Ohio State Welcomes Akron to Ohio Stadium – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/4/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
FIRST AND 10
– Ohio State is 1-0 and 0-0 in the Big Ten
– Akron is 1-0 and 0-0 in the Mid-American Conference
– This game is the seventh meeting between the schools; OSU leads 5-1
– Coach Jim Tressel is 63-14 in seven years at Ohio State; 198-71-2 in 22 years overall
– Tressel was 7-2-1 against Akron as head coach at Youngstown State
– Coach J.D. Brookhart is 19-18 in five seasons at Akron
– Brian Robiskie leads the Big Ten with nine receptions per game
– Ohio State is the two-time defending Big Ten champion
– The Akron contest will be the 499th Buckeye game all-time at Ohio Stadium
– The Buckeyes have scored at least one touchdown in their last 126 games
Ohio State (1-0) hosts Akron (1-0) at Ohio Stadium (102,329) in a noon game Saturday, Sept. 8, 2007. The Buckeyes are coming off a 38-6 win at home over Youngstown State last Saturday, while the Zips defeated Army, 22-14, at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
OHIO STATE VS. AKRON
The Buckeyes are 5-1 all-time against Akron in a series that began in 1891. The Buckeyes and Zips met five-consecutive seasons from 1891 to 1895 before meeting again in Jim Tressel’s first game as Ohio State head coach Sept. 8, 2001.
| Date | Location | Result |
| 12/5/1891 | at Akron | OSU, 6-0 |
| 10/22/1892 | at Akron | OSU, 62-0 |
| 11/11/1893 | at Ohio State | OSU, 32-18 |
| 9/15/1894 | at Ohio State | Akron, 12-6 |
| 10/5/1895 | at Ohio State | OSU, 14-6 |
| 9/8/2001 | at Ohio State | OSU, 28-14 |
THE CAPTAINS
Senior offensive tackle Kirk Barton, senior fullback Dionte Johnson and junior linebacker James Laurinaitis were elected 2007 captains by their teammates. Because of close voting on the defense, a second defensive captain will be named for each game. Larry Grant was captain for Youngstown State.
HONORARY CAPTAIN
Ohio State’s honorary captain for the Akron game will be Butch Reynolds, an Akron native who earned Olympic gold (1600m relay) and silver (400m) medals in track. A 1991 Ohio State graduate, track All-American and a competitor in three Olympiads, Reynolds currently serves as speed coordinator for Ohio State football.
MORE ABOUT THE CAPTAINS
After being elected an Ohio State captain, senior Dionte Johnson and his father Thomas “Pepper” Johnson became the third father-son combination to be elected Buckeye captains. The elder Johnson was an OSU captain in 1984 and 1985. The two previous father-son captain duos were the Herbstreits, James (1960) and Kirk (1992); and the Davidsons, Jim (1964) and Jeff (1989).
James Laurinaitis is the first junior to be elected a captain since 2000 when Steve Bellisari and Joe Cooper both were chosen captains as juniors. Bellisari and Cooper were re-elected as seniors in 2001.
BUCKEYES AGAINST THE BUCKEYE STATE
Ohio State is 172-48-15 in its history against opponents from the state of Ohio; that list includes Akron, Bowling Green, Case, Cincinnati, Denison, Heidelberg, Kent State, Kenyon, Marietta, Miami, Mount Union, Muskingum, Oberlin, Ohio Medical, Ohio, Ohio Wesleyan, Otterbein, Toledo, Western Reserve, Wilmington, Wittenberg, Wooster and Youngstown State.
The last time the Buckeyes matched up against three in-state rivals was in 1926, when they defeated Wittenberg (40-0), Ohio Wesleyan (47-0) and Wilmington (13-7); OSU faces Youngstown State, Akron and Kent State in 2007. The Buckeyes have played at least one team from Ohio each season since 1997.
Ohio State has not lost to an Ohio opponent since 1921, falling to Oberlin 7-6; the Buckeyes tied Wooster 7-all in 1924 in Columbus.
TRESSEL TO FACE ANOTHER FORMER TEAM
One week after facing a Youngstown State program he led to four national championships in 15 seasons, Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel will face another opponent this week that he used to call his own. Tressel’s coaching career began at Akron in 1975 as a graduate assistant. He then served as a full-time assistant coach from 1976-78, where Tressel coached the offensive backs and was the kicking game coordinator.
OPENING DAY NUMBERS
Following the 38-6 win over Youngstown State last Saturday, the Buckeyes now have an all-time opening day record of 102-12-4 and have won their last 29 home openers. Ohio State’s last opening day loss at home was to Penn State in 1978. The Buckeyes’ last opening day loss away from Columbus was to Miami in the 1999 Kickoff Classic.
All-time, the Buckeyes are 106-8-4 in home openers since 1890.
REGULAR-SEASON WINS
Ohio State has won 19-consecutive regular-season games, dating back to a 17-10 loss at Penn State Oct. 8, 2005. The Buckeye record is 21-consecutive regular-season wins from 1967-69.
BUCKS WIN 77 PERCENT OF OHIO STADIUM GAMES
The Buckeyes boast an all-time record of 374-104-20 (.771) in Ohio Stadium since that facility opened in 1922. The Akron game will be the 499th home game all-time for the Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium.
Ohio State has won 13-consecutive and 17 of the last 18 games played in the Horseshoe. Ohio State’s all-time record in Columbus is 517-151-35 in 703 games.
Ohio State has hosted 35-consecutive crowds of 100,000 or larger at Ohio Stadium, including an opening-day audience of 105,038 against Youngstown State, the 18th-largest crowd in Ohio Stadium history.
This summer the old grass field in place at Ohio Stadium since 1990 was removed for a new synthetic surface called FieldTurf. The old field was rolled up and donated to the Columbus Parks and Recreation Service.
OHIO STATE W/L RECORDS
Seasons: 118
All-time Record: 788-301-53
Big Ten: 436-187-28
Ohio Stadium: 374-104-20
Bowl Games: 18-20
Games in September: 138-21-5
September home games: 115-10-4
Against Ohio opponents: 172-48-15
CATCHING ON
Nine Ohio State players had at least one reception against Youngstown State, including four who had the first receptions of their collegiate careers: fifth-year senior Trever Robinson and true freshmen Dane Sanzenbacher, Devon Torrence, and Taurian Washington.
Sanzenbacher, Washington and Robinson each scored a touchdown on his first career catch; the last Buckeye to do that was Jake Ballard against Indiana in 2006.
The receiving leader for the Buckeyes against YSU was junior Brian Robiskie, who went into the locker room at halftime Saturday with six catches for 113 yards and ended the game with nine catches for 153 yards.
That total is the most receiving yardage by a Buckeye since Ted Ginn Jr. had 167 vs. Notre Dame in 2006 Fiesta Bowl. Robiskie’s nine grabs were a career best, topping the seven he had vs. Michigan last year. The nine receptions are the most since Ginn had 10 against Bowling Green last season.
On the opening drive Saturday, Robiskie pulled in three catches for 64 yards. The 41-yard grab that put the Buckeyes on the Penguins’ 13-yard line was the longest of his career, topping a 39-yard catch and run last season vs. Michigan.
In Robiskie’s last two games at Ohio Stadium, he has totaled 16 catches for 242 yards. In the regular-season finale last year vs. Michigan, Robiskie had seven catches for 89 yards and a TD. Robiskie has caught a pass in 13-consecutive regular-season games.
COACHING STAFF ASSIGNMENTS
Here is a breakdown of the Ohio State coaching staff assignments for the 2007 season. On the field: Paul Haynes: Safeties Darrell Hazell: Wide Receivers, Assistant Head Coach Jim Heacock: Defensive Coordinator, Defensive Front John Peterson: Tight Ends, Recruiting Coordinator Dick Tressel: Running Backs In the booth: Jim Bollman: Offensive Coordinator, Offensive Line Joe Daniels: Quarterbacks, Passing Game Luke Fickell: Co-Defensive Coordinator, Linebackers Taver Johnson: Cornerbacks 2007 PRESEASON HONORS
Defending champion Ohio State was picked to finish third behind Michigan and Wisconsin in the preseason Big Ten poll. Individual preseason honors for the Buckeyes: – Kirk Barton: Outland watch list – Alex Boone: Outland watch list – Jim Cordle: Rimington watch list – Marcus Freeman: Bednarik watch list – Vernon Gholston: Bednarik, Hendricks watch lists – Malcolm Jenkins: Thorpe watch list – James Laurinaitis: Big Ten preseason defensive player of year; Playboy All-America; Bednarik, Nagurski, Walter Camp watch lists, – Chris Wells: Maxwell, Doak Walker watch lists
SUCCESS AGAINST THE BEST
Since 2005, Ohio State has won 20 of its last 21 games. During that tear, the Buckeyes have recorded wins over six of college football’s most successful programs: Michigan, Notre Dame, Texas, Penn State, Illinois and Iowa.
Michigan tops the all-time victories list (860-282-36), Notre Dame is second (821-269-42) and Texas ranks fourth (810-311-33). The Buckeyes are fifth all-time with 787 wins and Penn State is sixth (781). Iowa (552) and Illinois (549) rank in the Top 50 on the all-time wins list.
FOR STARTERS
When the Ohio State-Akron game kicks off, the Buckeyes will have a total of 25 players with at least one game of starting experience. Tops among those are: Kirk Barton (14); Vernon Gholston (14); Malcolm Jenkins (14); James Laurinaitis (14); Marcus Freeman (12); Alex Boone (11); Rory Nicol (11) and Steve Rehring (11).
First-time starters for the Buckeyes this season: Todd Boeckman, Kurt Coleman, Jim Cordle, Todd Denlinger, Dionte Johnson, Ben Person, Chris Wells, Lawrence Wilson and Doug Worthington.
Not SINCE 1922-24
Ohio State ranks second among all NCAA Div. I programs with 82-consecutive seasons since last posting back-to-back losing records. The Buckeyes have not been under .500 for two or more consecutive seasons since 1922-24, which trails only Tennessee, which has not had back-to-back losing seasons since 1909-11, a span of 95-consecutive seasons.
| School | Years | Last |
| Tennessee | 95 | 1909-11 |
| Ohio State | 82 | 1922-24 |
| Southern Miss | 72 | 1933-34 |
| Arizona State | 59 | 1946-47 |
| Alabama* | 49 | 1854-57 |
| Nebraska | 45 | 1956-61 |
| Southern Cal | 45 | 1960-61 |
| Michigan | 43 | 1962-63 |
| Georgia | 43 | 1961-63 |
VARSITY “O” WELCOMES NINE TO HALL OF FAME
The Ohio State Varsity “O” Alumni Association inducts nine members into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame this weekend. In all, 74 women have been inducted since 1993 and 227 men have been honored since 1977. The 2007 class includes:
Andy Dumpis Volleyball (1977-1980)
Dumpis finished his Ohio State career as a two-time All-American (1978, 1980) and a three-time first-team MIVA selection. The 1980 co-MIVA MVP, Dumpis was part of the Buckeye’s 1977 and ’78 MIVA championship teams and helped the squad to unblemished 12-0 (1977) and 13-0 (1980) home records.
Ivan Gilbert Fencing (1940-1942)
A first-team All-American in foil, Gilbert was part of the 1942 national championship team, the program’s first national championship and second overall national title for a team at Ohio State. Gilbert later was named Ohio State’s Male Fencer of the Century by the Touchdown Club of Columbus.
Marv Homan Administrator (1948-1987)
A member of the Ohio State Department of Athletics from 1948 to 1987, Homan began serving as director of sports information in 1973. He was awarded the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame Loyalty Award in 1998 and is just the fourth administrator to be inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame.
Pete Johnson Football (1973-1976)
Part of four Big Ten championship teams, Johnson owns the OSU record for the most touchdowns scored in a game (5) and is second in career points (348). In 1975, he led the nation in scoring, tallying a school and Big Ten record 26 touchdowns en route to first-team All-Big Ten honors. The 1975 (156) and 1976 (114) OSU points leader also captured Academic All-America laurels.
Kristy Dascoli Tennis (1997-2001)
The first Buckeye to earn All-America honors and the OSU Tennis Player of the Century, Dascoli is a four-time All-Big Ten honoree and was the conference’s first consecutive Big Ten Player of the Year recipient. Owning the OSU single-season and career wins record (31 and 104, respectively), she is the first Buckeye to qualify for the NCAA singles championship.
Yelena Kalkina Fencing (1997-99)
Kalkina became the first woman to win a national championship for the Buckeyes in foil (1997) and was a three-time All-American. During her run to the title, she compiled a 69-0 record and later was awarded the Outstanding Athlete of the Year honor by the Touchdown Club of Columbus.
Conny Kirsch Rowing (1998-2002)
Kirsch helped lift the program to its first Big Ten championship and was part of the varsity eight boat that won the grand final (2002). The first OSU Big Ten Rower of the Year, Kirsch earned first-team All-America honors and was a three-time first-team All-Big Ten and All-Central Region selection. She is the first rower to be inducted into the OSU Athletics Hall of Fame.
HONOR ROLL
A league-best 23 Ohio State football players were named to the Big Ten’s 2006 all-academic team, marking the fifth year in a row the Buckeyes led the conference. Additionally, a record 54 Ohio State football players qualified for the annual OSU Scholar-Athlete Dinner in May, which requires a grade-point average of 3.00 or better for the past academic year. That number was an increase from the previous best of 46 established in 2006.
WHERE THEY GO NEXT
Ohio State visits Washington next Saturday for a 3:30 pm (ET) game at Husky Stadium that will be televised by ESPN. Akron is at Indiana that day for a game that will be televised by the Big Ten Network.
