Buckeyes-Trojans used to play for roses

Cleveland Plain Dealer columnists Bill Livingston recalls when Earle Bruce and the Ohio State Buckeyes used to meet USC in the Rose Bowl. Livingston also takes a pretty good shot at Jim Tressel.

Livingston says USC has replaced Notre Dame as the country's most glamorous name in college football.

"For a while, it looked like it was going to be Ohio State, but Florida changed that in one night. The fact that OSU was outrun, out-passed and, most critically, out-coached, made Jim Tressel, the most feared big-game coach in the sport before the kickoff, an overnight failure. His standing has never been as high since.

"The Buckeyes have lost their last five games against top-five-ranked teams. Penn State and Texas could have gone either way, but both national championship game losses to Southeastern Conference teams were over by halftime, as was last year's game in the Los Angeles Coliseum.
Chants of "Over-rated! Over-rated!" greeted the Ohio State players, hecklers playing the role of fortune tellers before the game even began.

Nothing less than OSU's reputation is at stake tonight."

Gameday has arrived for USC, Ohio State

Gameday is at hand and the biggest questions for tonight's game at The Horseshoe in Columbus seem to be how USC freshman Matt Barkley will handle his first road game and just how the Trojans can contain Terrelle Pryor.

Gary Klein of the Los Angeles Times has a preview of tonight's game.

Klein also has a note on Pete Carroll's return to Ohio State, where he was an assistant for two seasons in the late 1970s.

Carroll also recalled when he saw Woody Hayes and ran out of his office to meet the Ohio State icon.

"I went running out there across the parking lot to catch him and intercept him and kind of introduce myself and talk to him for the first time -- just like a little kid, man, which I was at the time," Carroll told the Los Angeles Times. "That was very cool to come back. . . . It's exciting to be here."

Eye black: Blame it on Bush

The sudden buzz over eye black at USC can be traced to Reggie Bush, reports Gary Klein of the Los Angeles Times.

Photo courtesy of Los Angeles Times
Reggie Bush paid tribute to his home 619 area code.

USC will have a feast - really

Well, the Trojans won't go hungry preparing for Ohio State on Saturday night.



Here is a dispatch from the USC RipsIt blog on their early-morning feast after arriving from Los Angeles:



"DUBLIN, Ohio -- USC sure knows how to eat well. On Thursday night, the Trojans started off with Chick-Fil-A sandwiches to get them from campus to the airport. Then, they ate endlessly on the flight to Columbus, an airborne smorgasbord that included lasagna, enchiladas, desserts, fruits, cheeses, crackers and more. Then, upon arrival at their suburban Columbus hotel, a full buffet of meats, pastas, breads and desserts - somehow labeled as a "snack" - was waiting, a perfect nightcap at 3 a.m. And then on Friday, the team will wake up and do it all over again, with three meals and another overflowing buffet "snack" on the docket."










Photo courtesy of USC athletic department

Quite a history between USC-Ohio State

Here is a bit of the history between USC and Ohio State, courtesy of the official Ohio State Buckeyes football site.

• More than 300 all-time First-Team All-Americans
• Almost 150 NFL total First-Round Draft picks
• Close to 60 combined College Football Hall of Famers
• 46 total Rose Bowl games
• 18 combined recognized national titles
• 7 Heisman Trophy winners apiece
  

Bollman says Buckeyes need to be "on verge of rage"

Jim Bollman, Ohio State offensive coordinator and line coach, says the Buckeyes should approach Saturday night's gme with USC on the verge of rage.

Doug Lesmerises of the Cleveland Plain Dealer has a story on how the Buckeyes' youth plays into the game.

To me, the biggest problem the Buckeyes face is depth - USC is loaded and even if Matt Barkley gets rattled, the Trojans have very capable backup quarterbacks in Aaron Corp and Mitch Mustain.

Coach waiting for "I Love Coach Carroll" in eye black

In the wake of some controversy sparked when Ohio State sophomore quarterback Terrelle Pryor wore eye black as a tribute to Michael Vick, USC coach Pete Carroll said his team's eye black is monitored by equipment managers.

Carroll said "Hi, Mom" is acceptable. Also, "I love Coach Carroll."

"I'm still waiting for that one to show up," Carroll told the Los Angeles Times. "It's on the suggested list."

AP's video analysis of Saturday's USC-Ohio State game

Here is a video analysis from Associated Press writers Greg Beacham (USC) and Rusty Miller (Ohio State) on Saturday's game, courtesy of the Los Angeles Daily News.

Will seeing in 3-D be believing?

Saturday's USC-Ohio State game will be shown in 3-D in Columbus, Los Angeles, suburban Dallas and Hartford, Conn. (for ESPN guests).


"I can't say if this will be different or better (than previous 3D football telecasts), but we're just going at it the way we believe would should attack a 3D broadcast," Anthony Bailey vice president of ESPN's emerging technologies told the Los Angeles Daily News. "When we did our first test, we went in thinking, `Football may not benefit from 3D, but let's try it out.' We learned that while low-angle stuff is compelling, we need to shoot high to give people a sense of what's going on. With different equipment, we came out of it believing football can benefit, if there's a good mixture of high and low shots."




Here is what Galen Center looked like as crews
get it prepared for Saturday's showing.
Photo from USC athletic department

USC's scheme to stop Terrelle Pryor

Here is an in-depth read on how Pete Carroll might stop Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor from running wild Saturday. Carroll has said defending a running quarterback, especially one with Pryor's blazing speed, is difficult.

Freshman Barkley Mr. Cool entering Ohio State game

Photo from USC athletic department
Barkley was scanned before leaving LAX.


Matt Barkley will face more pressure than he has in his young life Saturday at The Horseshoe, but the 19-year-old doesn't seem to be fazed by the moment.

"I don’t think he’s like most guys," coach Pete Carroll told Josh Peter of Yahoo! sports. He wouldn’t be in the position he’s in if he was typical. We’ve had extraordinary quarterbacks come in unable to do what he’s done, so we’ll see what happens. He still has to get there and do it. But he’ll handle himself quite well, I’m sure.”

Said USC receiver Damian Williams: "This is his first game on the road in college. That’s tough enough in itself,” said Williams, USC’s top receiver. “And playing in a very hostile environment, one of the loudest places in the country … the main thing with him is to be confident. Confident in himself and confident that we’re there to support him.”

1969 Rose Bowl: Ohio State beats USC

Classic video of 1969 Rose Bowl, when Woody Hayes' Ohio State Buckeyes shut down All-American O.J. Simpson.

AP video preview of USC-Ohio State game

Here is a video preview of Saturday's game between No. 3 USC and No. 8 Ohio State, courtesy of the Associated Press:

USC photos from Thursday practice

Here is a photo album from the USC RipsIt Blog.

Carroll says Stafon Johnson will play major role

While Joe McKnight is the No. 1 tailback for USC, coach Pete Carroll said Stafon Johnson will play a significant role.

"He's significantly involved," Carroll told the Los Angeles Daily News. "He's right in there. We'll see how the game goes. We'll see what happens and all that. We're counting on Stafon to be right in the middle of everything for us. He's a terrific player for us."

Lantern's breakdown for USC-Ohio State game

The Lantern, the student paper for Ohio State, has a position by position breakdown of the USC-Ohio State game.

Jim Tressel says he will keep tricks to a minimum

Jim Tressel says he won't pull out a lot of tricks with Terrelle Pryor and the offense against USC Saturday night.

"There's a line to figure out, and sometimes you're right and sometimes you're wrong," Tressel told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "Is it good to give them something new? If you do it well and if it doesn't take away from you getting better at the things you always do. I've been in games where we had two or three things planned and we never got to them because it just didn't present itself. I think if you get crazy, your players are like, 'I guess what we prepared for nine months wasn't any good. We need something brand new.' So I think you have to be smart about how much and what."

Hines expected to start at free safety for Ohio State

Ken Gordon of the Columbus Dispatch says Jermale Hines is expected to start in place of Anderson Russell at free safety in Saturday's game.

Also, Andre Amos will split time at cornerback with Devon Torrence.

Brice Butler: One of sons who also rises

Mark Whicker has a column on Brice Butler, son of Bobby Butler and one of several players involved in Saturday's game who had fathers that played pro football.

Writes Whicker: "The fathers of safety Taylor Mays, tight end Rhett Ellison, running back Marc Tyler, defensive end Wes Horton, brother and linebacker Shane Horton, tackle Matt Kalil, defensive end Devon Kennard and safety T.J. McDonald all played pro football, mostly in the NFL. And you don't need to be told about the Matthews clan.

"Having an NFL dad doesn't guarantee you can play receiver, or, for that matter, croquet. But if they have the physical gifts, the kids thrive on other advantages."

And here are updates from USC's final practice in Los Angeles, courtesy of the Orange County Register.

Coach Pete Carroll said center Kristopher O’Dowd (knee) and cornerback Kevin Thomas (illness) will start.


Running back Marc Tyler limped off the field and did not return. Carroll said a teammate stepped on his foot. Defensive back Josh Pinkard (foot) practiced after missing part of Wednesday’s workout.

Carroll said defensive tackle Averell Spicer (ankle), linebacker Luthur Brown (academics), and cornerback Brian Baucham (illness), all of whom sat out last week, will play.

Buckeyes play it close to vest

It will be high stakes for Ohio State when USC comes to town Saturday, but the Buckeyes are playing it close to the vest, writes Chris Dufresne of the Los Angeles Times.

Hollywood comes to Columbus

USC brings its cavalcade of star running backs, the pomp and circumstance of its band and the best coach west of Gainesville, Fla., when the Trojans visit Columbus for their showdown with Ohio State. It's Hollywood in Columbus writes Darren Everson of The Wall Street Journal.

Heisman Trophy Tour Stops at USC-Ohio State game

Nissan will be hosting the Sports Illustrated Heisman Trophy Tour at the USC-Ohio State game in Columbus outside the St. John Arena.

The 100-foot by 100-foot tent opens at 10 a.m. Saturday and activities will continue until kickoff at 8 p.m. Among the activities are chances to meet and get autographs from Archie Griffin, the only two-time Heisman Trophy winner who won four Big Ten Conference titles with Ohio State and Marcus Allen, former USC Heisman Trophy winner.

This tour, with different Heisman winners, will be making stops at 10 select college games throughout the season, including the SEC championship.

How national media see USC-Ohio State game

Sports Illustrated wonders how Matt Barkley will handle the 105,000-plus at The Horseshoe along with thoughts on how this game might also be a big one for Jim Tressel's reputation.

Also, ESPN's Dr. Buckeye, Akeek Bhatt provides his viewpoint on the game.


Here is a matchup look at the game from Rivalry. Esq.

How would Tebow fit in USC's offense?

Just how would Tim Tebow fit in at USC? That question was asked to Pete Carroll earlier this week.

“I don’t think he would have run as much here as he has done there, but he certainly would have,” Carroll told the Orange County Register. “He’s such a brute. He’s an amazing force in the game. We watched him in the summer some just to see what he’s all about. He pounds you.

“It’s a very conservative style with him in that they know they can make four yards with him every play. If he was with us, we would have tried to utilize a lot of the same stuff.”

Just who is the best USC offensive player?

The Orange County Register has this poll on the best USC offensive player. Damian Williams leads the early voting.