Northern Illinois head coach Joe Novak finally settled on a starting quarterback for this Saturday’s matchup against Ohio State (3:30 p.m./ABC), selecting senior Phil Horvath as the Huskies’ signal-caller.

No matter who takes the snaps from center, the centerpiece of the Northern Illinois’ offense is the diminutive, yet explosive, Garrett Wolfe at tailback.

Wolfe, a 5-foot-7, 177-pound senior from Chicago, totaled 1,580 yards on 242 carries in just nine games for the Huskies in 2005 with 16 touchdowns.

Wolfe missed the three games last year due to a left knee sprain, and had routine right shoulder surgery (sublixation) in January.

Wolfe finished second in NCAA Division-IA behind DeAngelo Williams of Memphis, rushing for 175.6 yards per game. He also finished second in all-purpose yardage at 200.2 ypg. Reggie Bush of Southern California was first with a 222.3 yards per game average.

For the 2006 preseason awards, Wolfe has been selected to the First-Team Playboy Magazine All-American squad, plus Second-Team All-American by NationalChamps.net.

While some may say that those numbers are impressive, others might point out that the Huskies do play in the Mid-American Conference.

In Northern Illinois’ first game of the season last year, the Huskies traveled to Ann Arbor to take on Michigan. Wolfe rushed for 148 yards on 17 carries, including 76 yards on his lone touchdown run.

Michigan defeated Northern Illinois 33-17.

One week later, Wolfe rushed for 245 yards on 34 carries and three touchdowns against Northwestern in Evanston, as the Huskies nearly upset the Wildcats.

Horvath threw a 20-yard touchdown pass with just 11 seconds left in the game to bring the Northern Illinois within a point. But Novak decided to go for the two-point conversion, instead of tying the game and sending it to overtime.

Horvath’s pass fell incomplete in the end zone and Northwestern escaped with a 38-37 win.

After crushing Tennessee State 42-3 in their home-opener, Northern Illinois went 6-2 in conference play, eventually losing to Akron 31-30 in the MAC Championship game at Ford Field to finish the season 7-5.

Horvath, a 6-foot-2, 197-pound senior from Naperville, IL, returns as the top Huskies’ quarterback, and finished sixth in the nation in passing efficiency with a rating of 159.4. (Ohio State’s Troy Smith was fourth with a 162.7 rating.)

Horvath’s final stats for the 2005 campaign: 168-for-238 passing, with a completion rate of 70.6 percent. He threw 18 touchdown passes to go along with eight interceptions in nine games.

Horvath will be the starting quarterback when the Buckeyes face the Huskies, but he will more than likely share playing time with Dan Nicholson.

Last year during the Central Michigan game, the ninth contest of the season for the Huskies, Horvath suffered a broken arm early against the Chippewas.

Nicholson, a 6-foot-2, 183-pound redshirt sophomore from Chicago replaced Horvath, throwing for 320 yards on 19-of-27 passing with one touchdown pass and one touchdown run to lead the Huskies to a 31-28 win over Central Michigan.

Nicholson started the final three games for the injured Horvath, and completed 55-of-87 of his passes for 766 yards with six touchdowns.

While Horvath is a senior, Nicholson owns the best arm on the team, though he was limited in spring practices due to a sore shoulder.

“I could go with either Phil (Horvath) or Dan (Nicholson) but one of them has to start. I do not have a lot of reasons, but it will be Phil,” said Novak. “By the same token, I think Dan is going play a bunch this season. I feel comfortable and confident with both of them. Somebody has to be the starter and either one could do it. There is not a list of 10 reasons for this decision.”

Horvath and Nicholson were involved in a strong competition throughout fall training camp that was as close a position battle as any.

“Through camp I have been focusing on Ohio State and also the daily competition for the starting job,” said Horvath. “Now I can focus 100 percent on preparation for Ohio State.”

The Huskies’ return six starters on offense, utilizing three or four wideouts in a one-back set.

Britt Davis, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound sophomore from Broadview, IL, is the lone returning starter at wide receiver.

Davis was third on the team in receiving, hauling in 42 passes for 441 yards and three touchdowns last season.

Fourth in receiving was 6-foot-3, 258-pound senior tight end Jake Nordin, who returns after catching 26 passes for 266 yards and one touchdown in 2005.

Northern Illinois lost three starters on the offensive line, but is solidly anchored with All-American candidate Dong Free at left tackle.

Free, a 6-foot-7, 302-pound senior from Manitowoc, WI, is rated by ESPN.com’s Bill Curry as one of the three best non-skilled position players in college football.

Free is a two-time, All-MAC selection and was tabbed with the preseason honors of being named as a Third-Team All-American on NationalChamps.net.

The other returning starter to the offensive line is Jon Brost, a 6-foot-6, 296-pound sophomore from Maple Grove, MN, at right tackle.

Defensively, the Huskies’ base defense is an “attack 4-3″ and returns seven starters.

On the defensive line, left end Ken West, a 6-foot-1, 238-pound senior from Calumet City, IL, and right end Larry English, a 6-foot-3, 236-pound sophomore from Aurora, IL, both return.

Two starting linebackers return, as well as one true freshman from last year who made three starts in 2005.

Strongside linebacker Keenan Blalark, a 5-foot-10, 228-pound senior from Elgin, IL, returns after starting nine games last year, but is listed second on the deep chart behind last season’s true freshman Phil Brown, a 5-foot-11, 225-pound sophomore from Chicago.

At middle linebacker, Tim McCarthy, a 6-foot, 226-pound sophomore returns, while the Huskies’ will look to David Bryant, a 5-foot-10, 193-pound redshirt freshman from St. Louis, MO, to fill the void at weakside linebacker.

The identical twins, seniors Adriel and Alvah Hansbro from Madison, WI, both return as starters at the two cornerback positions.

Adriel (5-10, 176 lbs.) lines up on the strongside, while Alvah (5-10, 170 lbs.) is on the weakside.

The other returning starter in the defensive backfield is Dustin Utschig, a 5-foot-10, 189-pound, senior free safety from Winneconne, WI.

Analysis and Prediction

While Northern Illinois has some potent offensive players, most notably Wolfe, defensively the Huskies’ do not have the size or strength to matchup with the Buckeyes’ offense.

Ohio State 42, Northern Illinois 21

Tags: Buckeye Football by Matt Barker
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Last - and certainly least - I offer my 12th and final preview on Ohio State’s football opponents, the Michigan Wolverines.

Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr seems to have caught a case of John Cooper-itis, as his Wolverines are just 1-4 versus Ohio State, and 1-4 in bowl games since 2001.

After reaching as high as third in the Associated Press poll, Michigan was nowhere to be found in the final tally. The Wolverines finished unranked at the end of the 2005 season, the school’s first appearance outside the top 25 of the final polls since 1984.

This has prompted many of the Michigan faithful to become increasingly vocal in their criticism of his coaching. This pressure may have factored into a 2006 coaching staff shakeup headlined by the departure of longtime defensive coordinator Jim Herrmann.

Now, there are several “Fire Lloyd” web sites on the internet as many Michigan fans have had enough of Coach Carr.

There is hope for Carr and his Wolverines, who return six starters on offense and eight on defense. But a brutal schedule which features road games at Notre Dame, Penn State, and Ohio State, will make it an uphill battle.

One of those starters returning on offense is junior quarterback Chad Henne (6-2, 223), who threw for 2,526 yards and 23 touchdowns while completing 58.4 percent (223-382) of his passes last year. Henne also had eight interceptions.

There wasn’t much to fear from the Michigan passing game last season. It ended up being a dink-and-dunk attack that did nothing to stretch defenses, or take the pressure off the team’s running backs. Expect the Wolverines to work harder to push the ball downfield - probably to senior Steve Breaston (6-1, 182) and sophomore Mario Manningham (6-0, 187) , who have to fill the void left by Jason Avant.

Manningham, the team’s second-leading receiver last fall, hauled in 27 passes for 443 yards and six touchdowns, including the game-winner against Penn State as time expired.

Breaston, who also is the team’s leading kick and punt returner, had 26 receptions for 291 yards and two touchdowns.

Michigan’s fourth-leading receiver, tight end Tyler Ecker (6-6, 247), had 21 catches for 285 yards and two touchdowns. He is listed on the Mackey Award watch list as the top tight end in the country.

The running game was the biggest concern for Michigan last year as the Wolverines finished ninth in the conference in rushing offense.

A healthy Mike Hart (5-9, 198) returns for his junior year after rushing for 662 yards and four touchdowns in just eight games last year.

Sophomore running back Kevin Grady (5-9, 216) comes into the 2006 season leaner and quicker after dropping about 15 pounds during the offseason. Grady rushed for 483 yards and five touchdowns as a true freshman.

While Michigan returns some very good skilled players on offense, the biggest slots to fill come on the offensive line with just two returning starters.

Anchoring the line is senior left tackle Jake Long (6-7, 316), who missed the first seven games of the 2005 regular season due to an injury during fall camp. Long returned to the lineup at Iowa and started the final four contests. He was named 2004 freshman All-American and All-Big Ten second team. Long has started 14 of his 17 career games played.

Long is one of five Big Ten Conference players on the prestigious Outland Trophy watch list, joining Ohio State’s Kirk Barton and Quinn Pitcock, Penn State’s Levi Brown and Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas.

Two other lineman who have a combined for 16 starts will battle for the starting center position with seniors Mark Bihl (6-5, 297) and Adam Kraus (6-6, 295) competing in fall camp.

Seniors Reuben Riley (6-4, 303) and Mike Kolodziej (6-7, 307), along with juniors Alex Mitchell (6-5, 311) and Jeremy Ciulla (6-4, 292) are all battling for the remaining spots.

Michigan’s defensive line is led by senior end LaMarr Woodley (6-2, 268), who is the team’s active career leader in tackles for loss (36) and sacks (12).

Another returning starter on the defensive line is junior Alan Branch (6-6, 330), who can play both tackle and end.

The linebacking corps returns three starters with seniors Prescott Burgess (6-3, 246) and David Harris (6-2, 242), along with junior Chris Graham (5-11, 225). Harris led the Wolverines last year with 88 tackles.

Senior cornerback Leon Hall (5-11, 193) led Michigan with four interceptions last season, and has been named to the 2006 Lott Trophy and Thorpe Award watch lists.

Hall, a two-year starter at cornerback, is the team’s active career leader in interceptions (nine) and passes defended (25).

Both starting safeties return with seniors Willis Barringer (6-0, 205) and Brandent Englemon (5-11, 205).

In last year’s game, OSU quarterback Troy Smith threw for a career-high 300 yards and a touchdown and scored once on the ground, leading No. 9 Ohio State to a 25-21 win over No. 17 Michigan at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.

Antonio Pittman’s 3-yard run with 24 seconds left capped an 88-yard drive that included a series of spectacular plays by Smith.

Smith spun to avoid a sack and made an 11-yard pass early in the drive and eluded another loss with quick feet, buying enough time to complete a 26-yard pass to set up Pittman’s winning run.

Smith completed 27 of 37 passes and ran for 37 yards, getting sacked only once, a year after his spectacular performance led the Buckeyes to a win over Michigan. Smith ran for 145 yards and a TD and threw for 241 yards and two more scores in last year’s 37-21 win over the Wolverines.

Ohio State overcame a slew of mistakes just in time to clinch a piece of the Big Ten title for the first time since winning the 2002 national championship.

The Buckeyes rallied for their sixth straight victory despite two turnovers and a shanked punt that led to scores, a missed extra point and field goal, mishandled punt returns and two pass interference penalties in the end zone.

Michigan was essentially playing mistake-free football when it led 21-12 midway through the fourth quarter before Smith stunned a crowd of 111,591 at Michigan Stadium. On the last two drives, Smith was 9-of-12 for 130 yards and a TD.

Michigan then drove to Ohio State’s 34 and chose to have Garrett Rivas pooch punt, instead of kicking a long field goal into the wind.

Smith started the winning drive at the Buckeyes 12 with 4:18 left and perhaps his biggest play was a 26-yard pass to a leaping Anthony Gonzalez to Michigan’s 4 after he was almost sacked.

Michigan got to midfield on its last drive, but its comeback hopes ended when receiver Tyler Ecker caught a short pass and tried to gain yards instead of running out of bounds.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, the Buckeyes ran across the field and celebrated with their fans in the corner of the Big House.

Chad Henne, who had to throw because Michigan couldn’t run, was 25-of-36 for 223 yards and a TD.

Mike Hart, who aggravated an ankle injury early in the second half, was held to 15 yards rushing and his replacement, Kevin Grady, ran for just 11 yards.

Ohio State led 12-7 at halftime and probably would’ve held Michigan scoreless had Maurice Wells not fumbled - on his only carry - at the Buckeyes 36 early in the second quarter.

Woodley split two Buckeyes blockers and knocked the ball out of Smith’s hands to set up Rivas’ 27-yard field goal to make it 12-10 early in the third quarter.

Another Ohio State miscue, an 18-yard punt, helped Michigan take its first lead.

Grady’s 2-yard run, a play after a pass interference penalty in the end zone, and Henne’s 2-point conversion run gave the Wolverines an 18-12 lead late in the third.

After Josh Huston missed a 46-yard field goal, Rivas’ 19-yard kick gave the Wolverines a 21-12 lead with 7:49 left.

Prediction and Analysis

Will Michigan be better than their 7-5 record from a year ago? Yes, but with such a brutal schedule, Michigan could come into Columbus on November 19 with a loss or two, maybe more. As always, this game will have some say into who wins the Big Ten title, but how much will it determine the champion remains to be seen.

Michigan has not lost to Ohio State in three consecutive years since the 1961-1963 seasons, and I am confident you can add years 2004-2006 to that list.

Ohio State 24, Michigan 13

Tags: Buckeye Football by Matt Barker
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The Northwestern University football program has had to deal with many adversities over the years at one of the world’s premier academic institutions.

In 2001, team members had to deal with the tragic loss of strong safety Rashidi Wheeler, who collapsed and died during preseason drills. Bronchial asthma was listed as the cause of death, although toxicology reports showed he had ephedrine in his system when he collapsed.

On June 29, Northwestern University, the Big Ten Conference, and college football mourned the sudden death of head football coach Randy Walker, who died of an apparent heart attack. He was 52 years old.

Walker, who led the Wildcats to a share of the 2000 Big Ten title and a trip to the Alamo Bowl, directed Northwestern to a 14-10 combined Big Ten record the past three years. NU also played in the 2003 Motor City Bowl and the 2005 Sun Bowl, making him the first coach in school history to guide NU to three bowl games.

Walker, who joined the Wildcats in 1999 after a successful nine-year tenure at Miami (Ohio) University, his alma mater, guided Northwestern to a seven-year record of 37-46 (second most wins in NU history) and was ranked 27th on the NCAA’s all-time wins list (96-81-5) for active Division I-A football coaches who have at least five years of I-A coaching experience.

Walker was named the Big Ten’s 2000 Dave McClain Coach of the Year. In the 2006 Sporting News preseason football magazine, Walker was cited as the Big Ten’s best coach. Another magazine, Athlon Sports, cited him as the league’s “most underrated coach.”

A native of Troy, Ohio, Walker departed Miami as the RedHawks’ winningest coach with a 59-35-5 record. Ironically, Northwestern opens its 2006 season with its first-ever trip to Oxford, Ohio, to play Miami in a nationally televised game (ESPNU) on Aug. 31. He graduated from Miami in 1976.

In April of this year, Walker was granted a contract extension through 2011.

Walker was the first Northwestern coach to direct three straight teams to four or more Big Ten wins following this past year’s 5-3 mark. He also was the first coach in over a century to record four six-or-more win seasons since C.M. Hollister (1899-02) accomplished the feat.

In October of 2004, Walker was hospitalized for two days with myocarditis, defined as an inflammation of the heart muscle. Myocarditis is most commonly caused by a virus, which doctors believe triggers the initial inflammation.

As a student-athlete at Miami, he played under former head coaches Bill Mallory and Dick Crum, and his teammates included current Illinois coach Ron Zook and Rob Carpenter, the father of former OSU linebacker, Bobby.

In his three seasons as a running back for the Redskins, the team went 32-1-1 and was rated #15 in 1973, #10 in 1974 and #12 in 1975. Miami won the Mid-American Conference in all three years.

Miami also went to the Tangerine Bowl (presently the Capital One Bowl) where they beat Florida in 1973, Georgia in 1974 and South Carolina in 1975. In his senior year, Walker was named the team’s most valuable player. For his career, Walker rushed for 1,757 yards.

Pat Fitzgerald, a two-time national defensive player of the year for the Wildcats and an assistant football coach since 2001, assumed the head coaching duties when announcement was made on July 7 by Northwestern Director of Athletics Mark Murphy.

Fitzgerald becomes the youngest Division I-A head football coach at the age of 31.

Fitzgerald was one of the leaders on Northwestern’s two Big Ten championship teams in 1995 and 1996. The ‘95 squad won the Big Ten title (8-0) outright and went to the Rose Bowl, while the ‘96 team captured a share of the title and played in the Citrus Bowl.

In 2001, after serving as an assistant at the University of Idaho, Walker hired Fitzgerald to coach the Wildcats’ defensive secondary. In 2002, he moved to linebackers coach, and then in 2004, added the recruiting coordinator to his title.

While Fitzgerald will have the unenviable task of taking over the reins following the sudden loss of Coach Walker, with the effects hanging over the program for the entire season. Maybe longer.

As Northwestern made a run at the Big Ten title last year, most outsiders failed to realize how youthful the 2005 Wildcats were. Players like four-year veterans Brett Basanez and Tim McGarigle rewrote the school and league’s record books at their respective positions.

A closer look at the 2005 roster revealed just 12 seniors on the Wildcat roster. Northwestern played 11 true freshmen and a total of 24 freshmen (true and redshirt) overall. That was the third-highest total for freshmen playing in the nation.

With the losses of last year’s senior class, which was small in numbers but large in leadership and production, the Wildcats do have some pressing questions, none other than who will take the first snap at quarterback when Northwestern opens the 2006 season in Oxford against Miami University. Second, how much improvement will the Wildcats’ young defensive line make in the off-season.

With 17 returning starters (eight offense, nine defense), there are a lot of reasons why the Wildcats may have a chance to earn their third bowl berth in four years.

At quarterback, third-year player C.J. Bacher (6-0, 200), last year’s backup, along with redshirt freshmen Andrew Brewer (6-3, 215) and Mike Kafka (6-3, 205) figure to be in the mix when practice begins August 7.

Bacher has the edge in years of experience with the offense (two) and playing time, albeit a total of 53 snaps in five games.

At running back, one of last year’s big question marks became a huge strength in 2005, and one of the leading reasons why the Wildcats won seven games.

After a preseason injury forced Terrell Jordan (5-10, 200) to sit out the season and a season-opening injury to Brandon Roberson (5-9, 200) slowed him for much of the year, the door was left open for true freshman Tyrell Sutton (5-9, 190), who exploded onto the scene.

Sutton rushed for 1,474 yards and 16 touchdowns, and also caught 44 passes for 396 yards and a pair of TDs. His outstanding season resulted in a Big Ten Freshman of the Year honor, a second-team All-Big Ten accolade and several national freshman of the year honors.

While Northwestern is still contemplating who will pass the ball, a bevy of talented receivers return led by 2005 leading wideout Shaun Herbert (6-1, 200).

An honorable mention All-Big Ten selection, Herbert ranked 20th nationally in receptions a year ago (6.6 per game) and finished with the fourth-best receiving total in school history (79). He averaged 71.8 yards per game and closed the year with six touchdowns.

Joining Herbert at the wide receiver position is junior Kim Thompson (19 rec., 36.2 ypg, 1 TD), sophomore Ross Lane (24 rec., 31.5 ypg, 1 TD), Rasheed Ward (7 rec., 8.2 ypg, 1 TD), Sam Cheatham (3 rec., 4.6 ypg), Tonjua Jones (1 rec., 2.7 ypg) and Jeff Yarbrough (1 rec., 1.0 ypg).

Last year, Northwestern became just the second team in Big Ten history to average more than 500 yards in total offense and it accomplished the feat with an offensive line that had just one returning starter on the unit with All-America tackle Zach Strief.

Strief has departed, but the good news for new offensive line coach Bret Ingalls is that he has five returning starters since center Trevor Rees (6-2, 285), who sat out the 2005 season for academic reasons, is back and will return to his position. Rees, a two-year starter prior to 2005 means that last year’s primary center, Austin Matthews (6-5, 305), can now move to tackle and replace Strief.

Guards Ryan Keenan (6-4, 290) and Joe Tripodi (6-3, 310), along with tackle Dylan Thirry (6-8, 315) and Matthews, round out the starting five.

While the Wildcat offense was able to rack up points and yardage, the most important area that Fitzgerald must work on is the defense.

Last year, Northwestern finished the season ranked fourth among the 117 Division I-A teams in total offense, averaging 500.3 yard per game. But the table were turned on the other side of the ball as the Wildcats finished 117th in total defense allowing 480.2 yards per contest.

In 2005, Northwestern finished 113th in rushing defense (218.1 ypg), 101st in passing defense (262.3 ypg), and 106th in scoring defense (33.2 ppg).

That was clearly evident in Northwestern’s final game of the year at the Vitalis Sun Bowl in El Paso.

After staking a 22-0 first quarter lead, UCLA scored 36 unanswered points as the Wildcats eventually ended up losing to the Bruins 50-38.

While the defense could be blamed for the loss, special teams breakdowns that led to two UCLA kickoff returns for touchdown also contributed to the high-scoring affair that took four hours and 15 minutes to play.

While the Wildcat defense scored two touchdowns on interception returns, they also allowed the Bruins to gain 310 yards on the ground.

On the defensive line, sophomore end Kevin Mims (6-3, 280) made some important strides as a redshirt freshman. Mims totaled 41 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, as well as an interception for TD against UCLA.

Other players competing at the end position are Corey Wootton (6-6, 255) , who missed most of 2005 with a neck injury, as well as juniors Mark Koehn (6-3, 270) and David Ngene (6-3, 260).

At the interior positions, sophomore John Gill (6-3, 290), sophomore Keegan Kennedy (6-3, 280), and junior Warren Anderson (6-3, 270) will be battling for starting positions at tackle.

In the linebacking corps, the Wildcats return all of their linebackers except for one player. That one player, however, is Tim McGarigle, the NCAA’s all-time leading tackler with 548 hits.

Northwestern, however, does have some young talented linebackers waiting in the wings, ready to take over for McGarigle.

Senior Demetrius Eaton (6-2, 250) will be a factor at the position, along with sophomore Mike Dinard (6-2,230).

Returning starting linebackers, senior Nick Roach (6-2, 245) and junior Adam Kadela (6-2, 245) provide the Wildcats with a solid one-two punch on the outside. Roach and Kadela are Northwestern’s top returning tacklers with 77 and 71 tackles, respectively.

Other players in the linebacking mix include senior Campbell Black (6-3, 225), and junior Eddie Simpson (6-0, 230).

In the secondary, senior cornerback Marquice Cole (5-10, 185) ranked second in Big Ten interceptions last year and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors, is back and joins senior strong safety Bryan Heinz (6-2, 215).

At free safety, Brendan Smith (6-1, 215) and Reggie McPherson (6-1, 190) return and will give the Wildcats some experience there. Smith blossomed as a true freshman last year, but he was slowed midway through the year with a knee injury.

Senior Cory Dious (5-9, 170) and Deante Battle, who was not with the Wildcats during the spring but could return later this summer, are candidates for the other corner position. Also in the mix from last year to get a chance to help the Wildcats in secondary is sophomore Eric Peterman (6-1, 200), who will compete for the other cornerback spot.

In last year’s game, Ohio State shut down the vaunted offense of Northwestern, holding them to just 251 total yards while quarterback Troy Smith ran for two scores and tailback Antonio Pittman rushed for 132 yards and another touchdown to lead the 10th-ranked Buckeyes to a 48-7 blowout winover the 25th-ranked Wildcats in front of 105,181 fans at Ohio Stadium.

Ohio State dominated in every phase of the game, offense, defense and special teams.

Offensively, the Buckeyes racked up 422 total yards, the defense yielded just seven points, and the special teams scored a touchdown on a blocked punt while Josh Huston was a perfect 2-for-2 kicking field goals.

Of the 251 yards allowed by the Ohio State defense, 80 of those came on the games’ opening drive as Northwestern took the kickoff and marched down the field in nine plays that was capped off when quarterback Brett Basenez connected with running back Tyrell Sutton on a five-yard touchdown pass with 12:34 left to take an early 7-0 lead.

But it was all Buckeyes from that point, as the Wildcats would only be able to muster one drive longer than 40 yards in 11 possessions the rest of the game.

Ohio State rushed for 317 yards against Northwestern on 54 attempts. Pittman led all rushers with 132 yards on 18 tries, while Smith added 75 yards on 11 attempts and freshman Maurice Wells had a career-best 70 yards on 13 carries.

Analysis and Prediction

Quarterback Brett Basenez was one of the main reasons of the potent offensive attack for Northwestern. While Tyrell Sutton proved to be a great running back, it is going to be very difficult to replace 3,622 passing yards and 21 touchdown Basenez racked up in his senior year.

Defensively, there has to be major improvements made, but is there enough talent in place to do so? I don’t think so.

Ohio State has to travel to Evanston, and this could be moved to a night game, so I won’t make the prediction so lopsided.

Ohio State 38, Northwestern 14.

Next I preview the team up north.

Tags: Buckeye Football by Matt Barker
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Ron Zook never stood a chance at Florida.

Zook was hired to replace an icon known as Steve Spurrier, a former Heisman trophy winner at UF, who bolted from Gainesville to become the head coach of the NFL’s Washington Redskins following the 2001 season.

Spurrier led the Gators on the field as a quarterback, winning the Heisman in 1966, but it would be 25 years later before the Ol’ Ball Coach returned to patrol the sidelines to earn Florida’s first-ever SEC Championship in 1991.

After “Steve Superior” left Florida, the Gators assumed they would be able to hire Bob Stoops, who chose instead to remain at Oklahoma. Then they were rejected by Mike Shanahan, who told Florida he would rather stay in Denver than move to Gator Country.

Florida Athletic Director Jeremy Foley opted for Zook, who lasted in Gainesville for three years, though he was fired after the Gators lost to Mississippi State during his third season.

Beginning in 1991, Zook served as defensive coordinator for three seasons at Florida under Spurrier. After the 1993 season, Spurrier reassigned Zook to be the special teams coordinator, a move considered by many to be a demotion. Nonetheless, in 1995 Spurrier added the title of associate head coach to Zook’s position.

In 1996, Zook left Florida to coach in the NFL. Zook served three seasons as special teams coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and was the defensive backs coach for the Kansas City Chiefs in 1999. In the 2000 and 2001 seasons, Zook was the defensive coordinator for the Saints.

A native of Loudonville, Ohio, Zook graduated from the “Cradle of Coaches” known as Miami University in 1976 after playing for the Redskins as a defensive back.

Zook was also and assistant at Ohio State for three years serving under former head coach John Cooper as the defensive backs coach.

Zook was hired to replace Ron Turner at Illinois in December of 2004 after Zook led the Gators to a 20-13 win over in-state rival Florida State to conclude the regular season.

Zook inherited a program which had finished 1-11 in 2003 and 3-8 in 2004, including Big Ten records of 0-8 and 1-7, respectively. In Zook’s inaugural season of 2005, Illinois finished with an overall record of 2-9, and a record of 0-8 in Big Ten games.

Despite his team’s struggles in his first year, Zook has improved the ability of Illinois to recruit top football talent. According to one source, the 2006 recruiting class is one of the 30 best in college football. The recruiting class includes Isiah Williams of Chicago Vocational High School, considered to be one of the top six quarterback recruits in the country.

One of the positives of the Illini being the youngest football team in the country in 2005 is that a solid nucleus returns to help build Zook’s second edition.

The Illini return 20-of-22 starters from a year ago, while adding seven new members to the roster as early enrollees from the 2006 recruiting class.

Joining the team last January were two junior college transfers in safety Justin Sanders (6-1, 205) and linebacker Antonio Steele (6-2, 210), Oklahoma transfer offensive tackle Akim Millington (6-6, 310), prep school standouts in cornerback Dere Hicks (5-10, 175), offensive lineman Randall Hunt (6-6, 295), and high school senior in wide receiver Marques Wilkins (6-0, 195).

All five starters from a year ago return to the trenches of the offensive line. With a new additions this spring, a battle could be brewing for starting roles. Back for another season are 2005 starters J.J. Simmons (6-5, 290), Martin O’Donnell (6-5, 300), Matt Maddox (6-3, 310), James Ryan (6-5, 310) and Ryan McDonald (6-5, 310).

However, some new faces look to make the competition fierce. Millington, a transfer from Oklahoma, provides both size and experience to the mix. He was slated to be the starter for the Sooners last year before a family emergency forced him to leave the team.

One year ago, a very inexperienced Tim Brasic won the Illini quarterback job after a strong spring performance. In just one year as a starter, he completed 61.1 percent of his passes for 1,979 yards and 11 touchdowns. In addition to his passing statistics, Brasic showed a different side of his game, rushing for 420 yards on 151 attempts and three TDs.

The running back position will be the area of strength for the Illini team. Returning this year are co-two-year starters in seniors E.B. Halsey (5-10, 200) and Pierre Thomas (5-11, 210). For the last two years, the pair of 1,000-yard rushers has shared the load of offensive carries with Thomas leading the statistics with 664 yards and five touchdowns. In 2005, the team added a third threat in sophomore Rashard Mendenhall (5-11, 210) and the trio combined for over 111 yards rushing per game. Halsey rushed for 349 yards, while Mendenhall tallied 218.

Last season, Zook showed why wide receivers are needed for his offense, as Brasic connected with 14 different players for receptions. Of those 14, eight were true receivers.

Sophomore Kyle Hudson (5-11, 165), a very under-recruited player from Mattoon, Ill., finished the season as the team’s leader in receiving yards with 469 and 31 catches. He became the team’s deep threat with six receptions over 30 yards.

Three other starting receivers return for this season in junior DaJuan Warren (6-2, 210), and sophomores Derrick McPhearson (6-0, 190)and Jody Ellis (6-0, 195). Warren played in all 11 games, starting six games and recording 21 catches for 205 yards. Ellis began the season as a starter before a shoulder injury forced him to miss the final five games. McPhearson got a late start on the year, while recovering from a broken leg suffered during summer workouts. He wrapped up the year as the starter, totaling 13 receptions.

Also looking to make an impact this spring and become a factor in the starting lineup is freshman Marques Wilkins, an early enrollee from MacArthur High School in Decatur. A highly touted prep, Wilkins excelled at both receiver and running back as a senior, totaling over 1,700 all-purpose yards.

On the other side of the ball, the Illini will have to find a replacement for only one of the four defensive line positions. Returning this spring are the pair of ends in sophomores Derek Walker (6-4, 270), Sirod Williams (6-0, 270), and junior tackle Chris Norwell (6-6, 290).

Norwell looks to anchor the defensive front, who led the team with 7.5 tackles for loss and three sacks last season.

Toward the end of last season, the Illini began to settle in on a trio of linebacker starters in Jeremy Leman (6-2, 240), Sam Carson (6-1, 245) and Brit Miller (6-1, 245).

Leman returns as the most experienced linebacker. He is a two-year starter who finished last season as the team’s second-leading tackler with 67 stops and 5.5 tackles for loss.

The Illini defensive backs look to be the strength of the defensive side of the ball, with all four positions returning starters. Junior strong safety Kevin Mitchell (6-0, 210) led the team in tackles last year with 78 stops and 4.5 tackles for loss.

Sophomore free safety Justin Harrison (5-11, 215) also returns as a two-year starter. He missed the first four games of the season with a hip injury.

At cornerback, the Illini used three players for the two positions last season, all of whom return. Senior Alan Ball (6-1, 175) is the most veteran player in the defensive backfield. A three-year starter, Ball posted 55 tackles last season.

Also returning is senior Shariff Abdullah (5-8, 170) who occupied the other cornerback position last season, making all 11 starts for the Illini. He had 27 tackles, 24 of which were solo stops, and two tackles for loss.

In last year’s game, quarterback Troy Smith threw for a then career-high 298 yards and three touchdowns to lead the 12th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes to a 40-2 pasting of Illinois before 104,799 fans at Ohio Stadium.

Offensively, the Buckeyes struggled in the first half as their first two possessions ended with punts before Josh Huston connected on field goals of 22 and 29 yards. The last field goal was setup by an 11 play, 86-yard scoring drive that started at the OSU 10-yard line. On a third-and-goal at the Illini’ 4, Smith tried to get the ball to Santonio Holmes on a fade route but he overthrew his intended target.

Ohio State scored it’s first touchdown on their next possession, and the first TD in five tries as the Buckeyes went 80 yards in nine plays that was capped off on a 41-yard strike from Smith to Holmes with 2:20 left in the second quarter. Smith, in shotgun formation, threw a bullet to Holmes along the far-sideline, who juked a defender and raced into the end zone aided on a block from Ted Ginn.

With just under two minutes remaining in the first half, Ohio State committed one of its’ two errors of the game when Ginn could not field a punt at the Illini 41-yard line and it was recovered by James Copper of Illinois. That blew a chance for great field position and the possibility of putting more points on the board to close out the first 30 minutes of action.

The Buckeyes headed into the locker room at halftime leading just 13-0, though the Buckeyes did outgain the Illini 218-64. After OSU’s first three possessions netted 49 total yards, OSU drove 80 or more yards on the next two that produced 10 points.

“We started a little rough today but we started to really focus and execute in the second half. I’d say we failed in the first half but we really poured it on at the end and it felt great,” flanker Anthony Gonzalez said.

After the sluggish start, the Buckeyes’ put the hammer down on the Illini scoring touchdowns on four straight possessions in the second half.

Following the kickoff by Illinois, Ginn broke loose on a 65-yard return down to the Illini 35-yard line to begin the third quarter. Seven plays and 35 yards later, Smith hit Holmes for the second time in the game on a three-yard pass play to give Ohio State a 19-0 lead.

The second and only other mistake the Buckeyes made all game happened on the point after touchdown attempt. The snap was bobbled and the fumbled ball was scooped up by the Fighting Illini’s Kevin Mitchell who raced 75 yards in the other direction for two points that negated a shutout.

After holding Illinois to just three plays before foiling a fake punt run that gained just four yards on a fourth-and-6, the Buckeyes would get great field position at the Illini 28-yard line. Antonio Pittman took it to the house four plays later on a 16-yard touchdown run through the middle of a porous Illini defense, and the Buckeyes held a 26-2 lead with 7:22 left in the third quarter.

On Ohio State’s next possession, they needed just four plays to cover 85 yards, with 73 of those coming on a touchdown pass from Smith to Ginn to give OSU a 33-2 advantage with four minutes remaining in the third.

On OSU’s first possession of the fourth quarter, the Buckeyes’ would drive 80 yards in five plays that was finalized on an 8-yard touchdown run by Pittman. On the previous play, Smith connected with Ginn on a 52-yard pass setting up first-and-goal.

The Buckeyes held the Fighting Illini to 160 total yards, including 68 yards rushing and 92 passing. Ohio State ran for 202 yards and had 324 yards passing. Illinois had only nine first downs in the game compared to 24 by the Buckeyes.

Analysis and Prediction

After winning just two games last year and no conference contests, the only way to go is up. While Illinois has won just four games against Division I-A opponents in the last two seasons, it is quite possible that Zook’s Illini could win five (dare I say) six games this season.

Illinois returns a lot of experience, but how much talent? The offensive line really needs to improve from last year to give Brasic time to throw. The Illini allowed a mind-boggling 32 sacks last year.

Will they have enough to beat the Buckeyes on November 4 at Memorial Stadium in Champaign? Simply put, no, but Zook is only in his second year of this rebuilding process.

Ohio State 38, Illinois 10

Tags: Buckeye Football by Matt Barker
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How much does it cost to get rid of a basketball coach who was caught cheating? According to Ohio Court of Claims Judge Joseph T. Clark, that sum is $2.2 million.

Back in February, when the NCAA imposed sanctions again the Ohio State men’s basketball team, it was assumed that the university and its’ athletic department acted appropriately when former Director of Athletics Andy Geiger fired Jim O’Brien in June of 2004.

But because of the legal language set forth in the contract O’Brien signed that was drafted by the university lawyers in hopes of hiring and keeping the coach, it made it difficult for the university to legally terminate O’Brien.

On Wednesday, Judge Clark awarded O’Brien $2.2 million of the $3.6 million he was asking in the lawsuit.

“It is clear that this seemingly unfair result arises from the extremely favorable provisions of the contract,” Judge Clark wrote in his decision.

The Associated Press reported that it was also in the opinion of Judge Clark that Ohio State was victimized by a contract that heavily favored the ex-coach. Under the contract, Ohio State needed to follow a strict firing procedure even if O’Brien violated NCAA rules.

“The contract is extremely favorable to the plaintiff but it is not unreasonable,” Clark said in his decision. “The parties in this case negotiated a contract virtually guaranteeing [O'Brien] that he could not be terminated for an NCAA infraction.”

Following the ruling, Ohio State officials said they plan to appeal the decision.

O’Brien was terminated after he admitted to Geiger that he had paid approximately $6,000 to Alex Radojevic, a men’s basketball prospective student-athlete. O’Brien gave him the money to assist him with his family’s dire financial situation in Serbia where Radojevic resides.

Radojevic, a 7-foot-3 center, was ruled ineligible by the NCAA after it was revealed that he had played professionally in Europe.

The NCAA also stated that Kathleen Salyers had improper in-person contacts and impermissibly provided recruiting inducements to Radojevic.

Also found during the NCAA investigation:

- An individual (who became a booster after providing benefits) gave recruiting inducements and benefits to a former men’s basketball student-athlete, including meals, cash payments and living expenses.

- A booster provided a former men’s basketball student-athlete with impermissible academic assistance.

- O’Brien impermissibly provided Kathleen Salyers with two season tickets for four consecutive home men’s basketball seasons.

- O’Brien and former assistant Paul Biancardi acted contrary to the principles of ethical conduct by failing to report their knowing involvement in NCAA rules violations relating to the above allegations.

- Both the institution and O’Brien failed to monitor the conduct and administration of the men’s basketball program.

In March, Ohio State was placed on three years’ probation, a ruling that wipes out records from four NCAA tournament appearances by the men’s basketball team - including a trip to the 1999 Final Four.

The Buckeyes were not barred from postseason play as a result of using an ineligible player from 1999-2002 under O’Brien. However, the school will have to repay tournament revenues, likely around $800,000, for the four years in which Boban Savovic played. He received improper gifts, including housing and cash, from a booster.

Ohio State also removed the 1999 Final Four banner which was hanging from the rafters in Value City Arena.

Bottom line is this: Did O’Brien cheat? Yes. Did he get caught? Yes. Should he been fired? Yes. Is it worth spending $2.2 million in order to fire O’Brien and bring in one of the top young coaches in the country? YES!

Tags: Buckeye Basketball by Matt Barker
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