A Closer Look at Ohio State & the Horseshoe
Sept. 5, 2010
CORAL GABLES – The No. 13 University of Miami football team makes the highly-anticipated trip to No. 2 Ohio State Saturday.
Awaiting the Hurricanes are a national TV audience on ESPN, an expected crowd of 100,000-plus Buckeye fans at Ohio Stadium (a.k.a. The Horseshoe) and a team that only has two non-conference home losses under Jim Tressel.
Miami fans that can’t make the trip north can watch the action live on ESPN HD with the broadcast team of Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge and Holly Rowe.
Below are notes on the Buckeye’s success at Ohio Stadium under Tressel, as well as a look at the matchup in the trenches.
Notes on Ohio State at the Horseshoe
• Ohio State is 53-5 at Ohio Stadium since the start of the 2002 season
• Ohio State has had 56 consecutive crowds of more than 100,000 at Ohio Stadium
• Under Jim Tressel, the Buckeyes are 26-2 at Ohio Stadium versus non-conference teams, the only loss coming to No. 3 USC, 18-15, in 2009 and 25-22 to No. 2 Texas in 2005. The Buckeyes are 31-4 overall in regular season non-conference games since 2001.
• Ohio State has won at least a share of the Big Ten title in each of the last five seasons. That is tied with Michigan from 1988-92 for the second-longest run of consecutive titles. Ohio State holds the record with six straight championships from 1972-77.
• OSU has recorded at least 10 wins in each of the last five seasons. The Buckeyes have a chance to become the first team in Big Ten history to record six straight 10-win seasons. The only other Big Ten team to have this long of a run of double-digit victories was Michigan from 1901-05.
• OSU is one of only three FBS teams to record at least 10 wins in each of the past five seasons. The other two are Virginia Tech and Texas.
• Ohio State is the only FBS team to have finished in the top 10 in the final AP poll in each of the last five seasons.
| The Matchup In the Trenches – Based on Starters in Season Openers | |
| OSU Defensive Line (47 Career Starts) | vs. Miami Offensive Line (39 Career Starts) |
| DE – Solomon Thomas (1 Career Start) | LT – Orlando Franklin (28 Career starts, 24 at guard, last 3 at LT) |
| DT – Dexter Larimore (11 Career Starts) | LG – Harland Gunn (6 Career Starts) |
| DT – John Simon (1 Career Start) | C – Tyler Horn (1 Career Start) |
| DE – Cameron Heyward (34 Career Starts) | RG – Brandon Washington (3 Career Starts) |
| RT – Ben Jones (1 Career Start) | |
| OSU Offensive Line (82 Careers Starts) | vs. Miami Defensive Line (30 Career Starts) |
| LT – Mike Adams (5 Career Starts) | LE – Allen Bailey (15 Career Starts, split between DE & DT) |
| LG – Justin Boren (14 Career Starts) | LT – Josh Holmes (10 Career Starts) |
| C – Mike Brewster (24 Career Starts) | RT – Marcus Forston (2 Career Starts) |
| RG – Bryant Browning (28 Career Starts) | RE – Olivier Vernon (3 Career Starts) |
| RT – J.B. Shugarts (11 Career Starts) | |
