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Game Data: Northwestern at Ohio State
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Brett Basanez
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Steve Helwagen
Managing Editor
Date: Nov 7, 2005
We have pertinent information, depth charts and a prediction on Saturday's home finale against Northwestern (noon, ABC).
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Game Data: Northwestern at Ohio State
* Date, Time: Sat., Nov. 12, noon (Eastern)
* Location: Ohio Stadium
* TV: ABC (regional, coverage map is not out but it appears NU-OSU is the only game at noon, it could go to the Eastern two-thirds of the U.S. with a late Pac-10 game going instead to the West Coast; announcers, Brent Musberger, Gary Danielson, Jack Arute).
* 2005 Records, Rankings: Ohio State, 7-2 overall, 5-1 Big Ten, ranked 10th in Associated Press poll and USA Today coaches poll; Northwestern, 6-2 overall, 4-2 Big Ten, ranked 25th in AP poll.
* Coaches: Ohio State, Jim Tressel (fifth year at OSU, 47-13; 20th year overall, 182-70-2; vs. Northwestern, 3-1); Northwestern, Randy Walker (seventh year at Northwestern, 36-43; 16th year overall, 95-78-5; vs. OSU, 1-3).
* Series History: Ohio State leads the all-time series 55-14-1, including 30-8-0 in Columbus. Last year, Northwestern upset OSU 33-27 in overtime in Evanston. The win snapped OSU’s 24-game winning streak in the series dating to a 1971 loss (14-10) in Columbus. OSU had also won 14 straight games in Evanston, dating to a 1958 loss (10-0). OSU has won the last 12 meetings in Columbus, including 20-0 in 2003.
* Northwestern Schedule: Sept. 3, Ohio U., W 38-14; Sept. 10, Northern Illinois, W 38-37; Sept. 17, at Arizona State, L 52-21; Sept. 24, Penn State, L 34-29; Oct. 8, Wisconsin, W 51-48; Oct. 15, at Purdue, W 34-29; Oct. 22, at Michigan State, W 49-14; Oct. 29, Michigan, L 33-17; Nov. 5, Iowa, W 28-27; Nov. 12, at Ohio State; Nov. 19, at Illinois.
* Northwestern Key Players (2005 Stats): QB Brett Basanez (236 of 365 passing, 2,845 yards, 16 TDs, 5 INTs; 85 carries, 320 yards, 5 TDs), RB Tyrell Sutton (184 carries, 1,085 yards, 16 TDs), WR Shaun Herbert (66 catches, 744 yards, 5 TDs), WR Jonathan Fields (46 catches, 402 yards), WR Mark Philmore (39 catches, 526 yards, 4 TDs), MLB Tim McGarigle (122 tackles, 6-1/2 TFLs), WLB Nick Roach (57 tackles, 3-1/2 TFLs), CB Marquice Cole (40 tackles, 4 INTs), FS Herschel Henderson (50 tackles, 3 INTs).
* Northwestern Fast Facts: Location: Evanston, Ill.; Enrollment, 7,800; Nickname, Wildcats; Colors, Purple and White; Stadium, Ryan Field (surface, grass; capacity, 47,130).
Depth Charts
Ohio State Offense
SE 4 Santonio Holmes, 5-11, 190, Jr.
8 Roy Hall, 6-3, 240, Jr.
LT 50 Doug Datish, 6-5, 295, Jr.
75 Alex Boone, 6-8, 315, Fr.
LG 77 Rob Sims, 6-4, 310, Sr.
59 John Conroy, 6-3, 295, Sr.
C 55 Nick Mangold, 6-4, 290, Sr.
50 Doug Datish, 6-5, 295, Jr.
RG 72 T.J. Downing, 6-5, 305, Jr.
59 John Conroy, 6-3, 295, Sr.
RT 75 Alex Boone, 6-8, 315, Fr.
or 74 Kirk Barton, 6-7, 325, So.
TE 81 Marcel Frost, 6-5, 255, So.
87 Brandon Smith, 6-3, 240, R-Fr.
FL 7 Ted Ginn Jr., 6-0, 175, So.
5 Albert Dukes, 6-1, 190, R-Fr.
QB 10 Troy Smith, 6-1, 215, Jr.
12 Justin Zwick, 6-4, 225, Jr.
TB 25 Antonio Pittman, 5-11, 195, So.
34 Maurice Wells, 5-10, 185, Fr.
FB 89 Stan White Jr., 6-3, 242, Jr.
49 Dionte Johnson, 6-0, 250, So.
SL 11 Anthony Gonzalez, 6-0, 195, So.
85 Brian Robiskie, 6-3, 190, Fr.
K 23 Josh Huston, 6-1, 195, Sr.
85 Ryan Pretorius, 5-10, 190, R-Fr.
Ohio State Defense
DE 97 David Patterson, 6-3, 285, Jr.
99 Jay Richardson, 6-6, 276, Jr.
DT 94 Marcus Green, 6-3, 290, Sr.
97 David Patterson, 6-3, 285, Jr.
DT 90 Quinn Pitcock, 6-3, 295, Jr.
98 Joel Penton, 6-5, 290, Jr.
DE 57 Mike Kudla, 6-3, 265, Sr.
50 Vernon Gholston, 6-4, 260, So.
SLB 42 Bobby Carpenter, 6-3, 255, Sr.
33 James Laurinaitis, 6-3, 231, Fr.
MLB 51 Anthony Schlegel, 6-1, 251, Sr.
5 Mike D’Andrea, 6-3, 248, Jr.
WLB 47 A.J. Hawk, 6-1, 240, Sr.
52 John Kerr, 6-1, 246, Jr.
CB 26 Ashton Youboty, 6-1, 188, Jr.
2 Malcolm Jenkins, 6-1, 180, Fr.
FS 21 Nate Salley, 6-3, 220, Sr.
32 Brandon Mitchell, 6-3, 205, Jr.
SS 9 Donte Whitner, 5-11, 205, Jr.
3 Jamario O’Neal, 6-1, 180, Fr.
CB 2 Malcolm Jenkins, 6-1, 180, Fr.
or 6 Tyler Everett, 5-11, 202, Sr.
NB 32 Brandon Mitchell, 6-3, 205, Jr.
34 Rob Harley, 6-2, 202, Sr.
P 15 A.J. Trapasso, 6-1, 220, R-Fr.
LS 68 Drew Norman, 6-0, 230, Jr.
Northwestern Offense
WR 3 Shaun Herbert, 6-1, 200, Jr.
1 Jonathan Fields, 5-8, 175, Sr.
TE 44 Erryn Cobb, 6-1, 255, Jr.
83 Sean Mansfield, 6-3, 245, Sr.
LT 74 Dylan Thiry, 6-8, 300, So.
78 Kurt Mattes, 6-6, 280, Fr.
LG 51 Joe Tripodi, 6-3, 300, Jr.
59 Alex Rucks, 6-4, 300, R-Fr.
C 62 Austin Matthews, 6-5, 285, So.
52 Joel Belding, 6-3, 300, R-Fr.
RG 56 Ryan Keenan, 6-4, 290, Jr.
77 Adam Crum, 6-1, 280, So.
RT 63 Zach Strief, 6-7, 335, Sr.
78 Kurt Mattes, 6-6, 280, Fr.
QB 14 Brett Basanez, 6-2, 215, Sr.
18 C.J. Bacher, 6-2, 190, R-Fr.
TB 19 Tyrell Sutton, 5-9, 190, Fr.
11 Brandon Roberson, 5-9, 195, So.
FB 49 Frayne Abernathy, 6-3, 245, So.
2 Chris Malleo, 6-3, 220, So.
WR 84 Kim Thompson, 6-4, 195, So.
89 Ross Lane, 6-3, 180, R-Fr.
WR 9 Mark Philmore, 5-10, 185, Sr.
8 Rasheed Ward, 5-10, 170, Fr.
K 93 Joel Howells, 6-4, 220, Jr.
Northwestern Defense
DE 95 Kevin Mims, 6-3, 270, R-Fr.
91 Mark Koehn, 6-3, 260, So.
DT 67 Barry Cofield, 6-4, 305, Sr.
92 Keegan Kennedy, 6-3, 250, Fr.
DT 53 Trevor Schultz, 6-2, 295, Jr.
70 John Gill, 6-3, 285, Fr.
DE 91 Mark Koehn, 6-3, 260, So.
72 David Ngene, 6-3, 275, So.
WLB 38 Nick Roach, 6-2, 245, Jr.
or 40 Eddie Simpson, 6-0, 225, So.
MLB 41 Tim McGarigle, 6-1, 235, Sr.
42 Demetrius Eaton, 6-2, 235, Jr.
SLB 43 Adam Kadela, 6-2, 240, So.
37 Campbell Black, 6-3, 225, Jr.
CB 20 Marquice Cole, 5-9, 185, Jr.
6 Cory Dious, 5-9, 165, Jr.
SS 25 Frederic Tarver, 6-2, 215, Sr.
27 Reggie McPherson, 6-1, 190, So.
FS 24 Herschel Henderson, 6-3, 195, Sr.
27 Reggie McPherson, 6-1, 190, So.
CB 22 Deante Battle, 5-10, 180, So.
6 Cory Dious, 5-9, 165, Jr.
P 15 Slade Larscheid, 6-1, 205, Jr.
Breaking It Down
* When Ohio State Has The Ball: The Ohio State offense has enjoyed three straight 40-point games in the wins over Indiana, Minnesota and Illinois. I think you can safely make it four in a row with this week’s game with Northwestern, which is 117th nationally in total defense (494.4 yards per game) and 99th in scoring (32.0 points per game).
Northwestern is almost the anti-Ohio State: Where the Buckeyes are built on great defense and special teams and adequate offense, the Wildcats are great offense and so-so defense and special teams.
My feeling is Antonio Pittman will again push past the 100-yard barrier on the ground and I think that Troy Smith may finally hit the 300-yard mark in passing. NU linebacker Tim McGarigle, defensive tackle Barry Cofield and free safety Herschel Henderson make the Wildcats strong up the middle. But I’m not sure NU is quite as strong on the perimeter. I’d look for Santonio Holmes and Ted Ginn Jr. to try and exploit those open areas early and often.
* When Northwestern Has The Ball: NU has been able to win so much because their offense, led by four-year starting quarterback Brett Basanez, had been able to outscore their defense. The Wildcats never give up and they have won four games by five points or less, including last week’s come-from-behind 28-27 win over Iowa.
Basanez is a true student of the game and he has a decent offensive line and a fleet of receivers to throw to. Plus, freshman tailback Tyrell Sutton – all 5-9 and 190 pounds of him – may not have been good enough for Ohio State. But he’s already a 1,000-yard rusher for Northwestern. He has truly been a godsend.
This will be a great match-up of OSU’s defense (ranked seventh nationally at 280.2 yards per game) against NU’s offense (amazingly also seventh nationally at 508.1 ypg). My feeling is the Wildcats will move the ball between the 20s. But, as OSU was able to do at critical junctures against Minnesota, I imagine the Buckeyes will slam the door in the red zone.
* How It Will Go: Ohio State can ill afford another slow start on offense. If the Buckeyes go three-and-out or have to settle for early field goals instead of touchdowns, they could be looking at an early deficit. But, again, the OSU defense should have what it takes to contain Northwestern and keep the scoring down to a reasonable level.
With this being the final home game for 16 OSU seniors and a shot at the Big Ten championship at stake, I don’t think emotion or inspiration will be lacking. The Buckeyes will need to play great assignment football – especially on defense – to win this game. This is a team that scored 29 points on Penn State, 51 on Wisconsin, 49 on Michigan State and 28 on Iowa.
On the other side, I think Smith may be ready for another career day. If he and Ginn and Holmes can keep their magic going, OSU can win this game comfortably and give their seniors a true send-off. I’ve got it:
Ohio State 44-21
* For The Record: I am 7-2 straight-up and 5-4 against-the-spread with Ohio State. (As of Monday, OSU was listed as a 15-point favorite.)
On this week’s Bucknuts Radio Hour, Jerry Rudzinski predicted OSU 41-28, Kirk Larrabee said OSU 34-17 and Mr. Bucknuts went OSU 33-17. Roy Lamberton, editor of PurpleReign.com (northwestern.scout.com), picked Northwestern 33-30.
-- Steve Helwagen
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