Canton Rep
Ohio State: Animal?s son making name for himself
Thursday, September 14, 2006 By RUSTY MILLER AP Sports Writer
CINCINNATI AT OHIO STATE
Saturday, noon
Ohio Stadium, Columbus
TV Channel 43
COLUMBUS James Laurinaitis remembers how excited his middle-school friends would get when they would come over and would join him in raiding his dad?s closet and putting on the old man?s tights, face paint and shoulder pads.
Needless to say, Laurinaitis? father isn?t a lawyer or doctor.
The tights, the paint and the Mad Max-inspired outfit were part of the squared-circle persona of Animal, part of the WWF?s Road Warriors aka Legion of Doom.
Cheered and alternately vilified by thousands in arenas across the country, Animal (or Joe Laurinaitis) was just a typical dad to James.
?He?s a very proud father. I know whenever I?d go to his matches, it seemed like Stone Cold (Steve Austin) or The Rock, they?d come up to me and say, ?Oh, so I hear you?re doing great and this and this and this,? ? James said with a wide smile. ?And I was like, ?Is my dad trying to brag again about me?? He tells everyone everything about what?s going on.?
Joe Laurinaitis was just like other fathers, coaching and counseling their sons. Except for the fact that during working hours, he was part of one of the most feared tag teams in the topsy-turvy world of professional wrestling.
His son is making his own name now, without the catchy nickname. He had a career-best 13 tackles, intercepted a pass and forced a fumble inside the Ohio State 10 in the top-ranked Buckeyes? 24-7 victory over defending champion and then-No. 2 Texas on Saturday night.
?He showed it on that big stage,? fellow linebacker Marcus Freeman said. ?He had an excellent game and showed the world how good of a linebacker he is.?
Joe and Julie Laurinaitis were there to watch their son?s breakout performance. Then the phone started ringing.
?My dad got a lot of calls,? James said. ?The guy known as The Undertaker, he?s a huge Texas fan. He called my dad and said, ?Congratulations ? but it won?t happen again!? ?
Texas and Ohio State aren?t scheduled to meet again so there is little chance of a repeat, but don?t be surprised if the second most famous member of the Laurinaitis family continues to grab headlines.
?He really grew in confidence,? Coach Jim Tressel said. ?He?s going to end up being a very good player for us. He has a lot of pride in the tradition of linebackers at Ohio State and he understands he?s got a lot more work to do, but he studies the film hard, he trains in the weight room hard, he knows the game and he?s a bright player.?
Laurinaitis played in all 12 games a year ago as a freshman and was on the field for almost the entire Michigan game after starter Bobby Carpenter broke his ankle on the first play. With Carpenter out, Laurinaitis started the Fiesta Bowl victory over Notre Dame and then, with Carpenter and the other two linebackers graduating to the pros, he nailed down the spot for good during the preseason.
The 6-foot-3, 244-pounder was the Minnesota defensive player of the year as a senior at Wayzata High School, where he also was the captain of the hockey team. Laurinaitis ended up choosing the Buckeyes over the hometown Golden Gophers because he?d have a chance to be tutored by Carpenter, A.J. Hawk and Anthony Schlegel in 2005.
He?s a fast learner, apparently. All three text-messaged or called him with congratulations after his big game on national television. He also was selected as the Big Ten?s defensive player of the week.
It?s enough to give a 19-year-old a big head ? as if his family would ever let that happen.
His father asked why Texas tailback Selvin Young was able to juke him so easily. His mother said he could have had more tackles. And his younger sister?
?After the Northern Illinois game, she asked my mom, ?Why is James always on his stomach? Does he ever run around to the ball?? ? Laurinaitis said with a laugh. ?They keep me levelheaded.?