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Game Thread Ohio State 33, Washington 14 (Final)

ToledoBlade

Buckeyes foil Washington
Laurinaitis ignites big day by OSU defense

By MATT MARKEY
BLADE SPORTS WRITER

SEATTLE - There was a rabid football team waiting for the Ohio State Buckeyes here yesterday. A re-energized band with a significant purple-clad following, and even a huge flotilla of boats.

Washington came to this war with an army, and a navy.

But Ohio State had the right blood-and-guts foot soldier - linebacker James Laurinaitis - to defang the Huskies, bleach the lavender out of their horde, and sink the hopes of the fleet of several hundred boats moored just outside the end zone, resulting in a 33-14 win.

Laurinaitis intercepted two passes, both times derailing Washington drives deep in Ohio State territory, and led the Buckeyes' defense that allowed only a late touchdown in each half.

Continued......
 
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Link

Tressel: OSU wasn't rubbing it in
Jason Lloyd Journal Register News Service
09/16/2007


SEATTLE - How much talent do the Buckeyes have at tailback? They scored Saturday without even trying.
Ohio State was just trying to run the clock out in the fourth quarter when Brandon Saine caught a crease on the edge and broke it for a 37-yard touchdown run as the game clock expired. Jim Tressel wasn't upset that Saine scored, but he wasn't particularly happy about it, either. Tressel apologized to Washington coach Ty Willingham for it during their postgame handshake.
"I did not mean for that," Tressel said. "That was an off-tackle play that I thought would gain 2 yards and we'd call it a day. He's got great speed ... I'm glad (Saine) got some reps, but I wished that didn't happen."
Willingham diffused any speculation by opening his postgame remarks with acknowledging the last touchdown was unintentional.
"They ran the football to run time out, and we didn't leverage the right way," he said. "All of a sudden, it bounced outside. That's it."

Continued.....
 
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[sardonic understatement]I realize that not everyone here is a fan of ESPN...[/sardonic understatement]

but at THIS LINK there is a great post game video, showing a good interview with JT by Jack Arute.
  • Players from both teams are seen taking a knee together at mid-field
  • Hang-on-Sloopy is heard clearly in the backround
  • The O-H-I-O chant during the song is heard loudly. :biggrin:
 
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Just a few quick thoughts....

1. This is the first time that I've seen the Buckeyes get pissed off in a while. I mean really pissed. It all started early in the third quarter. Washington got the ball to begin the second half, and returned the opening kick 35 yards to their own 41. The Huskies proceeded to drive 40 yards in 7 plays, down to the Ohio State 19 yard line. Then, for some reason, the Buckeyes kicked the intensity up about a dozen notches: two straight TFL's (Grant, Jenkins) and then a sack by Laurinaitis cost the Huskies 10 yards, and set them up for a long FG attempt, which was blocked by Kurt Coleman (who got by his man so quickly that he almost overran the kick). After that, it was lights out for UW until the 3rd- and 4th-stringers hit the field in garbage time. That was the kind of defensive intensity that the Buckeyes rode to a national championship in 2002. Now, of course, I'm not saying....

2. A lot of Buckeye fans like to whine about the national media, and how they "hype" other teams and "disrespect" Ohio State. Well, that hype can go both ways, you know. In 1997, Andy Katzenmoyer won the Butkus award primarily based on his early-season performance against Missouri, the game in which he planted Mizzou quarterback Corby Jones into the turf at Memorial Stadium. The Big Kat's performance on the road against an upset-minded non-conference team with a supposedly unstoppable dual-threat quarterback (sound familiar?) was indelibly etched in the minds of Butkus voters, and the race for that award was over in week four. The same thing might have happened yesterday for James Laurinaitis. As mentioned above, it was JL's sack early in the third quarter which helped to shift the momentum in favor of the Buckeyes, and his two athletic interceptions stopped Washington scoring drives deep in Ohio State territory. The final stats: 8 tackles, 2 interceptions, 1 sack, 1 TFL ... and 1 Butkus Award.

3. Speaking of the national media.... In 2002, many media types predicted that the Buckeyes would get thomped in the third game of the season by a team with an all-world quarterback and a super-athletic defense. Well, the Buckeyes knocked around that Heisman-candidate QB (Jake Gesser), and Maurice Clarett thrashed that suffocating defense for 230 yards, as Ohio State won handily by 19 points. That supposedly unbeatable team? Washington State, of course. Why bring up that bit of ancient history? Because yesterday, in their third game of the season, the Buckeyes beat another supposedly unbeatable team from the state of Washington, with another phenom QB (Jake Locker), thrashed another athletic defense (that West Coast speed, y'know) for 263 yards on the ground, and won the game by (you guessed it) 19 points. It must be one of them coincidences....

4. Speaking of Locker, add him to the Lloyd the Barber gallery:

JAKELOCKER6_30A150.JPG


Sorry, couldn't resist. The kid's gonna be a good one, and I'm glad that we caught him as a freshman.

5. Malcolm Jenkins will eventually be added to the list of Ohio State cornerbacks who were drafted in the first round (Springs, Winfield, Plummer, Clements, Gamble). But Donald Washington is nearly as good, and Chimdi Chekwa has shown well as a nickel back. If the corners can continue to lock down their men, then the Buckeyes defense will be tough to beat.

6. Ben who? Devon who? Joseph who? Martez who? Josh who? CAMERON HEYWARD. Enough said.

7. Too much good yesterday to complain about the bad, but this team still has some holes. Good thing that the Buckeyes have five weeks to fill them, before the real season starts.
 
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Buckeyes weren't worried
By John Boyle and Rich Myhre
Herald Writers
SEATTLE ? Trailing Washington 7-3 through two quarters was bad enough for Ohio State. Even worse, the Buckeyes' touted defense had yielded the go-ahead touchdown in the final three seconds before halftime.

Lesser teams might have faltered, but not Ohio State, one of the nation's premier programs. The Buckeyes played for a national championship a year ago, so a four-point halftime deficit, while unusual, was hardly a calamity.

"I really liked the way the kids approached the halftime," said OSU head coach Jim Tressel. "There wasn't panic. There wasn't fear. There wasn't anything other than talking about what we had to do to get better."

Looking into his players' eyes as they prepared to return for the second half, Tressel said, "you could see there was a resolve to get better."

Continued.......
 
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Good post LJB.

My .02:

1) I think part of them getting pissed was shaking off some of the doubt still lingering from 1/8/07. Not doubt from outside, but doubt found between their own ears. IMO they came to a fork in the road, one path was to let the self doubt/national perception doubt win and say well maybe we just aren't that good. The other path was to get pissed, say fuck that and start to show glimpses of how good they can be.

2) What I like most about this year is that you can tell the team isn't on the same level as the elite teams yet, so they are going to have to keep working to get better every week. Now everyone says that every year but you can just tell this team as of the second half vs UW honestly feels that. There won't be any fat and lazy syndrome with this bunch because they KNOW they aren't good enough....yet.

3) Much like 2002 I see the elite teams and am pretty sure we can't hang with them right now. Just like 2002 I have the peaceful, calming feeling of knowing we don't have to be able to right now...we have untill January. All we have to do is win each game and earn the right to get there.

4) I think this team has tasted just enough failure to be scared, that means they will take coaching and buy into the one game at a time/steady improvement stuff. Tasted failure/fear/adversity without wrecking the season. Absolutely cannot overstate the importance of that as far as I'm concerned.

5) I'll take my chances with the talent we have, with the right attitude and our coaches.


Lets go get NW
 
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The number one thing I took from this game is that our team is gaining an identity and Boeckman is growing at the QB spot......kudos to the offensive line today, they played well.

Areas of concern: return teams

Canton

m_16mn_C1_ROBISKIE_091.jpg
BRIAN’S SONG Ohio State
receiver Brian Robiskie’s
68-yard touchdown pass gave the Buckeyes
the lead to stay early in the second half Saturday. Robiskie
finished with four catches for 107 yards.​


Fired-up Bucks
Sunday, September 16, 2007
By GREGG BELL
AP Sports Writer

SEATTLE Usually stoic in his scarlet sweater vest, Jim Tressel was jumping around the sideline.

In the huddle, normally low-key Todd Boeckman barked at his Ohio State teammates, as the quarterback making his third career start joined his coach in trying to ignite the Buckeyes.

It worked.

Chris Wells ran for 135 yards and a touchdown, Boeckman threw for two more scores and No. 10 Ohio State scored 24 consecutive points in the second half to beat Washington, 33-14, on Saturday.

"Oh, man, I was really surprised. I've never seen Todd like that," Wells said of the 23-year-old junior replacement for Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith.

Continued.....
 
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DDN

OHIO STATE 33, WASHINGTON 14
Tressel's excitement revitalizes Bucks

After blocking a field goal attempt in the second half, OSU scored two touchdowns in a 39-second span to turn a 7-3 deficit into a 17-7 lead.


By Doug Harris
Staff Writer

Sunday, September 16, 2007

SEATTLE ? ? The normally placid Jim Tressel showed more emotion than a "Price is Right" contestant after Ohio State blocked a field goal early in the second half, jumping around and pumping his fists.
Tressel even shocked his players by becoming so animated. And if it was an attempt to inject some emotion into a sputtering offense, it worked.
The 10th-ranked Buckeyes scored two touchdowns in a 39-second span ? turning a 7-3 deficit into a 17-7 lead ? and rang up 24 unanswered points on their way to a 33-14 win over Washington in Seattle Saturday.

Continued.....
 
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DDN

OSU NOTES
Buckeyes show signs of life, leave some bruises


By Doug Harris
Staff Writer

Sunday, September 16, 2007

SEATTLE ? ? Ohio State coach Jim Tressel has been saying all season that his freshman will need to do more than just give out chest bumps on the sidelines, and they had a big assist in a 33-14 victory over Washington on Saturday.
Devon Torrence forced a fumble on a third-quarter kickoff, and fellow freshman James Scott recovered it at the Huskie 25-yard line. The Buckeyes scored two plays later.

Continued......
 
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DDN

Keys to OSU ?s win against Washington


By Doug Harris
Dayton Daily News

Sunday, September 16, 2007

Ohio State safety Kurt Coleman doesn't know whether he deserves the credit he was given for a blocked field goal, but he does know how important that play became.
Ahead 7-3 early in the third quarter, Washington was poised to build on its lead after getting inside the Buckeyes' red zone.
But the defense forced a 46-yard field-goal try, which was blocked by either Coleman or linebacker Larry Grant.

Continued......
 
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