by 11-18-06 Columbus, OH
Game Started at 3:44pm Ended at 7:12pm and was played at 48 degree’s with a 1mph wind factor.
Heisman hopeful Troy Smith and the Ohio State Buckeyes punched their ticket to the National Championship game today with a 42-39 thrilling victory over their rivals the Michigan Wolverines. Once again head coach Jim Tressel and the Buckeyes got the best of Lloyd Carr and the Wolverines. This appears to be the best Ohio State team since the 2002-03 National Championship squad. With all due respect to that team, this team may even be better!
Ohio State improved to 12-0 on the season, 8-0 in the Big Ten, and this was their 19th win in a row dating back to last season including the 34-20 Fiesta Bowl victory over Notre Dame. Odds makers have already gone on record as saying today may have been a preview of the National Championship Game as well. Time will tell on that one as the SEC will be certain to throw their hat into the conversation.
Troy Smith had one of his best and biggest games as a Buckeye today. The Heisman Hopeful went 29 of 41 passing with 4 touchdowns and 316 passing yards. His main target was Ted Ginn Jr who caught 8 balls for 104 yards and a touchdown. Ginn was one of four Buckeyes to catch a touchdown pass from Smith as Brian Robiske, Anthony Gonzalez and Roy Hall all had one each each well.
The Buckeyes run game was dominant and appears to be absolutely unstoppable. Antonio Pittman who played in his final home game today, went off for 140 yards on 18 carries while scoring once. His backup tailback who appears to be the next big thing in Ohio State tailback lore, Chris “Beenie” Wells also had a big day. Wells rushed for 60 yards on just 5 carries including a 52-yard touchdown run that would give the Buckeyes a lead they would never surrender.
The game itself saw no shortage of points as each quarter saw both teams score at least one touchdown each, and the second half saw 39 points alone as Michigan attempted to make a furious comeback down 28-14 at the break.
The game opened up with a 7 play, 80-yard, 2-and-a-half-minute drive for Michigan that saw them cap it off with a Mike Hart touchdown run. Hart would finish the game with 144 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Buckeye defense struggled to contain him all day long.
The Buckeyes as they did all game long responded with points of their own. Smith led a patient and methodical 14 play, 69-yard touchdown drive that soaked 6 plus minutes off the clock. A 1-yard touchdown pass to Roy Hall would tie the game at 7 all. The Buckeyes were just getting started.
Wells would make his presence felt minutes into the second quarter as he ripped off a 52-yard touchdown run with Michigan would be tacklers flailing away trying to bring him down. From there, the Buckeyes would strike again the next time they touched the ball with a 39-yard launch to Tedd Ginn Jr. That came on a play action fake so good, the entire Wolverine secondary bit on it and no one was within 10 yards of covering the speedy Ginn.
A 37-yard touchdown pass from Chad Henne to Adrian Arrington cut the lead to 21-14. Henne would throw for 267 yards on 21 of 35 passing with a touchdown. His main threat was Mario Manningham who caught 6 balls for 86 yards. The Buckeyes did a good job shutting down Steve Breaston who was held to only 3 catches for 18 yards.
Up 21-14 and with a little over 2 minutes left in the half, the Buckeyes went right back to work. They didn’t waste anytime going the full 80 yards on 9 plays in just 2:08. They were the picture of efficiency and it would pay off with a 8 yard touchdown pass to Anthony Gonzalez to make it 28-14 as the teams headed into the locker rooms for halftime.
Thanks to another Hart touchdown run followed by a 39-yard Garrett Rivas field goal the next time they touched the ball, the Wolverines cut the lead to 28 – 24 with still 8:41 to play in the third quarter. The Buckeyes needed to do something to match the hot start by the Wolverines and did so with a 56-yard Pittman touchdown run on the second play of their next possession. The score would hold at 35-24 as both teams began the final quarter.
Michigan would take advantage of an Ohio State turnover just seconds into the fourth quarter to get the back on the Buckeye 9-yard line. Ohio State would finish with three turnovers on the day, one of the very few dark spots of a big day. They would cash in with a 1 yard touchdown run from Mike Hart to make it a 35-31 with still pretty much a full quarter to play.
Clinging to a 4-point lead, the Buckeyes would remain patient and make the most of their possessions. This time using a 11 play, 83-yard 6-minute drive to find pay dirt on a 13-yard touchdown toss from Smith to Robiske. The Buckeyes had 24 first downs on the day, and that drive saw aplenty.
Up 41-32 the Buckeyes had to hang on for a just a bit longer and did so, despite the late Michigan Tyler Ecker touchdown catch followed by Steve Breaston 2-point conversion to make it 42-39 with 2:11 to go. The game would end by that same score.
All signs point to the Buckeyes rematching the Wolverines for the National Championship in January. If not the Wolverines, then perhaps the winner of the SEC Championship game between the Florida Gators and Arkansas Razorbacks.
Time well tell…
