Ohio State vs Navy Recap

COLUMBUS, Ohio – In Columbus Saturday, Navy came close to pulling off the upset of the sixth ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel warned before the game that the
Buckeyes had their hands full with the very disciplined Midshipmen, and he proved to be a prophet.

Ohio State took the opening kickoff, and in a sure sign of Tressel’s fear of Navy, he called a gadget play on the return; a handoff reversing the flow of the play. It worked well, setting up the Buckeyes just over mid-field in Navy territory. They scored a touchdown with less than two and one-half minutes elapsed in the game. The Naval Academy answered back with a sustained seven minute touchdown drive to tie the game. Ohio State then re-took the lead with a field goal on their next possession, a lead they ultimately never surrendered. Navy moved the ball on their next possession until a fumble near mid-field stopped the drive. By then, the Buckeyes seemed to make the defensive adjustments to stop Navy’s triple option offense. The Buckeyes extended the lead to 20-7 at halftime and seemed in control.

Navy took the second half kickoff and buried themselves with the assistance of the Buckeye defense. They punted from inside their own five, setting up Ohio State in good field position in Navy territory. Three penalties totaling 20 yards stalled that drive without a first down forcing an OSU punt, which was downed at the one. At that point, the game looked to be in the Bucks’ hands, but the Midshipmen improbably drove the ball 99 yards for a touchdown to get back into the game at 20-14. Ohio State once again seemingly took total control of the game with a touchdown and field goal. The missed extra point made the score 29-14, and when Navy’s drive stalled with a third down interception with 9:31 left in the game, it looked basically all over but the shouting.

Jim Tressel said on his post-game radio show that he knew the Naval Academy had the type of players that would play until the last whistle blew. They did. Surprisingly, Navy rallied for two fourth quarter touchdowns to trail by just two points with three minutes left in the game. The first was an 85 yard touchdown pass from Ricky Dobbs to Marcus Curry, his second of the day. The second was set up by Ohio State’s first turnover, a pass intercepted by Navy’s Emmet Merchant. Dobbs ended that possession with a 12 yard touchdown run to bring the Midshipmen to within two at 29-27. On the ensuing two-point conversion try, Ohio State’s Brian Rolle intercepted Navy’s pass and ran it back the length of the field to put the game away for good at 31-27.

Navy was for sure outmanned. In the trenches they were smaller. At the skill positions they were slower. They had no business being in this game on paper. On the field is much different than on paper. They played hard, and with all pardons to the cliché, they never gave up. They ran the ball for 186 yards against the bigger, more talented Buckeye linemen.

Ohio State came into this game with lots of questions. Much is always expected of this proud program, but losing 28 seniors from last year’s team is a big hole, when players that aren’t back include the likes of Chris Wells, James Laurainitis, Brian Robiskie and Malcolm Jenkins. Questions swirled around the offensive line, the running game, the receiving corps and replacing the leadership and talent of players, many of whom are playing on Sundays this season. Saturday’s game was the first indication of the answers to the questions surrounding this Buckeye team, and the largest answer is that the Bucks have a lot of work to do to be in the hunt for a Big X and perhaps National Championships. Another big answer is Terrelle Pryor, the extremely gifted quarterback. His throwing mechanics are much improved, and Saturday, he threw for 174 yards including a touchdown pass and ran for 30 more.

Apparently, the ball will be passed around to a number of running backs and receivers until someone steps up to take the place of Wells and Robiskie. Perhaps no one will and the ball will be passed around all season. Boom Herron led the Buckeyes in rushing with 72 yards on 17 carries, but he was just one of five ball carriers for Ohio State. One receiver with the promise to step up and take Robiske’s place is Duron Carter, son of former Ohio State receiver Chris Carter. The younger Carter, a true freshman, caught his first college pass in the first half, and ended up with three catches for 21 yards. He was one of seven Buckeyes to make at least one reception in the game.

One of the finest traditions of Ohio State football is the band and their famous “Script Ohio” formation. At the first home game of the year, band alumni are invited back to march on the field one more time. There were 500 returnees Saturday, and with the current Ohio State band, they were able to spell out four “Script Ohio’s”. It is a supreme honor to be the person that dots the “I” to complete the formation. Saturday was one of the rare occasions where the “I” dotter was not a band member. John Glenn, who has served in the senate and walked on the moon, did the honors or received the honor if you prefer.

One of the other fine traditions of Ohio State football – “Hineygate” continues. The outdoor pregame party has been held in the parking lot of the Holiday Inn on Lane Avenue two blocks north of Ohio Stadium since the tradition began in 1983. The Holiday Inn has now been sold and closed, leaving the party out in the cold. Not to worry. Hineygate has moved just blocks away to The Thirsty I Restaurant and Bar, also on Lane Avenue.

The schedule doesn’t let up on the Bucks. They are still at home next week, but their opponent is Southern Cal. There is a saying about college football that teams improve most between their first and second games of the season. Ohio State is extremely talented, but they will need a lot of improvement to win again next week against the Trojans.

> More 2009 College Football Previews from CollegeSports-fans.com