Ohio State playing ball with Nike

By Brian Kollars | Tuesday, November 17, 2009, 09:33 AM

The Ohio State Buckeyes won’t look like themselves Saturday in the Big House. Whether OSU’s new look inspires the downtrodden Michigan Wolverines remains to be seen.

What do you think of Jim Tressel’s tradition-laden program wearing throwback uniforms? Is OSU Nike’s puppet, or are the Buckeyes doing a service to future college football players by testing out a new kind of uniform? Would you be interested in buying a replica jersey from the 1954 team?

The helmet of the 1954 Tribute Uniform which will be worn during the 2009 Ohio State @ Michigan game (OhioStateBuckeyes.com).

Here is a news release from OSU with more info. It’s from OSU, but it reads a lot like an advertisement for Nike (Mmmm …):

COLUMBUS — The Ohio State football team will wear a special uniform in its game Nov. 21 at Michigan as part of the Nike Rivalry series. This unique one-time-only tribute pays homage to Ohio State’s 1954 national championship team in its styling and design.

Back of the jersey of the 1954 Tribute Uniform which will be worn during the 2009 Ohio State @ Michigan game (OhioStateBuckeyes.com).

The Buckeyes will be wearing the Nike Pro Combat uniform, a new system of dress and the lightest football uniform Nike has ever created. Ohio State is one of 10 elite football programs to debut the Nike Pro Combat uniform this month before the uniform’s official introduction at the start of the 2010 season.

Mock up of the original uniform worn by the 1954 team (OhioStateBuckeyes.com).

The Nike Pro Combat uniform is 37 percent lighter than current designs (673 grams vs. 1,061 grams). Nike utilized a four-way stretch twill that does not hold sweat or water and as a result, the new uniforms are 46 percent lighter than the current designs when wet. Overall, the Nike Pro Combat uniform, when wet, is still lighter than the current Ohio State design when completely dry.

Designed from the inside out, the Nike Pro Combat uniform begins with the Nike Pro Combat padded base layer, comprised of dual-density foam cells that absorb, deflect and disperse the impact of on-field collisions. A foam grid intersects the cells to maximize impact absorption and increase flexibility. A hard plastic shield covers the thigh padding where impact frequently occurs.

The new uniforms also feature improved ventilation and breathability. Completing this true system of dress for football is the new Nike Zoom Vapor Fly cleat, which Nike customized for Ohio State featuring the Buckeyes’ team colors, team logo, and chrome-plated outsole.

The uniform draws inspiration from the Buckeyes’ proud football tradition, particularly the teams of the 1950s. In 1954, Ohio State used a goalline stand to defeat Michigan en route to capturing the national championship. To salute that championship team, the Buckeyes are wearing all-white helmets with their clean-look uniforms.

The motto “BUCKEYE TRADITION” is embroidered on the inner collar of every Ohio State jersey collar as well as on the cuff of the Nike Vapor Trail 2.0 gloves.

Limited edition merchandise will be on sale starting at 10 a.m. Saturday in the official Team Shop at the Schottenstein Center. Fans can also get an up-close look at the commemorative ensemble at the Ohio Union’s “Beat Michigan” pep rally Monday at 7:30 p.m. at the Newport Theatre on High Street.

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Buckeyes can add misery to Wolverines, keep UM from bowl

By Kyle Nagel | Sunday, November 15, 2009, 06:36 PM

With a trip to the Rose Bowl wrapped up, what motivation could be paramount when Ohio State travels to Michigan on Saturday?

Adding extreme misery to the Wolverines’ already collapsing season, perhaps.

Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free Press wrapped it up nicely with his lead-in sentence to this “Extra Points” column on Michigan:

Michigan fans can’t imagine a lower bottom, but each week brings unimaginable pain.

Michigan enters the game 5-6 (not to mention 1-6 in the conference), but after Ohio State’s loss to Purdue, some Buckeyes fans might have been distracted enough by the team’s own prospects that they might not have taken the usual time to keep an eye on Michigan.

In the past few weeks, the season has turned arguably into one worse than last year’s effort. With the promising start to this season, Wolverines fans were given hope. Now, that hope is gone.

So, with a win on Saturday, Ohio State could keep Michigan from a bowl game for a second straight season as well as win an outright Big Ten championship.

How likely is that? Here are Snyder’s “Two Cents” on the matter:

The only amazing thing about this team is that there’s not more public sniping between the players. The offense has shown first-half success recently but seems to get so deflated by the defensive atrocities, there’s no room for error. Throw in the off-field drama with the starting quarterback and a win next week, earning a bowl game would be miraculous.

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OSU-Michigan game time now set

By Ben McLaughlin | Monday, November 9, 2009, 01:08 PM

The Big Ten Conference has announced kickoff time for the Ohio State-Michigan game on Saturday, Nov. 21.

The game will begin at noon and be televised by ABC on a national basis from Ann Arbor.

The Buckeyes beat Penn State on Saturday and face Iowa this week in a key Big Ten game.

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Buckeyes’ Heyward wins national honor

By Brian Kollars | Monday, November 9, 2009, 09:40 AM

This just in:

Walter Camp Football Foundation Names National Offensive and Defensive
Players of the Week Stanford’s Toby Gerhart and Ohio State’s Cameron Heyward earn                 weekly honors

New Haven, Conn. - The Walter Camp Football Foundation has announced
its Bowl Championship Subdivision National Offensive and Defensive
Players of the Week for games ending November 7.

About the Award: This is the sixth year that the Walter Camp Football
Foundation will honor one offensive and one defensive player as its
national Bowl Subdivision player of the week during the regular season.
Recipients are selected by a panel of national media members and
administered by the Walter Camp Football Foundation.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
TOBY GERHART, STANFORD
Senior, Running Back, Norco, CA/Norco
Stanford running back Toby Gerhart set a school single-game record with
223 rushing yards (on 38 carries) as the Cardinal defeated 7th-ranked
Oregon, 51-42.  For the game, Gerhart scored three touchdowns as
Stanford (6-3, 5-2 in Pac 10) became bowl eligible for the first time
since 2001.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
CAMERON HEYWARD, OHIO STATE
Junior, Defensive Tackle, Suwanee, GA/Peachtree Ridge
Ohio State defensive tackle Cameron Heyward recorded a game-high 11
tackles, including three for losses, and two quarterback sacks as the
Buckeyes defeated Big Ten-rival and 11th-ranked Penn State, 24-7.
Heyward led an Ohio State (8-2, 5-1 in Big Ten) defensive unit that
allowed just 201 yards of total offense.

Walter Camp, “The Father of American football,” first selected an
All-America team in 1889. Camp - a former Yale University athlete and
football coach - is also credited with developing play from scrimmage,
set plays, the numerical assessment of goals and tries and the
restriction of play to eleven men per side. The Walter Camp Football
Foundation - a New Haven-based all-volunteer group - was founded in
1967 to perpetuate the ideals of Camp and to continue the tradition of
selecting annually an All-America team.

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OSU’s Denlinger honored for work in classroom

By Brian Kollars | Thursday, November 5, 2009, 01:25 PM

Four Named Academic All-District Ohio State football players recognized

COLUMBUS - Four members of the Ohio State football squad have been selected to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA academic all-district team for District 4.

Named to the all-district academic second team were offensive guard Bryant Browning, defensive tackle Todd Denlinger, offensive guard Andrew Moses and running back Marcus Williams.

Browning, a junior from Cleveland, Ohio, is a 3.33 marketing student; Moses, from Dublin, Ohio, graduated with a 3.86 gpa in political science. Denlinger, a senior from Troy, Ohio, holds a 3.33 average in construction systems management. Williams, from Ironton, Ohio, has a 3.64 gpa in the physical therapy graduate program.

District 4 includes all colleges in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama. The Academic All-America teams will be announced later in November.

No. 12 Ohio State (7-2) visits No. 10 Penn State (8-1) Saturday at 3:30 p.m. Eastern for a Big Ten contest that will be televised by ABC.

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OSU-Iowa kickoff set for 3:30 p.m.

By Kyle Nagel | Sunday, November 1, 2009, 05:26 PM

This just in from the wire …

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Iowa at Ohio State football game on Nov. 14 will kick off at 3:30 p.m., the Big Ten Conference announced on Sunday.

The time was set by ABC, which will be carrying the game on a regional basis.

The eighth-ranked Hawkeyes (9-0, 5-0 Big Ten) are alone in first place in the conference heading into Saturday’s home game with Northwestern. The 15th-ranked Buckeyes (7-2, 4-1) play at No. 11 Penn State on Saturday.

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Tressel on Saine: ‘He said hi to me once’

By Kyle Nagel | Thursday, October 29, 2009, 12:49 PM

Jim Tressel just made a near-perfect description of running back Brandon Saine.

On his weekly radio show, Tressel was asked by a caller about leadership in the offensive huddle. After talking about a few players, Tressel brought up Saine, the Piqua High School product.

“He’s a leader in the way he plays, but he’s not really an outgoing guy,” Tressel said. “He said hi to be once in his first three years here. I’m not sure if he said much more than that.”

That’s a good characterization of Saine’s personality. Even through high school as the best player on his team, Saine was never a rah-rah player. He provided his motivation with his speedy and powerful legs.

He has done the same this season for the Buckeyes. He is second on the team in total yards with 426 yards rushing on 81 carries.

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