 "Photo: Jill Bonnough")
Ohio State's defense saw it coming. It was evident that Iowa junior quarterback Drew Tate's frustration was about to boil over.
"You could definitely tell he was getting frustrated," said senior defensive end Mike Kudla about the Buckeyes unrelenting pressure put on Tate. "He was yelling at his receivers, yelling at his lineman."
"He was cussing (his teammates) out," said junior safety Donte Whitner. "He cussed them out when the players lined up in the wrong spot one time. All you could do is smile when they had to call a timeout. You like that."
Tate finally snapped when he was sacked for the fourth time of the day during the third quarter, spiking the ball into the turf to draw a 5-yard delay-of-game penalty. Following the game, it was apparent Tate's nerves were still frayed when he was asked about the play.
"You saw what happened. Next question," Tate told reporters. Asked again, he responded, "I've got to grow up and act like a Division I football player."
For a Buckeye defense that saw Tate account for nearly 400 yards of offense in last year's 33-7 loss to the Hawkeyes, it was especially rewarding seeing him down.
"Any time you can do that and the quarterback shows some outward emotion - some negative emotion - you know you are in his head and you've affected him," said senior linebacker Bobby Carpenter. "It's satisfying."
Gonzo lives up to name
Sophomore wideout Anthony Gonzalez chose the one game his mother could not attend to break out a career day.
She was attending the wedding of Gonzalez's cousin, Mark, in Cincinnati.
"Kind of funny how that works," said Gonzalez, who was heading south to catch the reception.
With the Hawkeyes attention fixed to sophomore wideout Ted Ginn Jr. and junior Santonio Holmes, Gonzalez reeled in a career-high six catches for 90 yards and two touchdowns (8 and 29 yards). Running mainly slants and curls across the middle while Holmes and Ginn were doubled on the outside, Gonzalez was often left with only linebackers to beat.
"I'm the No. 3 guy," Gonzalez said. "Let's not kid ourselves. But when they worry so much about (Ginn) and (Holmes), sometimes I get left alone. If teams are going to do that, it's my job to work the middle."
Junior quarterback Troy Smith said it's about time Gonzalez got his due.
"Ted and Santonio get the (publicity), but now it's time for guys to start talking about Gonzalez, too," Smith said.
Running far from empty
Saturday marked the first time in almost 30 years the Buckeyes had a quarterback and running back each rush for more than 100 yards. Sophomore tailback Antonio Pittman finished the game with a career high 171 yards on 28 carries while Smith ran for 127 yards on 18 carries.
The last time OSU reached the feat was against Michigan State on Sept. 11, 1976, when quarterback Ron Gerald rushed for 104 yards and running back Jeff Logan went for 112.
OSU's 336 yards on the ground also marked the first time since the 2002 season opener against Texas Tech that the Buckeyes rushed for more than 300 yards.
Almost did it a-Ginn
After returning four punts for touchdowns last season, Ginn found the end zone on a punt return for the first time Saturday, but it was not meant to be.
The sophomore flanker returned a punt 55 yards into the end zone, but it was called back because of an illegal block by freshman cornerback Jamario O'Neal. Ginn and O'Neal were former high school teammates at Cleveland Glenville High School.
Ginn finished the day with three receptions for 31 yards.
Quick slants
With Saturday's win over No. 21 Iowa, coach Jim Tressel upped his mark against teams ranked in the top 25 to 17-6. ... Senior kicker Josh Huston's 47-yard field goal was a new career long. Huston has hit 10-of-11 field goals this year. ... Senior tailback Brandon Schnittker's second quarter fumble at the Iowa 7-yard line was his second in as many games inside the red zone. ... A capacity crowd of 105,225 witnessed Saturday's game making it the fifth-largest crowd in OSU history. ... A noon kickoff time has been announced for OSU's next home game, an Oct. 15 duel with Michigan State.
Be the first to comment on this article!