By: Doug Lesmerises (Cleveland.com) —
LOS ANGELES — For one drive, Ohio State had two quarterbacks and a prayer. Running in and out with each play, Todd Boeckman and Terrelle Pryor marched Ohio State down the field in the first quarter and Jim Tressel’s innovation looked like some sort of solution to the absence of star running Beanie Wells.

It was a mirage.

As it had in the desert of Arizona in the national title game two years ago and again in downtown New Orleans at the end of last season, reality dropped on Ohio State like a cartoon anvil. This one will flatten the reputation of football in Columbus for a while.

With or without Wells — or Archie Griffin or Eddie George or Chic Harley — the No. 5 Buckeyes would not have avoided Saturday night’s Trojan trampling, No. 1 USC romping to a 35-3 victory. The Scarlet and Gray had a front-row seat for a screening of USC’s trademark fun and fire, a exuberant Pac-10 domination of the Big Ten standardbearer that was fun for the whole family, as long as that family didn’t fly 2,300 miles from Ohio to see it.

“If you lose two national championships in a row and they’re relatively not that close, it says a lot,” OSU receiver Brian Hartline said this week. “It comes down right now to Ohio State against USC, and we’re not looking toward the future, but in the long run, this will be a great gauge for where Ohio State stands right now.”

The Buckeyes (2-1) won’t like their position.
The victory was so decisive on both sides, it called into question whether this veteran-laden Buckeye squad picked for a fourth-straight conference title and ranked No. 2 in the nation in the preseason really is the Big Ten’s best. After a down week and 12-point win over Ohio seven days earlier, the Buckeyes bounced back for the game they had circled since their freshmen seasons with no ability to rattle USC quarterback Mark Sanchez, who threw four touchdowns, and no offensive threats to worry the flying Trojan defense.

When Damian Williams hauled in a 17-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter while 5 yards open in the end zone on a busted coverage, the lead ballooning to 25, any last OSU glimmer was snuffed. Even that hope had probably been foolhardy.

Yet as they had in both those national title losses, the Buckeyes scored first, this time on a 30-yard Ryan Pretorius field goal.

Whether the quarterback rotation was envisioned since Pryor’s commitment to Ohio State or created by necessity to make up for the lack of a dynamic running back, it had appeal. And on a 17-play, 69-year drive that lasted nearly nine minutes, it threw the Trojans off their game. Maybe it wasn’t easy, but it was worth a shot.

“Obviously when you’re playing with one guy and you understand what he’s going to do play-in and play-out, it makes it easier,” receiver Brian Robiskie said earlier this year when talking about a potential two-quarterback system. “But football is not an easy game, and what makes us successful is the challenging things. If we can use Todd and Terrelle in different situations and it works for us, that’s all we can worry about.”

The plan momentarily overcame the loss of Wells, who cheered from the sideline in his jersey and red warmup pants. After hurting his right foot 14 days ago, the Buckeyes expressed optimism about his readiness for the game of the year before Jim Tressel ruled him out Friday night.

“[Friday] I wanted to cry,” Wells’ mother, Paulette, said in the stands before the game, shortly after her son came over for a kiss. “I thought he’d play, but he got out here and he just wasn’t ready. The doctor said no and Coach Tressel said no.”

Wells was firm in her belief that Tressel and the medical staff were looking out for the best interests of her son, but she said he was still very down Friday. A long phone call with his grandmother helped lift his spirits, and almost two hours before the game, Wells was on the field, shaking hands with his teammates.

By the end, Wells and the rest of the Buckeyes could only be shaking their heads. In their last three games of truly national significance, Ohio State has lost by 27, 14 and 32 points. After three turnovers by Boeckman, two interceptions and a fumble, expect a quarterback controversy with Pryor to engulf the Ohio State fan base this week.

A loss like this won’t vanish into the night, especially in the minds of voters. Consider Ohio State’s national title dreams over.

After the last two losses, at least the Buckeyes had months to recuperate. Now, there are nine games left in the regular season. Ohio State must find a way to get past this, even though college football fans across the country won’t let them forget.

No related posts.