Columbus Wired

Columbus Wired host Ashleigh Ignelzi takes a look at the 45-7 Ohio State win over the Marshall Thundering Herd. Terrelle Pryor threw for almost 300 yards and 3 TD’s, while the Buckeye defense only allowed 200 yards total to the Herd. Ohio State (1-0) now looks to next week’s matchup with Miami (Fl.).

By Dave Seaman, Columbus Wired

Ohio State began its season Thursday night with a dominating performance, defeating Marshall 45-7 in front of 105,040 in Ohio Stadium.

The second-ranked Buckeyes scored on its first two possessions and never looked back in a game where the defense shut out the Thundering Herd offense.

Terrelle Pryor completed 17-of-25 passes for 247 yards and three touchdowns, while DeVier Posey caught a pair of touchdown passes and Brandon Saine rushed for two more.

“I thought Terrelle had confidence in where he was going with the ball,” coach Jim Tressel said. “I thought his anticipation was good.”

Tressel opened up the offense, allowing Pryor to throw or run in leading the offense to 527 total yards. Prior looked confident in his playmaking abilities as he begun his junior season.

“As a whole, we were able to spread it around,” said Dane Sanzenbacher, who caught a game-high 113 yards and a touchdown. “I thought it was a balanced attack because we have so many weapons.”

The defense held Marshall to 199 yards and no offensive touchdowns.

The win sets up the Buckeyes for their clash with No. 13 Miami in the team’s first meeting since the 2002 National Championship Game. Ohio State won 31-24 in double overtime.

“It should be fun,” tight end Jake Stoneburner said. “Coach Tressel just reminded us that the last time we had a big game at home we couldn’t get it done (against USC), so we’ll be extremely focused in our game prep next week. The whole world will be watching.”

Posey had a different take on the history between the Buckeyes and Hurricanes.

“It’s not 2002,” he said. “We’re wearing the same colors, but now it’s our teams and our time.”

Pryor found Posey for a 6-yard touchdown on the fourth play of the game to put Ohio State up 7-0. Marshall’s Andre Booker fumbled the opening kickoff, giving Ohio State the ball at the Thundering Herd 22.

After a three-and-out, the Buckeyes running game took over behind Saine, who had a 40-yard run to the Marshall 4-yard line. He scored on the next play giving Ohio State a 14-0 lead.

Marshall got on the board with a special team play. Johnny Jones blocked Drew Basil’s field goal attempt at midfield and Amhed Shakoor ran the ball 45 yards to put the Thundering Herd on the board late in the first quarter.

Ohio State wasted no time getting the seven points back. On the second play from scrimmage, Pryor found Sanzenbacher for a 65-yard touchdown strike.

Saine scored his second touchdown of the game with 3:49 remaining in the second quarter on a 45-yard burst. On the ensuing possession, Brian Rolle picked off Marshall quarterback and ran it 30-yards to the end zone extending the Buckeyes lead to 35-7.

“It was such an incredible feeling to be able to score,’ Rolle, who also had a interception in last season’s opener against Navy, said. “I just turned around and I was like, ‘wow, all I see is red.’”

At the start of the second half, Ohio State continued moving the ball with ease. On their first possession, the Buckeyes drove 80 yards and Pryor found Posey for a 32-yard touchdown strike.

“I’m not so sure when we got into the third quarter, after that good first drive, we were quite as good after that, quite as sharp,” Tressel said. “All of a sudden it was 42-7 and we were hoping that first group would go down and score again, but we weren’t quite as sharp.”

Devin Barclay added a 34-yard field goal for the final points of the game.

daveseaman@columbuswired.tv

Twitter: @DaveSeaman94

By Dave Seaman, Columbus Wired

With the addition of Nebraska to the Big Ten in 2011, the conference announced the creation of two six-team divisions to compete in football beginning next fall. Each school will play the other five schools within its division and will also face three teams from the other division, including one cross-division matchup guaranteed on an annual basis. Ohio State and Michigan will continue to play the final regular season game for at least the 2011 and 2012 seasons.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for both programs to win divisions and be in the championship games,” Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said on the Big Ten Network, “and if we do play back to back, and if you look back over history quite frankly it’s rare that happens, if it does happen it’s great for fans.”

The six-time defending Big Ten Champion Buckeyes will be in a division with Illinois, Indiana, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin. The other division win include the Cornhuskers, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota and Northwestern. The conference has not announced the names of the two divisions.

Other than the Buckeyes-Wolverines annual match-up, the conference announced that the other guaranteed cross-division matchups are Illinois-Northwestern, Indiana-Michigan State, Penn State-Nebraska, Purdue-Iowa and Wisconsin-Minnesota.

The two division winners in 2011 will face off in the inaugural Big Ten Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Dec. 3, 2011. That winner will be the Big Ten’s participant in the Rose Bowl Game or another Bowl Championship Series Game.

Big Ten commissioner Jim Delaney said that plans for other sports, including basketball, have not been determined.

2011 Ohio State Schedule

September

3              Akron

10           Toledo

17           @ Miami, FL

24           Colorado

October

1             Michigan State

8              @ Nebraska

15           @ Illinois

22           BYE

29           Wisconsin

November

5              Indiana

12           @ Purdue

19           Penn State

26           @ Michigan

December

3              Big Ten Championship Game

2012 Ohio State Schedule

September

1              Miami, OH

8              Cincinnati

15           California

22           Alabama-Birmingham

29           @ Michigan State

October

6              Nebraska

13           @ Indiana

20           Purdue

27           @ Penn State

November

3              Illinois

10           BYE

17           @ Wisconsin

24           Michigan

This week’s episode, we welcome back Casey Todt for a rousing look ahead at Ohio State’s first football game, this Thursday against Marshall.

We also talk some Maurice Clarett, Aroldis Chapman, Tiger Woods, and much more. This is easily one of our more packed shows we’ve ever done.

Give it a listen, and let us know what you think. Either here in the comments or on our Facebook group at www.facebook.com/scooterbandjj .

– Brought to you by Columbus Wired