into the endzone as the rest of the defense tackled Hall. The 44 yard run play was an option play to the left that was so well blocked that no one came within 5 yards of Miller and no one was back to give chase. Herron rushed for a game high 160 yards on 33 carries as both he and Miller rush for more yards than Wisconsin. The previous game high rushing for OSU this season was the previous game when Herron gained 114 yards. The 160 yards rushing was the most by a Buckeye since Herron ran for 175 yards last season against Michigan. The Badgers pulled into a 3 point lead when they completed a 49 yard touchdown pass to a wide open receiver 40 yards downfield against a prevent defense with 90 seconds remaining after being behind 26-14 three minutes earlier. OSU was surely beaten as they had only let the freshman QB throw 14 passes in the last 8 quarters for 66 yards and now they needed him to drive the Buckeyes 80 yards in 90 seconds against a prevent defense! Fortunately, Hall returned the kickoff 42 yards after almost being the goat of the game when he fumbled a punt with 3 minutes remaining with the Bucks up 12 points and Hall rushed 6 times for 9 yards. But Miller scrambled right and two feet before crossing the line of scrimmage spotted a wide open Devin Smith in the endzone for a 40 yard TD pass with 20 seconds remaining. No other OSU receiver has more than 34 yards receiving in the last 8 quarters. Until that pass OSU had only passed for 66 yards in the last 8 quarters! The Buckeyes had to pass to win, but they rushed 58 times and passed 12 times! Freshman Devin Smith caught the winning pass, a 40 yard TD. He is a 2nd team receiver, but leads the Buckeyes in receiving this season with 227 yards, good for 326th in the nation! However, Smith only had 4 yards receiving on one reception in the last 4 games until the winning TD catch!! The Buckeyes rushed for a season high 268 yards which was the most since they rushed for 314 against Penn State 12 games ago. The Buckeyes have averaged 84 yards passing in the last 6 games while completing 37 of 92 passes in winning 3 and losing 3. In the 3 wins the Bucks are 15 for 31 for 216 yards! Miller has yet to have 100 yards passing in his 5 starts. Miller was near perfect in his pass attempts completing 7 of 12 with three dropped balls. Miller ran for a career high of 99 yards on 19 carries also a career high. Fickel rolled the dice with the 19 runs as they appear to have no other quarterbacks to replace Miller. But Miller was only shook up once and never missed a down on offense. Miller rushed for two TD's, the first time for a Buckeye QB since Pryor ran for 2 vs Minnesota in his freshman year. Miller and Bauserman have both thrown for 492 yards this season which is tied for 126 out of 406 players throwing passes this season. Miller has completed 52% of his passes, good for 277th out of 406 players throwing a pass. Millers 342 yards rushing is 2nd on the team next to Hyde's 408 (113th in the nation), Hall has 330 and Herron 274 in 2 games. Herron rushed 33 times today with 2nd most for the season for OSU being 23 by Herron last week. High last season was 24 also by Herron on two occasions. Herron had the high in 2009 at 32 in Overtime win vs Iowa. Highest # of rushes in 2008 was 31 by Beanie Wells. Thus 33 is highest since at least 2007. Herron's streak of scoring TD's in 13 straight games he has played ended today despite 160 yards. Wisconsin QB Russell Wilson leads the nation in passing efficiency with a 197 ranking. Wisconsin entered the game converting 58% of their 3rd down attempts which was 2nd best in the nation. The Bucks held Wisconsin's to 5 conversions in 14 third down attempts. Wisconsin is now 5th in nation in 3rd down conversions. Wisconsin QB Russell Wilson threw for a TD for the 32nd straight game, the longest streak in the nation. Monte Ball scored two TD's to run his national leading total to 22. OSU defeated the Badgers despite losing the turnover battle 1-0 and the penalty yards 9 to 37. T he Badgers were almost perfect, 0 turnovers and 9 yards in penalties. Wisconsin's streak of 200 yard rushing games ended at 11. They didn't even get 100 yards rushing. They had rushed for at least 142 yards in 22 straight games and at least 165 yards in 21 of their last 22 games. It was the first time a Big Ten team has lost the game by a last minute TD in back to back games since at least 1991 (far back as Big Ten network records went) and maybe first time ever in Big Ten History. I would bet it the first time any team in college football has lost back to back games in the last 30 seconds via a 40+ yard pass play. Wisconsin is now 5th in the nation in scoring, averaging 47 points a game. They are 8th in nation in rushing, 252 yards a game. OSU is 116 out of 120 teams in passing yardage at 123 yards a game. Next worst Big Ten team is Minnesota at 156 yards a game good for 107th. OSU is the 25th most sacked team giving up 19 sacks. The good news is that OSU has the 4th least interceptions at 3. OSU is 48th in nation with 17 sacks on defense. OSU is tied for 37th with 9 interceptions. OSU is 35th in the nation rushing averaging 187 yards a game. Wisconsin is 13th at 232 yards. Michigan is 8th with 253 rushing yards per game. OSU started the day in 5th place in their division and can now win the division by winning their remaining games (providing Penn State loses another game besides the OSU defeat). They moved from unranked to 29th in the polls. Next up is Indiana. They can win without throwing a pass. Should run a prediction contest: how many passes will OSU throw? Big Ten network predicted 18-20!

GAME 9 November 5, 2011 vs Indiana - #29 Ohio State 34 Indiana 20 Miller passed for 55 yards and ran for 105 yards and two TD's of 81 and 20 yards. John Simon making one of team leading 10 tackles	Indiana 10 3 7 0 20 Ohio State 7 6 14 7 34 BUCKEYES 'RUSH' BY INDIANA OSU continued their 'Woody Hayes' offense and rushed by Indiana 34-20. OSU passed for 55 yards but had three 100 yard rushers and totaled 346 yards in 46 attempts for a 7.5 yard average. But it was a struggle as OSU and Indiana were tied at 20 late in the 3rd quarter. The up and down defense was down today as Indiana moved pretty much at will. Indiana accumulated 19 first downs to OSU 17. Indiana passed for 174 yards on 10 of 21 while OSU was 5 for 11 for 55 yards and both teams had one interception. Fortunately, OSU out rushed Indiana 346 to 159. Indiana won the turnover battle 2-1 making it the 2nd game in a row OSU lost the turnover battle but still won the game. Amazing stats were plentiful. OSU was 116th out of 120 division 1 teams in passing yardage a game going into Indiana, a team that was one of or the worst defensive team in the Big Ten. Many figured OSU would pass more and gain more yards. Instead Miller had his worst game of the season passing going 5 of 11 for 55 yards and a interception (which was better than a punt). To qualify for passing efficiency rankings in the NCAA you must average 15 passes a game. Miller has yet to attempt more than 13 in any game nor gained more than 95 yards in any game. Miller has averaged 9.7 pass attempts a game. In comparison Pryor attempted 10--14 passes in 7 of 10 starts his first year, but averaged 14.9 attempts a game. And OSU have almost refused to pass in the 2nd half today, going 1 for 3 for 7 yards. In the last three games Miller's stats for the 2nd half are 5 for 11 for 53 yards!!!! Eleven pass attempts and 53 yards in the last six 2nd half quarters! Miller has thrown for under 100 yards in all 6 starts. For comparison, Pryor had 4 games under 100 yards passing his Freshman year, 4 his Sophomore year and 1 his Junior year (2010). Millers best total offense in 6 starts was 188 yards last week vs Wisconsin. Pryor only reached 200 yards twice his Freshman year, the high being 235 yards. Pryor had three 300+ yard total offense in 2010. Miller will likely exceed that if is still playing his Junior and/or Senior seasons. But Miller continues to run great. He ran a quarterback draw for 81 yards and a TD, the longest run by an OSU QB, breaking Rex Kern's record of 76 yards. It as the 6th longest run by a back in OSU history. It is the 13th longest run in Div 1 football this season and 2nd longest in the Big Ten. The TD run cut Indiana's lead to 10-7, He took about 35 yards in sacks and other runs that I am not sure were pass plays or QB draws. Yet he still had a career high of 105 yards rushing in 14 attempts. For comparison, Pryor only exceeded 105 yards five times in his career with a high of 115 yards last season. Pryor's high in his sophomore year was 110. Pryor set the career high rushing mark last year for an OSU QB. Miller may blitz that record if he plays 4 years. Miller already has 447 yards (4.8 per carry) this season compared to Pryor's 635 yards (4.6 per carry) his first year And Miller scored two TD's for the 2nd straight game. Pryor had one two TD game in his three years. Miller now has 4 rushing TD's for the season, the same as Pryor had in his Freshman season. Miller's pluses for the day were his two TD runs covering 101 yards. The other 12 runs netted 4 yards. And he ran out of bounds twice avoiding needless hits. The big plus, they won. Negative's were - terrible accuracy passing, six sacks, and a lost fumble. Interception was thrown into double coverage but it was 3rd and long and the long pass was intercepted at the 2 thus I have no problem with the pass. Better than a punt. After Miller seemingly improved each week with his passing, it was a step backward today. Still think he will become a very good or better QB in the next couple of years, but the question for now is can he (and the defense) play well enough to win the next 3 games? Herron fumbled once today but Miller recovered. Thus Miller has the only two lost fumbles by starters in the last 22 games! A Wisconsin running back had not lost a fumble or even fumbled in their last 900 carries until today when they fumbled and lost it. OSU had three 100 yard rushers today for the first time since 1989. Miller gained 105 yards in 14 carries, Hyde gained 105 yards in 15 carries and Herron rushed for 141 yards in 14 carries (10.1 yards per rush!). This is the 4th time OSU has had three 100 yard rushers. Others were in 1956 (Cisco, Roseboro and Clark), 1970 (Hayden, Brockington & Kern) and 1989 (Snow, Graham & Lee). The 346 yards rushing today is a game high since at least 2007. The previous high the last 4 seasons was 342 yards vs Eastern Michigan last season, but only Pryor reached 100 yards (104). Herron has now played three games, all 114 + yard games. His total rushing yards of 415 comes out to an average of 138 yards a game. Ohio State had 6 big plays for 267 yards. On the other 45 plays they gained 134 yards. This disparity in gains was caused by a gambling blitzing Indiana defense. If it didn't work the back roamed free once crossing the line of scrimmage. It was the first time since 1988 that both starting quarterbacks were Freshmen in a Big Ten game. Indiana converted 10 of 17 third down attempts while OSU only converted 3 of 9 attempts. Indiana sacked Miller 6 times, the most sacks Indiana has had in a game since 2007. Drew Basil missed his first two field goal attempts this season, but has made all 12 attempts since those misses. The 12 straight field goals is the third longest streak in OSU history. First is Mike Nugent with 24 straight. OSU defensive end John Simon made a team-high 10 tackles, including three tackles for loss and one sack. In his past five games, Simon has 10.5 tackles for loss and five sacks. Sweat had 9 tackles and leads the team with 66 for the season. Since 2005 Ohio State is 15-1 in November games. Pollsters must have been impressed as Buckeyes advanced two spots to 27th in AP poll. In QB passing efficiency ratings top 6 QB's are: Wilson, Wisc 197, 2- Keenan, Houston 192, 3- Griffith, Baylor 188, 4- Moore, Boise State 180, 5- Luck, Stanford 175 and 6- Harris, Miami 166. Others: Toledo QB 11- 159, Illinois QB 27- 147, Robinson, Mich 56- 134. Miller PE is 132 good for 63rd if qualified. Leading rusher in nation is Hillman, San Diego St at 1198 or 150 per game. If Herron would have played all 8 games and average 138 yards per carry (Avg in 3 games played) he would be 5th in nation. Coker of Iowa is 5th at 1101 yards, Ball of Wisconsin is 10th at 1034 yards and Robinson is 31st at 834 yards. Devin Smith leads OSU in receiving yards at 227 despite only catching passes in 5 of 9 games. That is good for 367th in the nation. OSU in now 118th out of 120 teams in passing yardage at 1039 yards. Navy is 119th at 926 and Army is 120th at 423. OSU is 114th in passing attempts. OSU is 78th on passing TD's with 11. Ohio State is 7th in most QB sacks allowed with 28. OSU is in 10 way tie for 5th with Wisconsin and Iowa for fewest interceptions allowed with 4. OSU is 34th in rushing with 1493 yards. Nebraska is 9th with 2017 yards, Wisconsin is 12th at 1854 yards, Illinois 17th at 1786 yards, Michigan 18th at 1773 yards, Northwestern 32nd at 1493, Indiana is 36th at 1472 yards, Penn State is 39th with 1454 yards, Purdue is 39th at 1454 yards . Other two big ten teams are 75th (Minnesota) and 86th (Michigan State). OSU is 84th in 3rd down conversion % at 35.2. OSU is 33rd in sacks with 21. OSU is 16th in nation in yardage allowed per game with 312 per game. Michigan State is 2nd with 249, Illinois 6th at 280, Penn State 8th at 282 and Wisconsin 11th at 294. OSU is 27th in rushing yardage defense. Corey Brown has the most catches of any Buckeyes receiver with 10. (Tight end Jake Stoneburner has 11.) To put it in perspective, the fewest catches by the top receiver in a season in the last generation was 27 by Bernard Edwards in 1991. Buckeyes receivers have a total of 42 catches, or 4.7 per game. Seventy-eight individual receivers have more than that nationally. Ohio State’s passing offense ranks 118th of 120 bowl subdivision teams.

GAME 10 November 12, 2011 at Purdue - Purdue 26 #27 Ohio State 23 in overtime	Ohio State 0 7 7 6 3 23 Purdue 10 7 0 3 6 26
Season appeared to come down to this extra point with 55 seconds remaining and game tied 20-20. Basil, the kicker is 24. You can see #2 blocking the kick.	BUCKEYES 'AMBUSHED' BY PURDUE Purdue outplayed the Buckeyes, but it took an overtime session for an 8 point underdog to pull the upset. Purdue galloped out of the gate to a 10-0 lead and OSU never caught Purdue until Miller pulled another magic trick to convert a 4th and 13 by scrambling, falling backward and finding Jordan Hall in the endzone to tie the game 20-20 with 55 seconds remaining. This completed a 66 yard TD tying drive. However the routine extra point was blocked forcing overtime. In overtime, OSU lost ground when Miller was sacked for the 5th time leaving 3rd and 15, and a beautiful pass to Williams left OSU a yard short of the first down. Basil came in and made the field goal. Purdue converted 3rd and 4 and 3rd and 12 plays to set up a first down one yard run for the win. Somehow OSU defeated Wisconsin on a 40 yard TD pass in the last 20 seconds, Wisconsin defeated Purdue 65-17 last week running at will then OSU loses to Purdue. Go figure! Purdue had a beat up front line and had been decimated a week earlier and had given up 703 yards and 10 rushing TD's the last two weeks vs Michigan and Wisconsin for 6.6 yards a carry. Yet somehow they grounded the Ohio State rushing attack holding the Buckeyes to 163 yards on 47 attempts for a 3.5 yard average after averaging 267 yards the last 4 games!. Miller struggled with the passing game and the wind. But stat wise he finished OK going 8 for 18 for 132 yards, two TD's and no turnovers. He was 5 for 15 at one point but completed 3 clutch passes on the final tying TD drive in the 4th quarter and overtime. But he missed two wide open receivers 40 yards down field by at least 5 yards in the 2nd & 3rd quarters. And he completed only two passes to receivers. Purdue did an excellent job of containing Miller's scrambling holding him to 46 yards in 17 carries although he probably lost 20 yards on 5 sacks. It was a most disappointing loss as Penn State lost to Nebraska 17-14 leaving the Bucks two wins away from the division title. Despite 3 losses in Big Ten play they can still win the division by winning last two games, Wisconsin losing at Illinois next week and Wisconsin defeating Penn State the following week. A few stats: Miller had his first 100 yard passing game in 7 starts, crossing the mark late in the 4th quarter on way to 132 yards. The 132 yards and 18 pass attempts and 8 completions all were season highs. Miller broke his 3 game streak of gaining more rushing yards then passing yards. But he did score his 5th TD in last 3 games. Pryor never had more then 3 running TD's in any 3 straight games. He also has thrown only 1 interception in the last 5 games while throwing his 7th & 8th TD passes of the season. Robinson of Michigan threw his 11th interception today and has thrown at least one interception in 8 of the 10 games played! Herron was held to 63 yards in 18 carries, the first time in 4 games he has played this season that he failed to gain at least 114 yards. It was also only the 2nd time in the last 16 games he has played that he has not scored a TD. Hall was the most effective rusher gaining 46 yards in 9 carries for a 5 yard average. He also was the leading receiver with 3 for 58 yards and two TD's. Miller has only 92 pass attempts this season but has been the 9th most sacked QB in division 1 with 26. The 8 most sacked QB's each have attempted at least 219 passes. His 8 TD passes make him 94th in the nation. His 92 pass attempts is 138th most and Joe Bauserman's 86 is 140th, Miller's 46 completions are good for 142nd in the nation, his 674 yards is good for 135th in the nation and his 134 PE would be good for about 57th if he had enough pass attempts to qualify (around 140) . Devin Smith is OSU leading receiver with 241 yards which is 382nd most in the nation. Stoneburner is 2nd with 150 yards despite having only 4 catches in the last 8 games good for 583rd in the nation! Stoneburner leads Bucks in receptions with 12 to Devin Smith's 11. The 12 receipts is good for a 42 way tie for 631st in the nation. Ohio State is 118th out of 120 teams with 117 yards passing average per game. Penn State is 87th with 195 yards passing a game. Penn State only give up 12.9 points per game, good for 3rd in the nation. Last season Sanzenbacher led the Buckeyes through ten games with 43 receptions for 716 yards and Posey was 2nd with 43 catches for 674 yards. Saine had 18 catches and Herron 13 catches through 10 games. Thus we had four receivers with more catches than any Buckeye this year through 10 games.
GAME 11 November 19, 2011 vs Penn State - #18 Penn State 20 Ohio State 14 Miller ran for 105 yards and a TD in 18 carries Coach Fickel Miller runs for some of his 105 yards Posey plays first game of season after 9 game suspension - Herron ran for 76 yards- caught 4 passes for 66 yards Shazier makes a season high 15 tackles	Penn State 10 10 0 0 20 Ohio State 0 14 0 0 14 PENN STATE HOLDS ON FOR 20-14 WIN Ohio State spotted their opponent a 10 point lead for the 3rd straight game and at least a 7 point lead for the 4th straight game. For the 2nd time in those 4 games they were unable to come back and fell 20-14. OSU doesn't like 20-14 scores. Last week the score was 20- 14 but were able to score a late TD but missed the extra point. This week they and Penn State were scoreless the 2nd half while both teams showed uncharacteristic offense and the final score was 20-14. OSU wasted a great game by Miller. The defense gave up 254 yards in the first half and 20 points. The three running backs combined to lose 2 fumbles in the second half. Penn State was unable to convert to scores but it enabled Penn State to maintain field position the entire half. Miller gained 105 yards on 18 runs, a couple that bordered on sensational. But he couldn't pull off his magic in the 4th quarter, thus not earning the nickname of Tebow Jr. Miller completed 7 of 17 for 83 yards and a TD, but he was victimized by several drops and 3 of the incompletions were Hail Mary type passes on the last 3 plays of the game. And two big positives, no turnovers by Miller and he ran a lot and stayed healthy. Watching Michigan today it may take two healthy Millers to stay with Michigan! The only pre season All American was supposed to be their center, Brewster. Today he had 3 errant hikes that were very costly. OSU rushed for over 200 yards for the 5th time in 6 games. But they also passed for under 100 yards for the 5th time in 6 games. Herron rushed for 76 yards but it was the 2nd consecutive game that he failed to reach 100 yards after running for at least 114 yards in his first 3 games. In the 5 games since the Nebraska loss, OSU has been outscored in the first half 57-40, but in the second half OSU has won 81-45. The two lost fumbles by the running backs were the first fumbles lost by firsts team running back in 24 regular season games. One of two fumbles today was by a 2nd stringer (Hyde). The fumbles enabled Penn State to force OSU to start their last three drives on the 1, 3 and 13 yard line. Miller ran for more yards than he gained for the 4th time in 5 games. Miller passed for under 100 yards for the 7th time in 8 starts. Miller has not thrown an interception for 5 of the last 6 games. Pryor was only able to do that once in 3 years and that was his freshman year. Miller has passed for 9 TD's this season and has ran for 6 TD's all in the last four games. Jake Stoneburner caught 7th TD pass of the year. His last 3 receptions have been against 3 opponents covering six games and all have been for TD's. Stoneburner has caught a team high 7th TD pass in only 13 receptions which also leads the team. He has one more TD than Miller and Hyde. Shazier got his first start today and made 15 tackles, the best of any Buckeye all year. DeVier Posey made his first start of the year and responded with 4 receptions for 66 yards including a sensational one handed catch on the sideline. Posey had 4 of the 7 receptions today. Ohio State's 6 consecutive Big Ten titles officially came to an end earlier in the day when Wisconsin came back form a 14-0 deficit to defeat Illinois 28-17. The Ohio State game meant nothing to Penn State as far was winning the division title. Win or lose, the Penn State at Wisconsin winner next week will have a playoff game vs Michigan State to decide the Big Ten winner. Penn State has won at Ohio State in 3 of their last 10 visits, all against freshman QB's (Schlichter, Pryor and Miller). Put RG3 back in the Heisman race. After Oklahoma tied the game at 38, Baylor got the ball on the 20. Tried to run out the clock but OK called a time out. So RG3 runs for about 20 yards and a couple plays later RG3 has Baylor on the 39 yard line, almost close enough for a winning FG attempt. On next play RG3 goes back to pass and finds a receiver in the end zone for the win! First time Baylor has beaten Oklahoma in 21 tries. RG3 finished 21 for 34 for 479 yards, 4 TD's and no INT and 14.1 yards per pass attempt against the #5 team in the nation. He also picked up 72 yards rushing on 18 carries. RG3's 479 yards passing was 8 more yards than OSU has passed for in the last 6 games! But we have 5 TD passes in the last 6 games and RG3 only passed for 4 TD's tonight. For the season RG3 is 219 for 296 (74%) for 3166 yards, 30 TD's and 5 INT. He also ran for 497 yards on 116 carries and 4 TD's. Barkley also has similar stats: 273 for 402 (68%) for 3104 yards, 33 TD's and 7 INT. He has rushed for 11 yards on 22 carries. For Luck is 214 for 302 (71%) for 268 yards with 28 TD's and 6 INT.. He has ran 34 times for 146 yards. Wilson of Wisconsin is 170 for 232 for 2505 yards, 26 TD's and only 3 INT. He has ran 59 times for 294 yards and 4 TD's Miller has moved up to 7th most sacked QB with 29. Stoneburner leads in receptions with 13 for the season which ranks him 640th in the nation. That makes him a 3rd stringer on most teams. But his 7 TD's ranks him in aa tie for 46th in the nation. For the season, Sweat leads w/ 68 tackles and Barnett leads w/ 40 solo tackles. In very limited action, Shazier has 28 solo and 40 total tackles. Simon has 26 solo and 43 total tackles, not that much different than Shazier!! Probably about 15 tackles by Shazier is on special teams.

GAME 12 November 26, 2011 at Michigan - #17 Michigan 40 Ohio State 34 Miller's career day not enough. He passes for 235 yards and runs for 100 yards, but lost duel with Denard Robinson Simon bringing down Robinson with help from Goebel 53, Roby 25 and ?	Ohio State 7 17 0 10 34 Michigan 16 7 7 10 40 OSU UNLEASHES MILLER BUT CAN'T STOP ROBINSON OSU unleashed Braxton Miller and he came through with a career day accumulating 335 yards passing and running and 3 TD's. But the inconsistent defense couldn't stop Denard Robinson who accumulated 337 yards and 5 TD's. The game had 5 lead changes and OSU got what they wanted, the ball last thanks to a bizarre play that left OSU with a chance to win. Michigan was up by 3 points with 2 minutes left and on the two inch line when Robinson ran around end for his apparent 6th TD of the game. But the Wolverines had two penalties for 25 yards on the play after only committing one other penalty for 4 yards the rest of the game! They had a hold and than a personal foul after the play was over thus a 25 yard penalty. After an incomplete pass they tacked on a field goal to leave the Bucks only 6 behind. But with 2 minutes left and 80 yards to go, Miller's magic was missing in action. They did get a first down, but executed poorly and Miller threw his first interception in five games on 4th and 6. Miller completed 14 of 25 for 235 yards and 2 TD's and ran 16 times for 100 yards and a TD. Miller had a great passing efficiency (PE) of 185 until the last possession when he was ineffective and threw the meaningless interception. It was not caught on 4th and 6 and the game was over, but the pass ricochet to a Michigan defender for the interception which didn't mean anything but killed his PE. Meanwhile Denard Robinson completed 14 of 17 for 167 yards and 3 TD's and ran for 170 yards and 2 TD's on 26 carries for a PE of 223 beating his prior season best of 194 vs Notre Dame. And his 170 rushing was 53 more yards than any of the prior 7 games. He didn't have any interceptions for only the second time all season. But he did fumble twice losing one. OSU looked like a different team from what we have seen all year. Miller passed 25 times - his prior high was 18. And his 14 completions were 6 more than prior high and his 235 yards was 103 yards higher than prior best. And he still ran for 100 yards for the third time in last 4 games and at least 91 yards 5 of the last 7 games. Meanwhile OSU only rushed 31 times, 3 fewer than previous season low of 34 vs Toledo and 8 lower that any total in last 9 games. It was the 2nd lowest rushing attempts in their last 33 games! They only rushed 28 times vs Purdue last year. The running backs gained 38 yards (all Herron), the lowest total by running backs for OSU since a loss to Purdue in 2009 when the running backs gained 32 yards. And they scored 34 points tying the highest total vs a Big Ten opponent this year and the most points Michigan has given up all season. But the defense gave up a season high 444 yards and 40 points beating prior high of 423 yards and 34 points at Nebraska. Thus the passing onslaught went for naught. It appeared they had more wide open receivers than any game this year. Despite Miller's great stats, he missed 3 wide open receivers for probable TD's because he doesn't put air under his long passes. Once he improves that and his accuracy he would appear to be unstoppable in the coming years. The Buckeyes 7 game winning streak vs Michigan lasting 2926 days ended today. The 40 points Michigan scored against OSU was the most since they scored 58 in 1946! Barnett had 12 tackles and Shazier and Sabino had 8 each to lead the team. Simon had his team high 7th sack and now has a team high 15 tackles for loss. Race for Heisman and QB passing efficiency race are wide open. Wilson 193, Griffith 191, Keenan 187, Moore 175, and Luck 5- 168. Barkley moved up to 9th at 161, and Robinson moved to 35th at 142. Baylor has a game next week but RG3 was hurt in the 66-42 victory over Texas Tech playing less than half a game. Sub QB came in and was 9 for 12 for 151 yards and 2 TD's! Barkley had a field day in the 50-0 romp over UCLA. He completed 35 of 42 for 423 yards for six TD's. M. Lee caught 13 passes for 224 yards and 2 TD's and R. Woods caught 12 passes for 113 yards and 2 TD's. OSU's two leading receivers for the season were Stoneburner who caught 14 passes for 258 yards and Brown who caught 14 passes of 205 yards. Thus OSU's two leading receivers season stats barely exceeded what USC's two receivers caught in their game today. Prior to the Michigan game, OSU completed 33 passes in the prior 6 games and Barkley completed 35 today. But Barkley ran for 5 yards for the season and Miller averaged 4.83 yards per run on 144 carries for 695 yards. In last 5 games Miller averaged 5.43 yards a carry while rushing for 452 yards. and all of Barkley and Miller's rushing stats include sacks. Miller is tied for 4th most sacks in Division one with 33. He has 67 completions for the season which is good for 130th in the nation. OSU moved up two spots to 115th with 142 passing yards per game. OSU averaged 25 points a game good for 74th out of the 120 teams. OSU rushed for 195 yards a game good for 28th in nation. On defense OSU had 23 sacks for 55th out of 120 teams. OSU is 6-6. In the last 3 seasons the Bucks were 33-6! OSU lost 5 Big Ten games this season, the same amount they had lost in the last 6 years combined. Last six loss season was 1999 when they finished 6-6. The last time OSU lost more than 6 games was 1897 when they lost 7. Pressure is on if OSU plays in a bowl game!! NOTE: Added a lot of Ohio State history at the bottom of the web site. Here is a good question you can ask your fellow football fan: In 1890, OSU played their first home game. Who did they play and what was the score? Answer: OSU lost to Wooster 64-0. Guess the Bucks have come a long way since then!
Ohio State football: Meyer signs 7-year contract ShareThiUrban Meyer was formally introduced as the 24th head football coach in Ohio State today, and none have come with stronger credentials.A two-time national-championship coach at Florida, Meyer signed a seven-year contract worth $4 million per year. “It’s a great opportunity to come back to my home state where I was born and where I grew up, where I went to school and where I met my wife,” said Meyer, an Ashtabula native who attended the University of Cincinnati. Luke Fickell, who had been elevated to head coach May 30 after Jim Tressel was forced to resign in the wake of an NCAA investigation, will remain on the Ohio State coaching staff under Meyer as defensive coordinator, the Dispatch has learned. Fickell and his current coaching staff with lead the Buckeyes in whatever bowl game they play this year. Meyer will concentrate on recruiting and assembling a staff. Meyer, who had been coaching at the University of Florida, left coaching after last season, citing health concerns, and became an analyst with ESPN. He acknowledged that he’d lost balance in his life. At the same time, Ohio State was in the midst of its tattoo-and-memorabilia scandal that cost Jim Tressel his job as coach and contributed to the Buckeyes’ 6-6 season. But Meyer said he did not think he might end up as Ohio State’s coach. “A year ago, in my mind I was convinced I was done coaching,” Meyer said. But the coaching bug did not leave him. Though rumors of Meyer coming to Ohio State have swirled for weeks, Ohio State athletics director Gene Smith said he didn’t have his first conversation with Meyer until Nov. 20 and didn’t meet with him until Nov. 23. A deal was offered Sunday and Meyer accepted today. The assistant coaches were told of the coaching change this morning. He said he will have a football team that will “go hard. I mean, like relentless. I want a bunch of coaches that coach like their hair’s on fire, and I want a football team that goes 4-6 seconds of relentless effort. You do that, you have a chance to win in every game you play.” As an Ohio native, he understands the importance of the Michigan game, even referring to their next encounter “362 days away.” The six-year contract for Meyer includes $4 million in annual pay, plus bonuses based on achieving certain milestones, including academic accomplishments for the football program and retention payments of $450,000, $750,000 and $1.2 million if Meyer is still employed as head coach on Jan. 31, 2014; Jan. 31, 2016; and Jan. 31, 2018, respectively. The agreement was reached based on benchmarking of comparable contracts, OSU officials said. The news of Meyer's hiring caused excitement in Buckeye Nation today. “I am beyond elated about this hire,” said former OSU quarterback Kirk Herbsteit, long-time college football analyst for ESPN. “I have always privately wondered what Urban Meyer would be like at Ohio State, just because of his Ohio ties, and because of his personality. “He will recruit at a level that I think will be exciting to a lot of people in the Buckeye community, just how intense he is when it comes to recruiting. Talk about some wars between Michigan head coach Brady Hoke and Urban Meyer, it’s going to be outstanding to see how that goes. That’s because you know the first thing Urban Meyer is going to want is to own the state of Ohio in recruiting. “He also will put together a staff that will be outstanding. I think that is one thing he really learned in his time at Florida, how important the coordinators and the staff are. That’s something he mentioned to me a couple of weeks ago when we were talking, of making sure the staff is taken care of in a good way (financially) to make them want to stick around in Columbus.” Former OSU and all-Pro lineman Jim Lachey, analyst for the Buckeyes’ radio broadcasts, was just as elated about the hiring of Meyer. “He’s an outstanding coach. That’s proven,” Lachey said. “We had the chance to see him go head to head with Ohio State in the national championship game, and obviously they were pretty impressive in that game. “I also got to see him in the week building up to that in the press conferences and things like that, and in the back of your mind you’re kind of thinking, ‘That guy’s pretty good.’ Certainly the results are there.” And as Herbstreit alluded, Meyer has proven to be stout in the bringing in of talent. “He’s got a name out there nationally that’s huge, that will certainly help recruiting, and that’s the name of the game,” Lachey said. “When you can get the best players, it’s going to make the coaches appear to be a lot better.” The 47-year-old Meyer, who won two national championships in six seasons at the University of Florida before spending this season as an analyst for ESPN, has been unavailable for comment. He spent the Thanksgiving weekend off the air and with his family. Funds used to hire Meyer or his assistant coaches would come from the self-sustained OSU athletic department. Tressel was paid an annual total of $3.7 million before his ouster. Ohio State still is awaiting word from the NCAA committee on infractions concerning final penalties from an NCAA investigation over the past 11 months that, among other things, caused the school to seek the resignation of 10-year coach Tressel on May 30. Fickell, 38, was elevated from assistant head coach to interim head coach that day. At the same time, the university made it clear that at regular season's end it intended to reassess the head-coaching position and that it would consider candidates -- including Fickell -- for the permanent job. However, it also said it would honor Fickell's two-year contract as assistant head coach, which runs through February 2013. Fickell was a nose guard for the Buckeyes in the mid-1990s who became an OSU assistant coach in 2002. Like Fickell and Tressel before him, Meyer would bring an Ohio-native feel to the job. Meyer grew up in Ashtabula, went to the University of Cincinnati and was a graduate assistant coach at Ohio State in the mid-1980s under Earle Bruce before leaving on a journey to several assistant-coaching jobs, including at Notre Dame. After becoming a head coach for the first time at Bowling Green in 2001, he swiftly turned the Falcons into a winner, going 17-6 over two years before leaving for Utah. He worked the same magic with the Utes, leading them to an undefeated season in 2004, including a win over Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl. Utah was the first team from a non-Bowl Championship Series conference to earn a spot in a BCS bowl. After being courted by Florida and Notre Dame near the end of that season, Meyer took the Florida job in 2005 and a year later led the Gators to a national-championship win over Ohio State. In 2008, the Gators won the national title again, this time over Oklahoma. Meyer tried to step away from coaching in December 2009 because of health concerns, but he quickly changed his mind. He took a leave of absence but returned for the 2010 season, only to retire again in December. "I have been a Division I football coach for the last 25 years and, during that time, my primary focus has been helping my teams win titles," he said. "I have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it, and I am a fierce competitor to my core. At this time in my life, however, I appreciate the sacrifices my 24/7 profession has demanded of me, and I know it is time to put my focus on my family and life away from the field. The decision to step down was a difficult one. "But after spending more than two decades motivating and celebrating the young men I've been so proud to coach, I relish the opportunity to cheer for my three terrific kids as they compete in their own respective sports. I know how fortunate I am to be in a position to make this choice and to have a family that is as loving and supportive as my amazing wife and children have always been." Ohio State football: Fickell to be defensive coordinator for Meyer Luke Fickell will remain on the Ohio State coaching staff under new coach Urban Meyer as defensive coordinator, the Dispatch has learned. Fickell served as coach this year after Jim Tressel’s resignation. With a new head coach, there’d been speculation about whether Fickell would be offered a spot on the staff or whether he would pursue a head coaching job elsewhere. A DeSales and Ohio State graduate, Fickell decided to stay put. Before taking over for Tressel, Fickell served as co-defensive coordinator with Jim Heacock and linebackers coach. Heacock is not expected to return.	New coach promises his team will be 'relentless' Urban Meyer is introduced as the new Ohio State head football coach. Urban Meyer at press conference Meyer holding one of two National Championship Trophies won in 6 years at Florida Coach Meyer coaching at Florida Coach Tressel congratulates Coach Meyer after Florida defeated Ohio State in the National Championship game in 2006 Coach Fickell

GAME 13



CLICK HERE FOR 2011 DETAILED GAME BY GAME STATS & HEISMAN WATCH

Ohio State football: Meyer signs 7-year contract

Ohio State football: Fickell to be defensive coordinator for Meyer

New coach promises his team will be 'relentless'

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Ohio State Buckeyes football HISTORY

Contents

[edit] Championships

[edit] National championships

[edit] Undefeated seasons

[edit] Conference championships

[edit] History

[edit] 1890–1933: beginnings

[edit] 1934–1950: the rise of a powerhouse

[edit] 1951–1978: the Woody Hayes era

[edit] 1979–2000: the Bruce and Cooper years

[edit] 2001–2011: the Tressel era

[edit] Home venues

[edit] Coaches

[edit] Current coaching staff

[edit] Buckeye football traditions

[edit] Marching band

[edit] Rivalries

[edit] All-time records

[edit] Results by year

[edit] All-time bowl games

[edit] All-time Big Ten records

[edit] Individual awards and achievements

[edit] Heisman Trophy winners

[edit] Lombardi Award

[edit] Maxwell Award

[edit] Outland Trophy

[edit] Walter Camp Award

[edit] Other awards

[edit] All-American and All-Conference honors

[edit] List of All-Americans

[edit] 1910s

[edit] 1920s

[edit] 1930s

[edit] 1940s

[edit] 1950s

[edit] 1960s

[edit] 1970s

[edit] 1980s

[edit] 1990s

[edit] 2000s

[edit] Team season MVPs

[edit] All-Century Team

[edit] Ohio State's All-Time Team

[edit] NCAA Coach of the Year

[edit] Academic awards and achievements

[edit] Rhodes Scholarship

[edit] College Sports Information Directors of America Academic All-Americans

[edit] National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame

[edit] Individual school records

[edit] Rushing records

[edit] Passing records

[edit] Receiving records

[edit] Kickoff return records

[edit] Punt return records

[edit] Buckeyes in the NFL

[edit] Players selected in NFL Drafts

[edit] Pro Football Hall of Fame

[edit] Radio and TV

[edit] References

[edit] Further reading

[edit]