No. 2 Ohio State Hosts Ohio University On Saturday

By: Frank Haynes (NCAAFootball.com) -

GAME NOTES: State bragging rights are on the line in Columbus this weekend, as the Ohio University Bobcats come calling on the second-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes.

The Bobcats are 1-1 on the season, having topped FCS foe Wofford (33-10) in the opener but then dropping their Mid-American Conference lidlifter last week to Toledo (20-13). Ohio, under the direction of head coach Frank Solich, is seeking is 500th all-time victory, although getting it this week against one of the truly elite teams in the nation, and one it has never beaten in six previous encounters, is going to be extremely difficult.

Solich is in his sixth season with the Bobcats, and owns a record of 33-32 coming into this contest. Ohio is 0-14 all-time against ranked opponents.

Ohio State has proven itself already this season, whipping Marshall in the opener (45-7) and then taking care of Miami-Florida (36-24) last week. Both wins came at home as the Buckeyes kick off the 2010 campaign with four straight home games. Since 2002, OSU is an impressive 54-5 in Columbus.

The Buckeyes are coached by Jim Tressel, who has amassed a record of 96-21 in 10 years at the school. Ohio State has won 55 straight regular-season, home games against unranked, non-conference foes.

Simply put, the Bobcats couldn’t get anything going offensively in last week’s conference opener against Toledo, logging a meager 183 total yards (46 rushing, 137 passing). Fortunately, the Rockets didn’t fare much better (212 yards — 102 rushing, 110 passing). OU’s Boo Jackson completed 17-of-27 passes with a TD, but he was picked off three times.

The game was knotted at 13-13 at the break, but the ‘Cats failed to produce anything substantial in the second half and it only took a fourth-quarter TD pass for the Rockets to earn the victory.

Solich was disappointed with the overall effort of his team, “Clearly one of the poorer ball games we’ve played in some time. We can all share in the blame a little bit. We didn’t have our players prepared the way they needed to be. Across the board did not play well on the offensive side of the ball. Defense played pretty well an ok at times. Special teams was horrific, too many breakdowns.”

As mentioned, the Ohio defense did its job at least in terms of yardage allowed (3.1 ypp), and senior LB Noah Keller was a man possessed as he notched 11 tackles, including the team’s only sack, forced a fumble and blocked a field goal attempt.

Despite Solich’s dismay, it was another solid showing by the Ohio defense, which did not allow a completed pass in the opener against Wofford. The Terriers did manage 220 yards on 51 rushing attempts though, and Keller was also the high man for the Bobcats in that game with his nine stops.

The challenge of facing a team like Ohio State this week hasn’t been lost on Solich, “It’s about preparing to play much better football regardless of playing a great football…..

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