“November is for contenders” is a phrase that Ohio State coach Jim Tressel has been repeating for weeks. With a 21-10 victory over Michigan, Tressel’s team went undefeated in the month of November against two of the best teams in the Big Ten — Penn State and Iowa — and its biggest rival, the Wolverines.

“I’m very proud of our guys,” Tressel said. “When you’re undefeated in November, good things will happen over the holidays.”

Coleman produces turnovers in final game against Michigan
Senior defensive back Kurt Coleman came into Saturday’s game against Michigan knowing that it was his final chance to make a statement in the rivalry that has driven his college career.

With two interceptions and two broken up passes, the message Coleman left was one of domination.

“This is what you dream for. We work so hard every year, and I think the tradition that we’ve had … we wanted to keep it going,” Coleman said.

Tressel said that Coleman’s performance Saturday is just another testament to his strength and talent as a football player.

“He’s a good football player and a good leader,” Tressel said. “He’ll be good at the next level.”

Turnovers again prove strength of Buckeye defense

The opening score of the game came when UM quarterback Tate Forcier fumbled the ball in his own end zone and OSU defensive lineman Cameron Heyward recovered the ball for a defensive touchdown that put the Buckeyes up 7-0.

Devon Torrence and Thaddeus Gibson each added an interception to the turnover margin, making it 5-1 in OSU’s favor.

“I felt that [Torrence’s interception] was definitely one of the final blows to the coffin, and then Thaddeus finished them off,” Coleman said.

Torrence intercepted Forcier’s pass to the end zone and returned it for 13 yards with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, sealing the momentum in favor of the Buckeyes. Gibson snatched his interception with four minutes to go, returning it to the Michigan 42-yard line and setting up OSU’s final drive.

Tressel said that he couldn’t be happier with the job that the defense did amassing five takeaways in The Big House.

“Defensively, we just kept coming,” Tressel said. “Turnovers and the rushing game are always going to be the key to this game.”

Boren makes triumphant return to Ann Arbor
Justin Boren’s last game in The Big House was when he lost to OSU as a Wolverine in 2007. Coming back as a transfer on the Buckeye squad was a difficult, yet rewarding, feat for the offensive lineman.

With a lot of talk on the Michigan side about Boren being traitorous, he had to deal with added outside pressure, as fans took no shame in jeering at the junior.

“I tried to keep my head forward and not look in the crowd, but I heard some things, but you just kind of zone out and laugh in the back of your head,” Boren said.

But he says that he doesn’t want to be known as the Michigan transfer.

“I’m just a kid trying to play football, and so I came to Ohio State, and I’m trying to make the best of the situation,” he said.

Tressel said that Boren is a born competitor and that he knew Boren would stand up to the pressure.

“He’s excited, but I’m sure that he’s glad this day is over. He’s got a lot of good feelings for Michigan, it runs deep in his family,” Tressel said. “But he came in and competed as hard as he could, and he came away with a win.”

Play miscall leads to breakaway touchdown
When Brandon Saine got the call on a play that resulted in a 29-yard touchdown, he had no idea that what the coaches really wanted him to do was something completely different.

But that didn’t matter; Saine took the ball on the right and ran back to the left, straight into the corner of the end zone.

“The student intern put the wrong wristband number on the board, so that was not the play we called. He called that,” Tressel said. “He must have been told the wrong number somewhere.”

Boren said that the players didn’t really think much about the play that was called when they were out on the field.

“You really don’t think about that. After it, you’re like, ‘Yeah, that’s a heck of a call,’ but before you’re just blocking,” Boren said. “We found that out afterwards [that it was a miscalled play], but it worked.”

“It was 100 percent [Pryor]. It was his call, and he always makes the right one,” Saine said. “I think over the past couple games, the practice and repetition has really helped him, and I think he is very comfortable with it now. He could do it in any play.”

Tressel said that he was confident in running the option play and resting the rivalry game on the shoulders of his sophomore quarterback.

“Terrelle did a great job on the option play, he did some great reads and made some great calls,” Tressel said.

Always a game of honor and tradition
The Michigan rivalry game is one of the most heralded traditions in OSU history, and Saturday’s game did not fall short.

The team wore uniforms celebrating the 1954 National Championship Buckeye squad.
“I felt faster. I wish we could wear them every weekend,” sophomore receiver DeVier Posey said. “But it’s a one-time thing and we understand.”

But the new uniforms and socks weren’t the only addition to the players outfits on Saturday. Every player and coach wore a button bearing the initials of Stefanie Spielman, who passed away Thursday night after a long battle with breast cancer. Stefanie Spielman was the wife of famed OSU alumnus Chris Spielman.

“We know what kind of Buckeye she is, and Chris is, and the whole family is, and they are part of our Buckeye family,” Tressel said. “We talked before the game and said that the toughest team wins this match, and we said that if we could be half as tough as Stefanie, then we have a chance.”

Rose Bowl bound, finally able to focus on the big picture after challenging stretch
Sealing the Big Ten outright title and donning the crown is one thing, but finally being able to focus on just one more big game is something the Buckeyes haven’t been able to do in a while.

With three tough games down the stretch, fighting for the Big Ten championship seat was difficult.

“Maybe that’s one of the reasons that you like the Ohio State–Michigan game, because you get to exhale,” Tressel said.

After nine years with the Buckeyes, Tressel will finally be able to coach in a Rose Bowl game; something he has aspired to his entire life.

“It’s one of things, that when I first got this job, I said, ‘I wonder if we’ll ever get to a Rose Bowl,’ And for nine years I’ve wondered that,” Tressel said. “But here we go.”