NCAA Football

Ohio State Sinks Navy's Upset Bid

Posted Sep 05, 2009 3:22PM By Brian Grummell (RSS feed)

Filed Under: Navy, Ohio State, USC

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It was a scary Saturday afternoon in Columbus for Ohio State, which barely avoided another home embarrassment the week before playing USC when a late effort by Navy nearly tied the game. Last year the Buckeyes struggled at home against the Ohio Bobcats but could at least blame an injury to star back Beanie Wells and the general whatever-ness of quarterback Todd Boeckman.

The Buckeyes needed a late return of a Navy two-point try to swing a 29-27 lead into a 31-27 victory. Navy surged offensively in the second half behind a grinding 99-yard touchdown drive and a broken coverage 85-yard touchdown pass. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor then threw an interception deep in his own zone and the Middies once again capitalized with a third down touchdown run right up the gut.

Ohio State actually looked cool and in control early in the game, with Pryor building a 20-7 halftime lead. Almost every stat went Ohio State's way including a +2 turnover margin, but things broke down after halftime. Pryor's fourth quarter interception darn near cost them control of the game.

In whats becoming pattern, the Buckeyes will now take a national paddling of shame, built upon memories of games like last year's snoozer against Ohio and woodsheddings against USC, LSU and Florida. The only cure? Beating USC next week which despite the Trojans' starting a true freshman quarterback with interception woes, looks suddenly out of reach.

Will they surprise us next week? Maybe. But for this week its back to the doghouse despite the all-important 'W'. Such is life on the pedestal.

Tags: Beanie+Wells, Terrelle+Pryor

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