Right: Ohio State’s Michael Jenkins (right) hauling in the game-winner.
AP Photo

There are exactly 12 days until Ohio State’s first game, and coincidentally, there was a certain No. 12 who scored the game-winning touchdown in what could arguably be the greatest play in the history of Buckeye football.

Thanks to the Big Ten Network, the 2002 Ohio State-Purdue contest was replayed on Sunday afternoon, billed as one of the conference’s “greatest games.”

I’m not so sure about that after viewing it again because there was some ugly football played on that gray, windy day in West Lafayette, Indiana, back on November 9, 2002, but the ending was spectacular.

In the first quarter, a pass thrown by Ohio State quarterback Craig Krenzel was intercepted by linebacker Niko Koutouvides, giving the Boilermakers great field position at the OSU 23 yard line.

Two straight completions by Purdue quarterback Kyle Orton put the Boilermakers in a first-and-goal situation at the six yard line before the Buckeye defense held firm. After three plays netted two yards, Berin Lacevic connected on a 21-yard field goal with 42 seconds left in the opening stanza to give PU a 3-0 lead.

There was no more scoring until the last play of the second quarter when Ohio State had to rush their field goal-kicking unit out and Mike Nugent drilled a 22-yarder that tied the game at 3-all right before halftime.

During that drive with 19 seconds left, the Buckeyes faced a third-and-9 at the PU 12 yard line when Krenzel scrambled out of the pocket and gained seven yards on the ground. The problem was, Ohio State was out of timeouts and Krenzel didn’t get passed the first down marker, which led to the kicking team having to run out on to the field.

Purdue head coach Joe Tiller argued that the snap came after all zeros were displayed on the game clock, but replays clearly showed that the ball was on its way to the holder before time expired.

Purdue later reclaimed the lead with 7:30 remaining in the fourth quarter when Lacevic hugged the right upright with a 32-yard field goal giving the Boilermakers a 6-3 lead.

Both teams traded punts before Ohio State mounted their game-winning drive with 3:10 left to go in the game. A 22-yard punt return by Chris Gamble gave the Buckeyes the ball at the PU 46 yard line.

On the first play, Kenzel was sacked losing four yards. On second-and-14 at midfield, a poorly thrown ball fell incomplete. On third down, Krenzel hit tight end Ben Hartsock along the far-sideline for a gain of 13 yards just shy of a first down.

On fourth-and-one, Purdue was obviously expecting a running play, but Krenzel dropped back to pass, stepped up to avoid the rush, and lofted a deep pass to wide receiver Michael Jenkins who hauled in the 37-yard touchdown pass over his right shoulder after beating cornerback Antwaun Rogers in man coverage like a drum.

Gamble, who played both flanker and cornerback against Purdue while also returning kicks for Ohio State, sealed the deal when he made a tremendous play on a deep pass from Orton which was thrown into double coverage. Gamble made a diving catch for the pick at the OSU 11 yard line with 45 seconds to go.

Buckeye running back Maurice Clarett, who had nerve damage in his left shoulder that kept him out of the two previous games, started and gained 52 yards on 14 carries. OSU also played without starting wide receiver Chris Vance, who was attending his brother’s funeral.

Krenzel was 13-of-20 passing for 173 yards with one TD and one INT.

Orton and Brandon Kirsch combined to throw for 285 yards on 27-of-39 passing, but Orton was intercepted three times.

Purdue finished with more first downs (17-13) and more total yards (341-267), but also turned the ball over three times to OSU’s one.

Sure, Ohio State had several close calls prior to the Purdue game in 2002, winning 23-19 against Cincinnati at Paul Brown Stadium when Will Allen intercepted a Gino Guidugli pass in the end zone with 26 seconds left.

Five weeks later, Ohio State needed a touchdown pass from Krenzel to Hartsock early in the fourth quarter and an interception by Gamble at the goal line with 7:30 remaining to pull out a 19-14 win over Wisconsin in Madison.

In the Buckeyes’ next game against Penn State, Gamble had a 40-yard interception return for touchdown that gave Ohio State a 10-7 lead early in the third quarter. OSU held on for a 13-7 win in Columbus.

Of course the Saturday following the Purdue contest, Ohio State claimed a 23-16 victory over Illinois in overtime, and Maurice Hall scored on a three-yard run as the Buckeyes survived two late drives which included another game-saving interception by Will Allen to give OSU a 14-9 win over Michigan.

But the pass play from Krenzel to Jenkins, also known as “Holy Buckeye” thanks to Brent Musburger, will forever be etched in my mind as one of the greatest plays of all-time in Ohio State football.

Tags: Buckeye Football //