Ohio State Posts 34-14 Victory over Miami in Season Opener – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/3/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 3, 2005
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AP Recap Transcript of Ohio State Post Game Press Conference
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Tailback Antonio Pittman ran for 100 yards and Ted Ginn Jr. and Santonio Holmes combined 10 catches for 149 yards and two scores as Ohio State opened its season with a 34-14 victory over Miami University in front of 104,695 fans Saturday at Ohio Stadium.
Pittman carried 14 times for an even 100 yards, finishing with 100 or more yards for just the second time in his career. He had 144 yards vs. Indiana in 2004. Ginn had five receptions for 75 yards and one score, a 42-yard catch from back-up quarterback Todd Boeckman. Holmes added a 20-yard score from starter Justin Zwick and finished with five catches for 74 yards. Zwick completed 17-of-23 pass for 155 yards with the one touchdown and one interception. Boeckman completed 5-for-7 for 67 yards and the one TD.
Ohio State finished the game with 382 total yards, 160 yards on the ground and 222 through the air compared to 298 total yards by Miami, which had 48 yards rushing and 250 yards passing. RedHawk quarterback Josh Betts was 24-of-44 with one score and one interception.
“I thought our focus was excellent and that starts with leadership,” fifth-year Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel said. “A lot of guys got to play to day and we know we have to be much better next Saturday night (against No. 2 Texas), but we took a half step in the right direction.”
Ohio State took the opening kick and drove 74 yards in 12 plays to score the first points of the game when Zwick hit Holmes in the left corner of the north end zone for a 20-yard completion. A successful PAT by Josh Huston gave the Buckeyes a 7-0 lead with 9:24 to play in the first quarter.
After the Buckeye defense forced Miami to punt on its first possession, Huston booted a 20-yard field goal to give it a 10-0 lead with 1:09 to play in the first stanza. The offense moved to the 3-yard line, including a 23-yard completion to Holmes and a 25-yard completion to Ginn. Huston’s field goal is his first field goal since the 2001 season when he made a 44-yard kick score vs. Wisconsin on Oct. 13.
Huston added a second field goal with 2:39 to play in the first half to build the Buckeye lead to 13-0. He connected from 27 yards out as Ohio State moved 70 yards on 15 plays. Facing 4th-and-1 from the MU 21, Zwick connected with Ginn for 7 yards, but the next time facing fourth down at the MU 10, opted to bring in Huston for the field goal.
With Miami facing 4th-and-23 from its own 7-yard line, the Buckeyes were called for roughing RedHawk punter Jake Richardson. But on the very next play, OSU safety Donte Whitner stepped in front of a Betts pass intended for Josh Williams and returned it 26 yards for a touchdown. Whitner’s fourth career interception gave the Buckeyes a 20-0 lead with 1:21 before intermission.
With that the score when the teams headed to the locker rooms, Ohio State had a dominant edge in total yardage. The Buckeyes had 244 total yards (111 rushing and 133 passing) compared to 76 total yards (-4 rushing and 80 passing) for the RedHawks. Holmes accounted for 74 yards on five first-half receptions and Antonio Pittman carried 11 times for 71 yards in the first half. Ohio State controlled the ball for 18:48, compared to only 11:12 by Miami.
Tailback Brandon Schnittker crossed the goal line on the Buckeyes’ first possession in the third quarter. Ohio State moved 80 yards in nine plays before Schnittker’s 1-yard run. Pittman accounted for 29 of the yards on three carries while Maurice Wells picked up six on his first carry of his career to the MU 1-yard line before Schnittker scored.
With 3:54 to play in the third quarter, Zwick’s day was done as he gave way to Boeckman. After a 3-yard rush by Wells, Boeckman found Anthony Gonzalez for a 13-yard completion and then hit the speedy Ginn for a 42-yard touchdown pass. That, combined with another Huston PAT, gave Ohio State a 34-0 lead with 2:08 to play in the third quarter. Seven of Ginn’s nine career touchdowns have covered 40 yards or more. Zwick finished the game 17-for-23 for 155 yards with one TD and one interception.
A bid at the first shutout by Ohio State in non-conference play since a 49-0 shutout vs. Toledo in 1998 came up two minutes, 29 seconds short when Miami tailback Jimmy Calhoun scored from three yards out to put Miami on the board. Ohio State fumbled the ensuing kick off and the RedHawks were able to put up another score with 1:11 to play. Betts hit Ryne Robinson for a 35-yard touchdown four plays later to pull within the final score.
The Buckeye defense gave up only 48 yards rushing and recorded nine tackles for loss and five sacks totaling 41 yards. A.J. Hawk led the Buckeyes with 10 tackles, including a 9-yard sack and broke up one pass. Ashton Youboty had eight tackles including one tackle for loss and broke up one pass.
Ohio State will play host to the Texas Longhorns next Saturday at 8 p.m. in Ohio Stadium. The game will be televised by ABC Sports.
