Columbus, OH
Ohio State got a bit of a boost Saturday without even playing as Michigan State knocked off Wisconsin on a last-second touchdown.
The loss by the Badgers breathed a little life into a disappointing season so far for the Buckeyes, who will have to take care of a lot of business of their own to make the season a success.
Therein lies the problem. Ohio State just doesn't seem to be that good.
But to hear them tell it, they are a player in the Big Ten race, despite a pedestrian 4-3 record.
Some Buckeyes players took to twitter after the Spartans' victory, feeling that the result opened the door for Ohio State to be a player in the Big Ten Leaders Division race.
Junior tight end Reid Fragel said: "Well, our season is back. Let's go," while Junior fullback Zach Boren was even more enthusiastic, writing "#buckeyenation it's time to rock! Guess whose back in the hunt?? That's right. Let's go bucks!!"
First-year Ohio State coach Luke Fickell acknowledged that his team is probably feeling a little more confident after Saturday, be he also relaizes there is work to be done.
"We have a lot of things to play for," Fickell said. "We understand that. Maybe it's another little something that our guys saw. Maybe they believe in themselves a little bit more. Maybe they see vulnerability. I don't know what it is.
"Whatever it is, it still comes down to us handling our own business and taking care of what we need to take care of."
Ohio State is coming off a bye week and before that they beat Illinois, 17-7. It was the Illini's first loss of the season but the win by the Buckeyes looks a little less impressive since Purdue knocked of Illinois last week.
Then consider that Penn State leads the division at 4-0 with Wisconsin and Purdue at 2-1. Ohio State is 1-2 in the division and hosts what is sure to be an angry Badgers team Saturday night.
Ohio State lost three of four before the Illinois win and two of its four wins are against MAC teams. The Buckeyes do play Penn State and could be a factor, but have enough to worry about with the Badgers coming to town and the Nittany Lions before thinking about a title race.
We'll just have to see what the Buckeyes have to say on twitter Saturday night after the Badgers leave town.
- College Top 10: Oklahoma State Remains Hot, Clemson Falls
- USC Coach Lane Kiffin Annoyed with Officials After Loss to Stanford
- Stanford Outlasts Southern Cal in Triple-OT
- Michigan Confident After Demolishing Purdue
- Short Long on Hope: Optimistic of Purdue Bowl Chances
- Braxton Miller Clutch in Ohio State Win vs Wisconsin
- Arkansas Rallies in Fourth Quarter Topples Vandy
- Case Keenum Tosses Nine TD Passes as Houston Rips Rice
- Perry Jones Stars as Virginia Holds Off Miami in ACC Clash
- Academic Woes Could Cause UConn Men's Basketball to Miss NCAA Tournament
- NCAA Hoops Coaches Allowed Unlimited Calls and Texts to Juniors And Seniors
- Boise State Exploring Big West Conference Move for Non-Football Sports
- Ohio State Energized by Wisconsin Loss But Will Buckeyes Benefit?
- Big 12 Set to Welcome West Virginia as Missouri Appears Headed to SEC
- More Than Luck as Stanford Drills Washington
- LSU Shows Depth in Dominating Auburn; Wisconsin, Oklahoma Fall
- Oklahoma State Rolls: Weeden Throws 3 TDs, Randle Runs for 3 TDs
- Tajh Boyd Throws Five TD Passes as Clemson Routs North Carolina
- Arkansas Rallies in Second Half Edges Ole Miss
- Syracuse Overwhelms West Virginia in Big East Football Clash
- Pac-12 Suspends 10 Players For Arizona-UCLA Football Brawl
- UNC Tops Preseason Coaches' Hoops Poll
- Buford to Assume Leadership Role with Buckeyes Basketball Team
- No. 2 LSU Suspends Three Players for Auburn Game
- Clemson True Frosh Sammy Watkins Having Record-Setting Season
- Michigan State's Stingy Defense Ranks Among Best in the Nation
- Missouri Closer to Southeastern Conference Move
- Stanford Routs Washington State
- Michigan State Makes It 4 Straight Wins Over Michigan
- Victory Over Michigan Excites Michigan State Coach Dantonio
- Montee Ball Runs for 3 TDs as Wisconsin Thrashes Indiana
- Dan Herron Leads Ohio State to Victory over Illinois
- Gary Nova Throws 2 TD Passes as Rutgers Edges Navy
- Shaw Hits Jeffrey for Winning Score: South Carolina Edges Miss State
- Mountain West And Conference USA to Combine
- Buckeyes Look to Bounce Back Against Undefeated Illinois
- San Jose State Edges Hawaii 28-27 in WAC Football Clash
- USC Dominates Error Prone Cal in PAC 12 Battle
- Ronnie Hillman Prolific as San Diego State Overpowers Air Force
- Boston College AD DeFilippo Apologizes for ESPN, UConn Remarks
- NCAA Closes Auburn Investigation: Finds No Violations
- Free the College Football Market
- Arizona Fires Football Coach Mike Stoops After 1-5 Start
- Purdue Looks to Redefine Season After Blowout of Minnesota
- Former Big 12 Commissioner Dan Beebe Wanted Revenue Sharing Deal
- Crimson Tide Demolish Vanderbilt in SEC Clash
- LSU 'Ware' Out Florida in Rout
- Oklahoma Sooners Rout Texas in Red River Rivalry
- Boyd's TD Pass and Scoring Run Power Clemson Over Boston College
- Boise State Continues Mastery Over Fresno State
- Purdue Bounces Back Routs Minnesota
- Ohio State Buckeyes Search for Offense in First Trip to Nebraska
- Landry Jones Looks to Lead Sooners Past Texas in Big River Rivalry
- Big 12 Presidents Approve Revenue Sharing in Effort to Save Conference
- Despite Violations Gee Still Sees Ohio State as Model Program
- Ohio State Football Again in Hot Water with NCAA
- LSU Sustains Dominance: Gets More Potent with Jordan Jefferson
- Alabama Crushes Florida 38-10
- Notre Dame Extends Winning Streak with Pounding of Purdue
- Jordan Jefferson Returns as Second-Ranked LSU Throttles Kentucky
- No Slip Up This Time as Boise State Routs Nevada
- Michigan Marches On: Undefeated Wolverines Roar Past Minnesota
- Vincent Smith's Versatility Sparks Michigan's Shellacking of Minnesota
- No. 16 South Florida's Perfect Mark Dashed; Pitt Routs Bulls
- LSU Tackles Kentucky in Week 5; Sooners Seek to Regain Top Spot
- Big Bucks to See Ohio State Buckeyes
- MAC Commissioner Says Toledo Loss to Syracuse Has to Stand
- College Football: Oklahoma and LSU Lead Winners in Week 4
- Brandon Weeden Guides Oklahoma State Past Texas A&M
- Rees-pect: QB Rallies Irish to Victory Over Pittsburgh
- Bring on the Buckeyes: Michigan State Ready for Big Ten Opener
- Cincy Bearcats Rout NC State
- Tar Heels QB Bryn Renner Learns Not to Be Perfect
- Wisconsin QB Russell Wilson Trying to Follow in Weinke's Footsteps
- PAC-12 to Remain 12-Team Conference
- Big 12 Conference; Commissioner Dan Beebe Part Ways
- Syracuse Hoops Coach Jim Boeheim Laments Leaving Big East Behind
- Texas Quarterback Gilbert Out Remainder Of Season
- Michigan QB Shows Weaknesses Despite Being Dangerous With the Ball
- Tar Heels Football To Vacate Wins and Cut Scholarships
- Bruised and Battered Buckeyes Badly Beaten by Miami Hurricanes
- LSU Defense Thwarts Mississippi State
- Big 12 Teetering on Edge of Disintegration
- NCAA Hits Boise State with Probation
- Ohio State Lacking Depth with Injuries and Suspensions
- No. 2 LSU, third-ranked Alabama Romps Highlight Week Two
- Ohio State Survives Scare from Toledo
- Michigan State Piles Up Yards in Lopsided Win Over Florida Atlantic
- Arizona State Overcomes Late Surge Stuns Mizzou In Overtime
- ACC Considering Raising Buyout Amount If Teams Want to Leave Conference
- Legal Loopholes Hamper Texas A&M's Move to SEC
- Mistake-prone Oregon falls to LSU in Opener
- Michigan State Lineman Sets Ambitious Goals in Pursuit Of Big Ten Title
- SEC Presidents Set To Meet About Possible Texas A&M Move
Copyright © 2011 AHN -- All Rights Reserved