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QB Troy Smith (2006 Heisman Trophy Winner)

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ESPN Classic yesterday had OSU-scUM and PSU-scUM.
Great hearing Mush call Troy, "Houdini"!:biggrin:
And the scUM-PSU game has Nit fans pulling out their hair and barfing!:slappy:
That game has just become one of my favorite Classic games.:biggrin:
 
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I found a stupid error in ESPN's Fiesta Bowl preview.






Hawk, Ohio State try to shut down Quinn, Notre Dame


<TABLE class=tablehead cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=gamehead><TD colSpan=8>Matchup</TD></TR><TR class=colhead align=middle><TD></TD><TD>W-L</TD><TD>PF</TD><TD>PA</TD><TD>HOME</TD><TD>ROAD</TD><TD>DIV</TD><TD>CONF</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=middle><TD align=left>ND</TD><TD>9-2</TD><TD>420</TD><TD>260</TD><TD>4-2</TD><TD>5-0</TD><TD>1-0</TD><TD>0-0</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=middle><TD align=left>OSU</TD><TD>9-2</TD><TD>358</TD><TD>163</TD><TD>6-1</TD><TD>3-1</TD><TD>7-1</TD><TD>7-1</TD></TR><TR class=colhead><TD colSpan=8>· Complete Standings</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE class=tablehead cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=gamehead><TD colSpan=2>The Fan Pick</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow vAlign=top><TD style="WIDTH: 50px">
87.gif
</TD><TD>50.4% of Bowl Pick'em players predict Notre Dame will win this game.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=tablehead cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=gamehead><TD class=gamehead colSpan=2>In Close Games (7 points or less. Since 2001)</TD></TR><TR class=colhead><TD></TD><TD align=middle>RECORD</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow><TD>ND</TD><TD align=middle>7 - 9</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow><TD>OSU</TD><TD align=middle>13 - 5</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE class=tablehead cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=gamehead><TD colSpan=5>Record When Scoring... (Since 2001)</TD></TR><TR class=colhead align=middle><TD align=left></TD><TD>20 OR MORE</TD><TD>30 OR MORE</TD><TD>40 OR MORE</TD><TD>50 OR MORE</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=middle><TD align=left>ND</TD><TD>32-6-0</TD><TD>18-3-0</TD><TD>7-1-0</TD><TD>1-0-0</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=middle><TD align=left>OSU</TD><TD>42-6-0</TD><TD>24-0-0</TD><TD>9-0-0</TD><TD>2-0-0</TD></TR><TR class=colhead align=middle><TD align=left></TD><TD>LESS THAN 20</TD><TD>LESS THAN 30</TD><TD>LESS THAN 40</TD><TD>LESS THAN 50</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=middle><TD align=left>ND</TD><TD>3-18-0</TD><TD>17-21-0</TD><TD>28-23-0</TD><TD>34-24-0</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=middle><TD align=left>OSU</TD><TD>7-7-0</TD><TD>25-13-0</TD><TD>40-13-0</TD><TD>47-13-0</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE class=tablehead cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=gamehead><TD colSpan=3>TEAM AVERAGES & NCAA RANKS</TD></TR><TR class=colhead><TD style="WIDTH: 40px">OFFENSE</TD><TD style="WIDTH: 20px">TM</TD><TD>PER GAME AVERAGE / NCAA RANK</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow><TD style="WIDTH: 40px" rowSpan=2>Total Yards</TD><TD class=bi style="WIDTH: 20px">ND</TD><TD noWrap>
497.4 / 10th



</TD>





</TR><TR class=oddrow><TD style="WIDTH: 20px">OSU</TD><TD noWrap>
413.9 / 37th


</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow><TD style="WIDTH: 40px" rowSpan=2>Passing Yards</TD><TD class=bi style="WIDTH: 20px">ND</TD><TD noWrap>
342.5 / 4th


</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow><TD style="WIDTH: 20px">OSU</TD><TD noWrap>
224.4 / 74th


</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow><TD style="WIDTH: 40px" rowSpan=2>Rushing Yards</TD><TD style="WIDTH: 20px">ND</TD><TD noWrap>
154.8 / 49th


</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow><TD class=bi style="WIDTH: 20px">OSU</TD><TD noWrap>
189.5 / 29th


</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow><TD style="WIDTH: 40px" rowSpan=2>Points Scored</TD><TD class=bi style="WIDTH: 20px">ND</TD><TD noWrap>
38.2 / 6th


</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow><TD style="WIDTH: 20px">OSU</TD><TD noWrap>
32.5 / 27th


</TD></TR><TR class=colhead><TD colSpan=3>Full Team Stats: Notre Dame | Ohio State</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

<TABLE class=tablehead style="BORDER-RIGHT: #dcdcdc 1px solid; BORDER-TOP: #dcdcdc 1px solid; MARGIN: 0px; BORDER-LEFT: #dcdcdc 1px solid; BORDER-BOTTOM: #dcdcdc 0px solid" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=gamehead><TD>Individual Leaders</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE style="WIDTH: 100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD style="WIDTH: 50%"><TABLE class=tablehead style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 5px" cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=stathead style="BACKGROUND: #313a98"><TD colSpan=5>Notre Dame Passing</TD><TR class=colhead align=right><TD align=left></TD><TD>CMP%</TD><TD>YDS</TD><TD>TD</TD><TD>INT</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Quinn</TD><TD>64.9</TD><TD>3633</TD><TD>32</TD><TD>7</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Wolke</TD><TD>33.3</TD><TD>28</TD><TD>0</TD><TD>1</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>



</TD><TD style="WIDTH: 50%"><TABLE class=tablehead style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 5px" cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=stathead style="BACKGROUND: #de3129"><TD colSpan=5>Ohio State Passing</TD><TR class=colhead align=right><TD align=left></TD><TD>CMP%</TD><TD>YDS</TD><TD>TD</TD><TD>INT</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Smith</TD><TD>62.2</TD><TD>1940</TD><TD>14</TD><TD>4</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Zwick</TD><TD>72.4</TD><TD>359</TD><TD>1</TD><TD>1</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>



</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE style="WIDTH: 100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD style="WIDTH: 50%"><TABLE class=tablehead cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=stathead style="BACKGROUND: #313a98"><TD colSpan=5>Notre Dame Rushing</TD><TR class=colhead align=right><TD align=left></TD><TD>CAR</TD><TD>YDS</TD><TD>AVG</TD><TD>TD</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Walker</TD><TD>237</TD><TD>1106</TD><TD>4.7</TD><TD>6</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Thomas</TD><TD>63</TD><TD>248</TD><TD>3.9</TD><TD>5</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>



</TD><TD style="WIDTH: 50%"><TABLE class=tablehead cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=stathead style="BACKGROUND: #de3129"><TD colSpan=5>Ohio State Rushing</TD><TR class=colhead align=right><TD align=left></TD><TD>CAR</TD><TD>YDS</TD><TD>AVG</TD><TD>TD</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Pittman</TD><TD>222</TD><TD>1195</TD><TD>5.4</TD><TD>6</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Smith</TD><TD>123</TD><TD>545</TD><TD>4.4</TD><TD>11</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>



</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE style="WIDTH: 100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD style="WIDTH: 50%"><TABLE class=tablehead style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px" cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=stathead style="BACKGROUND: #313a98"><TD colSpan=5>Notre Dame Receiving</TD><TR class=colhead align=right><TD align=left></TD><TD>REC</TD><TD>YDS</TD><TD>AVG</TD><TD>TD</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Samardzija</TD><TD>72</TD><TD>1215</TD><TD>16.9</TD><TD>15</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Stovall</TD><TD>60</TD><TD>1023</TD><TD>17.1</TD><TD>11</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>



</TD><TD style="WIDTH: 50%"><TABLE class=tablehead style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px" cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=stathead style="BACKGROUND: #de3129"><TD colSpan=5>Ohio State Receiving</TD><TR class=colhead align=right><TD align=left></TD><TD>REC</TD><TD>YDS</TD><TD>AVG</TD><TD>TD</TD></TR><TR class=oddrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Holmes</TD><TD>48</TD><TD>853</TD><TD>17.8</TD><TD>10</TD></TR><TR class=evenrow align=right><TD noWrap align=left>Ginn Jr.</TD><TD>43</TD><TD>636</TD><TD>14.8</TD><TD>3</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>



</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=tablehead style="BORDER-RIGHT: #dcdcdc 1px solid; BORDER-TOP: #dcdcdc 0px solid; MARGIN: 0px; BORDER-LEFT: #dcdcdc 1px solid; BORDER-BOTTOM: #dcdcdc 1px solid" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=3><TBODY><TR class=colhead><TD>Full Player Stats: Notre Dame | Ohio State</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
No. 5 Notre Dame (9-2) at No. 4 Ohio St (9-2) January 2 Fiesta Bowl 4:30 pm EST
TEMPE, Arizona (Ticker) -- A.J. Hawk would love nothing more than to end his Ohio State career with a third Fiesta Bowl win - and a first over his girlfriend's brother.
The Lombardi Award winner, Hawk leads fourth-ranked Ohio State into a marquee Fiesta Bowl matchup with star quarterback Brady Quinn and No. 5 Notre Dame.
An All-American senior linebacker, Hawk is dating Quinn's sister, Laura. Hawk, who paced the Buckeyes in tackles for a third straight year and was the Big Ten Conference Defensive Player of the Year, helped the team lead the nation in rushing defense (74.5) and finish fifth in total defense (275.3).
Ohio State will be playing in the Fiesta Bowl for the third time in four seasons. The Buckeyes won the national championship following the 2002 season with a 31-24, double-overtime triumph over Miami, then beat Kansas State here the following campaign, 35-28.
The Buckeyes were just 3-2 after a 17-10 loss at Penn State on October 8 but won their final six games, including a 25-21 triumph at Michigan on November 19 in which quarterback Troy Brown led them from a nine-point deficit in the final seven minutes. During Ohio State's winning streak, it has outscored its opponents by 68-10 in the fourth quarter.
Notre Dame had a highly successful first season under Charlie Weis, going 9-2 with wins in its final five games. The former offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, Weis signed a 10-year contract in October that will take him through the 2015 season.
The Fighting Irish were led by Quinn, who set numerous single-season and career passing marks after throwing for 3,633 yards and 32 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. A junior, Quinn finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting.
Quinn's favorite target was junior Jeff Samardzija, who had a school-record 15 touchdown receptions, including at least one in the Irish's first eight games, also a team record.
The Irish have lost seven straight bowl games since a 24-21 victory over Texas AM in the 1994 Cotton Bowl. Last season, Notre Dame fell to Oregon State in the Insight Bowl, 38-21.
In Notre Dame's only other BCS bowl appearance, it was manhandled by the Beavers in the 2001 Fiesta Bowl, 41-9.
The schools have met just four other times, with Notre Dame winning in 1935 and 1936 and Ohio State claiming matchups in 1995 and 1996.


They wrote Troy Brown instead of Troy Smith. That's pretty stupid and is a great example of the quality of ESPN.
 
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12/30/05

Smith's dream: '05 Bucks plus Clarett

QB says Ohio State would be 'much, much more powerful team'

By Doug Harris
Dayton Daily News

PHOENIX | — The clash between Ohio State and Notre Dame is being dubbed in some circles as the "What If Bowl," a reference to how close the two schools came to beating Texas and Southern Cal, respectively, and playing for the national title themselves.

But while players and fans alike still agonize over the missed opportunities, the "What If" scenarios rummaging around in Troy Smith's head have nothing to do with the Longhorn loss.

The fourth-year junior quarterback has led OSU on a satisfying trek this year, including a comeback win over Michigan, a Big Ten co-championship and a coveted Fiesta Bowl berth. But he'll always wonder what the program could have accomplished if it hadn't experienced a few unforeseen casualties, chief among them Maurice Clarett.

Smith and the enigmatic tailback came in together as freshmen in 2002 and were roommates at the Fiesta Bowl while the Buckeyes won a national title. But Clarett's downward spiral began during that trip when he called OSU officials liars for refusing to let him return home for the funeral of a murdered friend.

Although he scored the winning TD in the victory against Miami, a series of ill-advised decisions led to NCAA trouble and his ultimate dismissal.
"I think about him all the time," Smith said, adding that he's confident Clarett will be tuning in for Monday's game.

Sophomore tailback Antonio Pittman ended two years of dismal production at the position by rushing for 1,195 yards this season, and he needs only 43 more to top Clarett's freshman total.

Still, Smith said: "We would have been a totally different team with (Clarett). I'm sure Pittman would still play. But having Maurice to lead him, that would have made him a better back than he is now — even though he's a great back.

"Maurice asserted himself that first year. And the year after that, he was the front-runner for the Heisman. He'd be one of the vocal leaders now. And I'm sure everybody would have followed him if he was still here, because he's a guy that would lead you into battle — he was that kind of back, a game-time back.

"It's sad. You can't do anything about it. But if Maurice was here, we'd be a much, much more powerful team."

Smith ticked off a few more names of disgraced Buckeyes before stopping to lament the squandered potential of tight end Louis Irizarry.

One of the nation's top 2003 recruits, the Youngstown native played just one season before being dismissed after a committing a series of crimes, including the felony robbery of a fellow student.

"Louis Irizarry, my God," Smith said. "People would have had to watch out for him. There's no doubt in my mind he would have been the best tight end in the nation.

"The talent we would have had with those guys would have skyrocketed through the roof."

Smith is no stranger to trouble himself, having been caught accepting $500 from a booster last year. But unlike Clarett, who compounded his problems by lying to NCAA investigators, Smith fessed up and did his penance.

"I guess for me, as a person, I had to do what I needed to do to get back with the team," he said. "I was willing to do whatever it would take."

Smith has appeared contrite since his two-game suspension, doing everything the Buckeyes have asked of him — and more. He's spending as many as 25 hours each week in the film room, and the extra effort has paid off.

He's completed 66.4 percent of his passes during the current six-game winning streak with a 230.5-yard average and 11 TDs.

"I think any time you have to live through something where maybe you didn't do it exactly as you'd like, shame on you if you didn't learn from it," OSU coach Jim Tressel said. "I think he's handled things very very well, and I'm sure he's learned a lot."

Contact Doug Harris at 225-2125.


Troy Smith's surge



<TABLE style="CLEAR: right"><TBODY><TR><TD class=tablelabel>Stat</TD><TD class=tablelabel>Games 2-5</TD><TD class=tablelabel>Games 6-11</TD></TR><TR><TD>Avg. passing yds</TD><TD>139.3</TD><TD>230.5</TD></TR><TR><TD>Comp. percentage</TD><TD>.555</TD><TD>.664</TD></TR><TR><TD>Touchdowns</TD><TD>3</TD><TD>11</TD></TR><TR><TD>Interceptions</TD><TD>2</TD><TD>2</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Click to expand...
 
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Clarett will be cheering for Buckeyes, Smith says
Friday, December 30, 2005
Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
<!--PHOTOS--><TABLE class=phototableright align=right border=0><!-- begin large ad code --><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE align=center><TBODY></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Troy Smith believes that somewhere, Maurice Clarett will be watching Monday when Ohio State takes on Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl.
"Maurice has and always will be an Ohio State fan," Smith, a junior quarterback, said yesterday. "He watches every game. I know it. He loves football."
During the 2002 season, Ohio State fans also loved Clarett as he provided the spark for the Buckeyes’ first national championship in 34 years. He scored the winning touchdown in the second overtime of the victory over Miami in the Fiesta Bowl.
Since then, among other things, he was ruled ineligible by Ohio State and the NCAA for receiving improper benefits; he sued the NFL for early inclusion in its 2004 draft, lost on appeal, then was drafted by Denver in the third round of the 2005 draft but did not make it through training camp; and he accused Ohio State and coach Jim Tressel of several NCAA violations in an ESPN The Magazine article, only to have the NCAA dismiss them for lack of evidence.
But say all of that never occurred, and Clarett had opted to stay at Ohio State for four years . . .
"He would have been one of the vocal leaders now, and I’m sure everybody would have followed in his footsteps if he was still here," Smith said. "Maurice in a lot of ways led guys into battle, because he was that kind of guy, that kind of back. He was a game-time back.
"It’s sad what happened, but we can’t do anything about that. But if Maurice was still here I definitely believe this would be a much, much more powerful team."
Yet Smith said such thoughts have not left him feeling sorry for his friend.
"It’s life," Smith said. "Life is filled with trials and tribulations. It’s on you and how you deal with them. To me, what happened happened for a reason. And now we must move forward." Though Clarett and Smith were tight while they were in school together, Smith said that now "I don’t talk to him as much as I used to when he was here. As a man, you go your own way, take separate roads. You have to follow your heart and do the things you think are necessary for you to survive."
 
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<TABLE class=bdy cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=770 border=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD>Ohio State QB rebounds from suspension
<SCRIPT> function BlogThisStoryTools() { var headline = "Ohio State QB rebounds from suspension "; var url = document.location.href; var destination = "http://blogs.foxsports.com/BlogThis.aspx?r_title=" + escape(headline) + "&r_url=" + url; //alert(destination); //return; window.location.href = destination; } </SCRIPT><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR align=middle><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 5px" align=left></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR align=middle><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=440 border=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD>Associated Press
<!-- Meta Tag For Search --><!-- meta name="author" content=""--><!-- meta name="source" content="AP"--><!-- meta name="eventId" content=""--><!-- meta name="contentTypeCode" content="1"--><!-- meta name="editorContentCode" content="1"--><!-- meta name="blurb" content="Of course, the questions kept coming at Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith.He had to expect the subject of his indiscretion a year ago would rise again and again as the fourth-ranked Buckeyes prepare to play No. 5 Notre Dame on Monday in the Fiesta Bowl.Smith patiently and politely answered all the inquiries at media day Friday. His responses varied, but the theme was the same."As far as last year's bowl game, that's in the past," he said."--><!-- meta name="modDate" content="December 30, 2005 23:15:25 GMT"-->Posted: 10 hours ago<SCRIPT> // front-end hack to remove postedTime from Rumors page until a better way can be determined if (document.URL.indexOf("/name/FS/rumors") != -1) document.getElementById("postedTime").style.display = 'none'; </SCRIPT>
</TD><TD width=10></TD><TD align=right><!--this is for sponsorships or brandings--><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><!-- workingCategoryId: 24--></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=bdy cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=770 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD height=5></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=bdy cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=770 border=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD width=10></TD><TD width=440><!-- search:</noindex> --><SCRIPT> if(fanid.length > 0 && typeof(nflDefaultLeague)!= "undefined") { leagueId = nflDefaultLeague; //find teamId of default league (if exists) for(var i=0; i < teamsInfo.length; i++){ if(teamsInfo[4] == leagueId){ defaultTeamId = teamsInfo[0]; } } var fantasyLeaguePlayerJsPath = 'http://msnfantasy.foxsports.com' + '/nugget/200002_' + leagueId + '|||' + fanid; document.write('<scr' + 'ipt language="JavaScript1.2" src="' + fantasyLeaguePlayerJsPath + '" type="text/javascript"></scr' + 'ipt>'); } </SCRIPT>TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) - Of course, the questions kept coming at Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith.

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
He had to expect the subject of his indiscretion a year ago would rise again and again as the fourth-ranked Buckeyes prepare to play No. 5 Notre Dame on Monday in the Fiesta Bowl.

Smith patiently and politely answered all the inquiries at media day Friday. His responses varied, but the theme was the same.
"As far as last year's bowl game, that's in the past," he said. "I don't think about it at all because what happened in the past made me who I am today. This year's team is the focus now, sending these guys out with a win."
Smith was suspended for last season's Alamo Bowl and the first game of this season for accepting $500 from a booster.
"He let the team down," split end Santonio Holmes said.
Yet this should not be seen as a game of redemption for the quarterback, coach Jim Tressel said.
"When you're talking about Troy, I don't think you ever think you use words like that," Tressel said. "I mean, that's over, and I think he's done a great job of handling his adversity. This is game No. 12 of 2005 as far as I'm concerned."
Smith wasn't needed in the Buckeyes' 33-7 pounding of Oklahoma State in the Alamo Bowl, and Ohio State handled Miami of Ohio 27-6 without him in this season's opener. But he came off the bench against Texas a week later to throw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Holmes and had the Buckeyes ahead 22-16 through three quarters before the Longhorns rallied to win 25-22.
Since then, Smith has been magnificent. He's topped 300 yards in total offense three times. He's thrown for 14 touchdowns and run for 11. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound junior from Cleveland has 1,940 yards passing with just four interceptions, and is the team's No. 2 rusher with 545 yards in 123 carries.
"The consistency he's had all season has been big for the program and big for our team, just knowing he would get the job done every time he stepped out on the field," said Holmes, the team's leading receiver with 48 catches for 853 yards and 10 TDs.
Smith acknowledged that, when the season began, he had some making up to do.
"For the most part to my teammates, to loyal Ohio State fans," he said. "It was a letdown. It was not the right decision I made, so I had to show that I wasn't that type of person."
Those dues are being paid, he said, by performing well, leading on the field and staying out of trouble off of it.
Smith was never better than the regular season finale, passing for a career-high 300 yards in a 25-21 victory at Michigan.
"Most growth is through adversity," Tressel said. "You've got to fight a little bit to grow. That, in my mind, may be one of the reasons why Troy's had the extensive growth that he's had."
Smith, 12-2 as a starter, needs 60 yards passing against the Irish to become the first Ohio State player to throw for 2,000 yards and run for 500 in a season. "It might seem cliche, but we're in the now. We worry about the now," he said. "The things that happened last year are the things that happened last year. We can do nothing about that. We can only perfect and do the things to be positive now, so playing in this bowl game this year means a lot to me."
http://msn.foxsports.com/cfb/story/5207606
 
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12/31/05

Taking charge

Winning drive against Michigan shows Troy Smith can run Ohio State’s offense, not just the ball

Saturday, December 31, 2005
Tim May

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

<!--PHOTOS--><TABLE class=phototableright align=right border=0><!-- begin large ad code --><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE align=center><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle>
20051231-Pc-D1-0500.jpg
</IMG> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=credit width=200>CHRIS RUSSELL | DISPATCH </TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline width=200>Quarterback Troy Smith avoids Michigan linebacker Dave Harris before delivering the key pass to Anthony Gonzalez. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>


TEMPE, Ariz. — As the quarterback drove his team to the winning score, it was obvious something special was taking place.
There was a confidence in the huddle that the team was going to get it done. For those watching from the sideline, there was the same sense. And all of that karma was emanating from one person:

The quarterback.

You’ve seen it at least twice in the past year, and against the same opponent.

Vince Young took Texas to its come-from-behind win over Michigan in the 2005 Rose Bowl, the victory that launched the Longhorns toward the national championship game this season. And you watched in November as Ohio State’s Troy Smith ran once and mostly passed to lead the Buckeyes on the winning drive in a come-from-behind victory over the Wolverines.

‘‘One thing I was feeling, and the other 10 guys in the huddle were feeling was the same thing: ‘We can’t lose this game,’ " Smith said. ‘‘ ‘Regardless of wherever it is, we cannot lose this game. Flat out. That’s it.’ "

The drive marked the coming of age of the Ohio State offense and its steadily improving quarterback, and it propelled them into the Fiesta Bowl on Monday against Notre Dame.

ABC analyst Gary Danielson, who will call the Fiesta Bowl and called the Michigan game, said he saw a change in Smith as the season progressed.

‘‘It was his willingness to run the system, to run the offense," Danielson said. ‘‘I think at first he was trying to prove he was a quarterback. I think now he has proven to everybody he can be Jim Tressel’s quarterback."

It was not unlike the maturation of Young at Texas a year earlier. Then in the Rose Bowl, Young and the Longhorns simply refused to lose.

"That feeling came from Vince," Texas tight end David Thomas said. "He wasn’t going to let us lose, and we all bought into it."

Ohio State players spoke of having the same feeling as Smith drove them to the winning touchdown at Michigan.

"He wasn’t going to let us lose, and we all felt the same way," receiver Santonio Holmes said.

In that setting, the pressure was enormous.

"I really think the game is on me . . . that’s when I put all the weight on my shoulders, that’s when I put the burden on myself," Smith said. "In crunch time, even like when I was a young guy and we were down a touchdown playing pickup football or something like that, I always wanted the ball in my hands.

"It’s carried over to now. I feel the same way."

What stood out was he didn’t try to do it himself. It was Smith’s passing that made the difference. It was his feign of a run before spinning out and hitting Anthony Gonzalez with a pass to the Michigan 4-yard line on the key play.

Maybe last year Smith would have just kept running. But in that instance, he used the threat of making something happen with his feet to set up the chance to make something happen with his arm.

"From my perspective, I think Troy is becoming more of a Donovan McNabb-type player," Gonzalez said. "He can take off and run at any time, no doubt about it. But he is also extremely intelligent with his arm, and he is making all the right reads as of late.

"He’s really taken ownership not only of his position but of this whole offense."

Without that drive, that ownership might be in doubt. But Smith, who led the Big Ten in passing efficiency, said there’s no doubt what keeping cool and taking care of business meant for the team.

"It means everything in the world," he said. "Because throughout life in every situation, if you are able to stay even keel, if you are able to stay the course, and not treat every situation as if you have to have a certain attitude in it but are able to stay levelheaded, I think that says a lot.

"And I’m not talking about just one person, but 11 guys on the field working together as a group in a calm and collected way. I think that says a whole lot."

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It gives me chills thinking about how much the guy has improved since the beginning of the year. I know it may be very premature, but you can't help think about him possibly being a Heisman candidate next year. The guy has played incredible this year, and had only 4 INT's. What was amazing was how he hit Ginn and Holmes in stride, everytime tonight.


Also, my favorite part:


3rd and 9 with about 2:09 left in the game:

Michigan 2005 Part Two. The guy is a complete magician, as one announcer said.
 
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