No. 9 Buckeyes shutdown Illinois offense, 30-0;

Great tailgate at "Schmoogate"

Columbus, OH - In CollegeFootballFan.com's first trip ever to "The Shoe", the Ohio State Buckeyes (3-1)  shut down the Fighting Illini offense holding  them to 170 yards on a rain-drenched afternoon for a 30-0 win.  Daniel "Boom" Herron scored two short TDs on the ground following two long Dan Pettrey FGs for a 20-0 lead early in the third period.  However, it was the Buckeye defense who dominated.  The visitors crossed the 50-yard line on its first possession which eventually resulted in a Brian Rolle INT, but never ventured beyond the OSU 34-yard line for the remainder of the game. Two more INTs thwarted their deepest penetrations. It's the second consecutive shutout for the Buckeyes who defeated Toledo last week, 38-0. Guest Game Analyst (GGA) Frank Lorito and I were treated to a great (and dry) tailgate not far from Ohio Stadium hosted by Mike Gutter and The Schmoo!  We were disappointed to learn that Script Ohio is not performed at every game, but greatly satisfied that the band stepped up to do it at this game.  They must have heard that CFF was in attendance!  Maybe we can Dot the "i" someday like five other non-sousaphone players we learned about at Schmoogate.

     Pettrey lifted the Buckeyes into the lead with a 50-yard FG in the first period.  He opened the second period scoring with a 46-yarder while the rain came down heavily.  Illinois couldn't move the ball, but Terrell Pryor couldn't complete a pass for USO in the first half as well.  "Boom" Herron completed an 80-yard, six-play scoring drive with a four-yard TD run for a 13-0 Buckeye lead at the half.

    On Hall of Fame Day at halftime, Ohio State honored its class of 2009.  Two inductees were very familiar to us.  One was former Buckeye LB Andy Katzenmoyer whose academics came under great scrutiny at OSU when it was divulged his academic schedule included Golf and "AIDS: What every college student should know".  The All-America won the Butkus Award as college football's best linebacker in 1998.  In 1999, he was drafted by the New England Patriots.  He suffered a neck injury in his first season with New England and never returned to play professional football after the Patriots cut him in 2002.  While at Ohio State, he donned jersey number 45, same as that of two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin.  We saw him play in an exciting 31-27 loss at Penn State in 1997.  Also inducted was Dick LeBeau who was soundly booed by his fellow Buckeyes for his long association as defensive coordinator with the Pittsburgh Steelers.  It has not made him a fan-favorite of Cleveland Brown and Cincinnati Bengal followers over the years.

     Herron (14 carries for 75 yards) added his second TD in the third period from the two and Pettrey added his third FG from 27 yards for a 23-0 lead as we watched in on-again/off-again showers.  In the final period as the rain ended and the wind picked up, Pryor (8 of 13 for 82 yards) connected with Dane Sanzenbacher for a 3-yard TD pass with 1:18 left in the game.  The Illini's deepest offensive drive took them to the OSU 34 in the second half, but a Lawrence Wilson interception ended that drive.  On the day, Juice Williams finished with 77 passing yards and 18 rushing yards.  WR Aurelius Benn was a non-factor with four catches for 33 yards.  It was  day of defensive domination in a downpour for the Buckeyes.  With the Penn State loss to Iowa and games against both teams on consecutive weekends in November for the Buckeyes, the Big Ten championship most likely goes through Columbus this year.  We'll see Ohio State at Penn State on November 7 for the sixth time.  Iowa will visit Ohio Stadium the following Saturday.

Extra Points:  Frank and I found Schmoogate right behind the Varsity Club on Lane as directed by our Buckeye connection, Greg Masica.  The Schmoo and Mike Gutter have a great tailgate venue in the garage area of the apartment building. It was the perfect spot to stay dry before battling the elements in The Shoe.   Food, beer, and four TVs were available to keep track of what was going on around the nation (especially the Big Ten) before our short trek over to Ohio Stadium.  The special of the day was Turtle soup.  It hit the spot.  The Schmoo and Mike were great hosts for our first trip to Columbus.  They collect donations for cancer treatment in return for their hospitality.  next door, a band performs on an outdoor stage. On the way to the stadium, you can find tickets for sale and stop buy Conrad's to buy all your Ohio State official stuff.   We'll have to get back to a game there again - hopefully a Michigan game.

As stated earlier, we were thrilled to witness the dotting of the "i".  According to our hosts, it's generally done at the "big" games.  We'd seen it at Kick-off Classics and at PSU games which generally fit that description.  They performed it for their Big Ten opener today also.  Today's sousaphone player to dot the "i", according to The Official Gameday Magazine of Ohio State, is Alex Martin, a History major from Jefferson, Ohio.  The i-dotter has to be a fourth-year member of the band, or possibly a fifth-year member.  Only five non-band members have had the honor of dotting the "i".  They are former head Coach Woody Hayes; comedian Bob Hope, who grew up in Cleveland and hosted the All-American Team on TV annually; Ohio native and all-time golf great, Jack Nicklaus; Ohio native and astronaut John Glenn; and Columbus native and heavyweight boxing champ, Buster Douglas, upset winner over Mike Tyson in 1990.

Frank and I headed back to our car parked by Chemical Abstracts, Inc.  Without a poncho, Frank got drenched in our seats up in 6C.  He changed before we headed back over to Schmoogate after the game. 

This was our first shut-out at the FBS level since the 63-0 devastation of Virginia Tech over Western Michigan on September 11, 2004.

We bought Buckeye beads - a unique college football souvenir.

"The Shoe" - our first visit.