[BB73]

ozone.quotebook

Forty Pounds: The defensive line was a question mark position coming into the season, but it is rapidly becoming apparent that not only do the Buckeyes have capable defensive linemen, but they also have depth.

Last weekend against Purdue starter Todd Denlinger was unable to play and fellow starter Vernon Gholston was hobbled as well. OSU defensive line coach Jim Heacock simply plugged in a couple of more players and the Buckeye defense went on to dominate the Boilermaker offense.

"Dexter (Larimore) and Doug (Worthington) and Nader (Abdallah), all three kind of filled in there and rolled through. I thought they played well. I thought they were real unselfish and did a nice job inside," said Heacock.
"One of the great things about playing eight guys early is you know about half way through the season you're going to start getting some guys banged up.

...


Abdallah in particular has been a pleasant surprise this season, and according to Heacock, that is no accident.

"You talk about the light coming on for somebody that's not playing, he's a great example of a guy like that," said Heacock.

"All of a sudden he comes in and says 'I'm going to come in here every morning at 6:00 AM and I'm going to show you and I'm going to get this done.'

Cont'd ...