2002 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

2002 Ohio State Buckeyes football
Consensus national champion Big Ten co-champion Fiesta Bowl champion
Fiesta Bowl (BCS NCG), W 31–24 2OT vs. Miami (FL)
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 1
AP	No. 1
Record	14–0 (8–0 Big Ten)
Head coach	Jim Tressel (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Jim Bollman (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Mark Dantonio (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
MVP	Chris Gamble
MVP	Craig Krenzel
Home stadium	Ohio Stadium (Capacity: 101,568)
Seasons ← 2001 2003 →

The 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented

Despite a 7–5 season the year before, the general feeling was one of optimism in Columbus, Ohio, provided that the defense could carry the team while the offense developed. First year coach Jim Tressel was able to deliver on his promise of an upset victory over the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Twice All-American safety Mike Doss, in an emotional announcement on January 9, 2002, advised that he would not declare himself for the NFL draft and would return to Ohio State for his senior season. (SI, p. 75) Maurice Clarett, a freshman prospect, graduated early from high school and enrolled at Ohio State for the 2002 Winter Quarter to make himself eligible to participate in spring football practice. (Lindy's, p. 15; SI p. 16)

Prior to the 2002 season, the Buckeyes were ranked thirteenth in the

Team captains selected were seniors Mike Doss and Donnie Nickey. Offensive captains for the season were named weekly, and were: Craig Krenzel (Texas Tech, Penn State, and Michigan), Mike Stafford (Kent State), Ben Hartsock (Washington State and Illinois), Ivan Douglas (Cincinnati), Chris Vance (Indiana), Alex Stepanovich (Northwestern and Purdue), Michael Jenkins (San Jose State), Shane Olivea (Wisconsin), and for the Minnesota game, Andy Groom and Bryce Bishop. (2002 archive October 12, 2002)

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 24	2:30 p.m.	Texas Tech*	No. 13	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (Pigskin Classic)	ABC	W 45–21	100,037
September 7	12:00 p.m.	Kent State*	No. 8	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	ESPN+	W 51–17	98,689
September 14	3:30 p.m.	No. 10 College GameDay )	ABC	W 25–7	104,553
September 21	3:30 p.m.	at Paul Brown Stadium Cincinnati, OH	ESPN	W 23–19	66,319
September 28	12:00 p.m.	Indiana	No. 6	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	ESPN+	W 45–17	104,194
October 5	7:00 p.m.	at Northwestern	No. 5	Ryan Field Evanston, IL	ESPN2	W 27–16	43,489
October 12	12:00 p.m.	San Jose State*	No. 5	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	ESPN+	W 50–7	104,892
October 19	3:30 p.m.	at Wisconsin	No. 4	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	ABC	W 19–14	79,729
October 26	3:30 p.m.	No. 17 Penn State	No. 6	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH (rivalry)	ABC	W 13–7	105,103
November 2	3:30 p.m.	No. 23 Minnesota	No. 5	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	ABC	W 34–3	104,897
November 9	12:00 p.m.	at Purdue	No. 2	Ross–Ade Stadium West Lafayette, IN (Holy Buckeye)	ABC	W 10–6	65,250
November 16	3:30 p.m.	at Memorial Stadium Champaign, IL (Illibuck Trophy )	ABC	W 23–16 OT	58,810
November 23	12:00 p.m.	No. 9 College GameDay )	ABC	W 14–9	105,539
January 3, 2003	8:00 p.m.	vs. No. 1 Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ (Fiesta Bowl – BCS National Championship Game )	ABC	W 31–24 2OT	77,502
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Coaching staff

• Jim Tressel – Head coach – 2nd year
• Jim Bollman – Offensive line / offensive coordinator (2nd year)
• Bill Conley – Tight ends / recruiting coordinator (16th year)
• Joe Daniels – Quarterbacks (2nd year)
• Mark Dantonio – Defensive coordinator (2nd year)
• Luke Fickell – Special teams (2nd year)
• Jim Heacock – Defensive line (7th year)
• Mark Snyder – Defensive linebackers (2nd year)
• Tim Spencer – Running backs (9th year)
• Mel Tucker – Defensive backs (2nd year)
• Bob Tucker – Director of football operations (8th year)
• Dick Tressel – Associate director of football operations (2nd year)

Personnel

2002 Ohio State Buckeyes football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class FB 49 John Adams  So RB 19 Anthony Jones  Fr TE 83 Redgie Arden  Fr G 78 Bryce Bishop  Jr OL 51 Mike Bogart Jr TE 87 Jason Caldwell  So SE 8 Drew Carter  Jr FL 14 Angelo Chattams So FL 3 Bam Childress  So TB 13 Maurice Clarett Fr G 63 Adrien Clarke  Jr TE 81 R.J. Coleman Fr OL 59 John Conroy  Fr OT 79 Ryan Cook  Fr OT 66 Doug Datish Fr TB 36 Michael DeMaria  So OT 53 Ivan Douglas  Jr OL 72 T.J. Downing Fr SE 7 Chris Gamble So TB 28 Maurice Hall So WR 82 Roy Hall Fr TE 80 Ryan Hamby  Fr TE 88 Ben Hartsock  Jr SE 84 John Hollins  So WR 17 Santonio Holmes Fr WR 81 Andre Hooks  So SE 12 Michael Jenkins Jr FB 38 Branden Joe  So RB 29 Jesse Kline  Jr OT 52 Mike Kne Jr WR 17 Craig Kolk Fr QB 16 Craig Krenzel  Jr G 70 Mike Kuhnhein  Sr FL 86 Maurice Lee  Jr WR 37 Jamal Luke  Jr OL 55 Nick Mangold Fr OT 62 John McLaughlin  So QB 15 Scott McMullen  Jr RB 41 Aaron Mochon  Fr OT 74 Derek Morris Fr OL 74 Ben Nash  Fr G 64 Adam Olds  Fr OT 71 Shane Olivea Jr QB 18 Jim Otis  So RB 20 Roshawn Parker Jr RB 42 Steve Pavelka So WR 23 Scott Petroff  Jr TB 34 JaJa Riley  Fr TB 30 Lydell Ross So FB 43 Brandon Schnittker  Fr OL 77 Rob Sims Fr QB 10 Troy Smith Fr OT 50 Michael Stafford  Sr FB 33 Nate Stead  Jr C 76 Alex Stepanovich Jr QB 24 Matt Trombitas  Fr FB 48 Jack Tucker  Sr C 69 Andree Tyree  Fr FL 4 Chris Vance Sr OL 73 Steve Winner  Fr WR 11 Mike Young  So QB 9 Justin Zwick Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class S 26 Will Allen Jr DT 54 Tim Anderson  Jr LB 91 Jason Bond  Jr S 19 LeAndre Boone  Fr LB 58 Joe Bradley  Fr CB 1 Bobby Britton Jr LB 42 Bobby Carpenter Fr CB 20 Chris Conwell  Sr DE 74 Bryce Culver  So LB 5 Mike D'Andrea Fr S 2 Mike Doss (C) Sr DB 37 Tyler Everett Fr CB 37 Dustin Fox So DE 75 Simon Fraser So DE 65 Steve Graef  So LB 6 Cie Grant  Sr DT 94 Marcus Green  Fr DB 4 Rob Harley So LB 47 A. J. Hawk Fr CB 13 Harlen Jacobs  So DE 52 Mike Kudla Fr S 41 Thomas Matthews  So CB 11 Richard McNutt  Jr DB 32 Brandon Mitchell Fr S 25 Donnie Nickey (C)  Sr LB 36 Pat O'Neill  Jr LB 46 Fred Pagac Jr.  Jr DE 98 Joel Penton Fr DT 97 Kenny Peterson  Sr DL 90 Quinn Pitcock Fr LB 44 Robert Reynolds Jr DE 92 Jay Richardson Fr CB 24 Mike Roberts Fr DB 21 Nate Salley Fr DE 99 Gregory Schaefer Fr DE 56 Darrion Scott Jr DE 93 Will Smith Jr DT 95 David Thompson  Sr DB 49 E.J. Underwood Fr LB 89 Stan White Jr. Fr LB 35 Matt Wilhelm Sr DL 52 Sam Williams So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class LS 60 Kyle Andrews  So P 18 Andy Groom  Sr P, PK 23 Josh Huston  So LS 62 Jeremy Miller  Jr PK 85 Mike Nugent So PK 19 Matt Rusell Sr P 21 B.J. Sander  Jr P, PK 86 Kyle Turano Jr P, DB 9 Bryan Weaver So LS 67 Kurt Wilhelm  So	Head coach Jim Tressel Coordinators/assistant coaches Jim Bollman Bill Conley Mark Dantonio Joe Daniels Luke Fickell Jim Heacock Chris Oliver Mark Snyder Tim Spencer Dick Tressel Mike Tressel Bob Tucker Mel Tucker Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: 2015-12-20

Game summaries

Texas Tech

The Buckeyes began the 2002 season in

Ohio State, now ranked 8th in the AP Poll, built a 38-0 lead before halftime against the Kent State Golden Flashes, with quarterback Craig Krenzel completing his first 11 passes, safety Mike Doss and freshman linebacker A. J. Hawk returning interceptions for touchdowns, and Maurice Clarett scoring twice. Kent State scored twice in the last 4 minutes of the first half but never threatened an upset. With the game in hand, backup quarterback Scott McMullen directed the Buckeye offense for much of the second half, completing 7 of his 11 passes. The Buckeyes took only 47 snaps compared to 80 by the Golden Flashes and actually had a 2:1 deficit in time of possession, but outgained Kent State by 60 yards. Sophomore place kicker Mike Nugent, who had been uneven in his kicking as a freshman, gave an indication of his future value to the team by kicking field goals of 41, 33, and 45 yards.

Washington State

Now ranked sixth in the nation, the Buckeyes faced their first marquee opponent and second Heisman quarterback candidate in Jason Gesser on September 14 when they hosted the 10th-ranked Cougars of Washington State. The game was billed by many in the media as a possible Rose Bowl-preview and was televised nationally (Keels p. 28).

Washington State appeared to live up to its billing with an 11-play 80-yard drive midway through the 1st quarter that was capped by a short touchdown pass from Gesser. In addition the Cougar defense limited tailback Maurice Clarett to just 36 yards rushing and held the Buckeyes to only a pair of field goals in the half. However Ohio State's defense stymied Washington State throughout the game, intercepting Gesser twice and forcing the Cougars to surrender the ball on downs twice in Buckeye territory.

In the second half Clarett picked up 44 yards on his first rush and destroyed the Cougar defense with 194 second-half yards. His 230 yards rushing for the day was the 6th best in Buckeye history and just short of

Sophomore running back Lydell Ross, starting in place of the injured Clarett, rushed for 130 yards. Wide receiver Chris Gamble had practiced all week as a defensive back and was used on a 3rd down for UC from the Ohio State 29 in the 4th quarter, making an interception in the end zone. Craig Krenzel, who had scrambled for 64 yards on 14 carries in the first three games, scored the winning touchdown with less than 4 minutes to play, twisting and spinning through the Bearcat defenders for 6 yards. (Keels p. 35)

Indiana

6th-ranked and undefeated Ohio State took care of business in opening the

Playing both defense and offense, Chris Gamble scored on a 43-yard reverse on the first drive of the 3rd quarter. Indiana had to punt on the ensuing possession and safety Dustin Fox blocked the kick. Ohio State took over at the Indiana 18 and scored on a short pass from Krenzel to Michael Jenkins to take a 35–10 lead.

Northwestern

The next week, on the road against the Northwestern Wildcats, which entered the game with a 2-3 record and 0-1 in conference play, Ohio State played a night game in Evanston, Illinois, in accordance with a scheduling agreement between the Big Ten and ESPN (Keels, p. 41). The game was again unusually close, with Clarett fumbling three times and caught by the TV cameras arguing with running backs coach Tim Spencer on the sidelines (Keels, p. 42), but he also carried the ball for 140 yards and two scores as Ohio State prevailed 27-16.

Northwestern had a 6-0 lead after the 1st quarter but had had two drives stopped inside the Ohio State ten-yard line. They later missed a pair of field goal attempts before scoring a touchdown with less than 2 minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter to narrow the Buckeye lead to 24-16. Ohio State replied with a long drive and a field goal by Mike Nugent, then used an interception by Cie Grant and a fumble recovery by Donnie Nickey to keep Northwestern at bay.

San Jose State

Ohio State for the second season in a row played a non-conference West Coast team at mid-season, hosting the San Jose State Spartans for Homecoming on October 12. San Jose State had attempted to cancel the game because its schedule featured seven road games in an 8-week span, but was unable to find a replacement team for the Buckeye home date. The Spartans, 4-2, had already defeated Illinois, had a three-game winning streak, and entered the game with a defense that led Division I-A in taking the ball away from its opponents. The game started slowly and was tied 7-7 early in the 2nd quarter.

The Buckeye defense, however, held SJS to 265 yards of offense, all of it passing yardage, despite the Spartans completing 81.8% of their 44 passes. (Lindy's, p. 42) The offense ran up 567 yards, a season-high, with Krenzel and backup Scott McMullen combining for 355 yards passing on only 19 completions. Krenzel threw for three touchdowns to break the game open in the 3rd quarter, Clarett rushed for 132 yards and scored three times, and Mike Nugent connected on three field goals, tying the school record for 15 straight without a miss.

Wisconsin

Ohio State faced its next big test on the road October 19, in Madison, Wisconsin, taking on the Wisconsin Badgers in one of the most hostile stadiums in the nation. Ranked fourth now, Ohio State faced a Badger team that had opened its season 5-0, but had lost its first two conference games, and 7 of its last 9 conference games at home, and was playing without its top wide receiver, Lee Evans. Animosity simmered in both teams as each had resented the other dancing on their logos after road wins in the immediately preceding years. (Keels p. 46)

Ohio State scored on its first possession with a long pass from Krenzel to Jenkins, but by halftime Wisconsin led, 14-13, on two long plays in each quarter. The 3rd quarter was scoreless, but midway through the 4th, on a 3rd and 6 from its own 16, Krenzel delivered a high pass 45 yards to Michael Jenkins, who out-jumped two defenders to give the Buckeyes a first down in Wisconsin territory. Krenzel completed the drive with a short touchdown pass to tight end Ben Hartsock, and although a try for a 2-point conversion failed, the Buckeyes led 19-14.

Wide receiver Chris Gamble, who had played defensive back on key downs earlier in the season, was sent into the game when Wisconsin faced a 3-and-11 at the Buckeye 29-yard line. Gamble intercepted the next pass in the end zone to preserve the lead. Also a key player in the victory was punter Andy Groom, whose six punts averaged 50.2 yards, with a 4th quarter punt that went for 74 yards and another that was downed at the Wisconsin 1-yard line. Maurice Clarett rushed for 133 yards but suffered a shoulder stinger on his last carry, an injury that would severely limit his availability over the next four games.

Penn State

The following week, on October 26, the Buckeyes returned to Columbus to face Joe Paterno's Penn State Nittany Lions, ranked 17th in the AP, with a 5–2 overall record and a 1–2 conference record, its losses to Iowa and Michigan. The Ohio State offense struggled throughout the game, exemplified by Craig Krenzel losing a fumble at the Penn State one on Ohio State's first possession, but the defense held Penn State's offense to only seven points and a season-low 179 yards and 8 first downs (tying the Penn State school record for fewest first downs, which surprisingly occurred in Penn State's memorable 14-10 upset of the Miami Hurricanes in the 1987 Fiesta Bowl that grabbed them the national championship). Heisman Trophy finalist Larry Johnson was held to a season-low 66 yards rushing on 16 attempts.

The game featured Chris Gamble starting on both offense and defense (which had last occurred for Ohio State in 1963) and playing 89 of the game's 138 plays (51 on defense, 31 on offense, and 7 on punt returns). (Lindy's p. 50) After Krenzel's fumble, Gamble caught the Penn State defender from behind at the OSU 41, preventing a touchdown return, and two plays later A. J. Hawk ended the threat with his second interception of the year.

The key play of the game, however, came on the first series of the 3rd quarter with Penn State in possession and having the lead, 7–3. Gamble "jumped the route" of the Penn State receiver, intercepted the ball at the Nittany Lion 40, and returned it down the sideline for a touchdown, the only one scored by Ohio State in the game. In all the Buckeyes intercepted three passes, but controversy ensued near the end of the game when Gamble appeared to interfere with a Lion receiver but was not called for a penalty. (Lindy's, p. 50) Clarett played only the first series of the game before injuring his shoulder again and leaving the game.

Buckeye radio broadcaster Paul Keels, in his book recounting the season, noted that the fans in Ohio Stadium that day were unusually loud and supportive. (P. 53)

Minnesota

The team was far more dominant on November 2, posting an impressive 34-3 rout of the 19th-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers. Minnesota, at 7-1 overall and 3-1 in conference play, was a contender for the Big Ten title. The Gophers blocked a punt that led to the first score of the day, a field goal, but Ohio State's defense throttled the Minnesota rushing attack, which had been averaging 271 yards a game, (Lindy's, p. 54) holding it to 53 yards and the passing attack to 59, and Minnesota, despite starting its next two possessions at its 45, was unable to score further.

Lydell Ross and Maurice Hall, playing in place of the injured Clarett, rushed for 89 and 93 yards respectively, as Ohio State scored 34 unanswered points. Defensive linemen Darrion Scott, Simon Fraser, and David Thompson recorded 4 sacks and were instrumental in stopping the run.

Purdue

On November 9, the 3rd-ranked Buckeyes, in an unexpectedly close game with the 4-5 Purdue Boilermakers (2-3 in Big Ten play), delivered one of the most thrilling moments in Ohio State football history. The offense had been stagnant the entire game, unable to run against the Purdue defense. Maurice Clarett, still hampered by the recurrence of his stinger injury in the Penn State game, carried the ball only 14 times for 52 yards. Krenzel had completed only 11 passes for 123 yards when Ohio State faced a 3rd and 14 from midfield, trailing 6–3 late in the fourth quarter. He scrambled in the passing pocket and completed a pass along the sideline to tight end Ben Hartsock but came up a yard short of a first down at the 37-yard line with just over 2:00 remaining in the game.

On

The overtime game was the first ever played by Ohio State, and on the opening possession the Buckeyes scored, with Krenzel scrambling from the pocket for 14 yards and Maurice Hall scoring on an 8-yard run up the middle. The Illini appeared to make two touchdown receptions in their possession but the first was out-of-bounds and the second a bobbled incompletion. Defensive lineman Tim Anderson knocked down the final attempt to keep the Buckeyes undefeated. (Lindy's p. 62: Keels, p. 74-75)

Michigan