At the beginning of the season, if one had said Ohio State’s hopes would rest on the shoulders of Devin Barclay, most would have been skeptical or uncomfortable. But as OSU and Iowa went into overtime to decide the Big Ten Championship, a 39-yard field goal by the 26-year-old junior ended the Hawkeyes’ hopes and sealed a Rose Bowl bid for the Buckeyes.
Barclay came into the starting role only after starting kicker Aaron Pettrey was injured during the New Mexico State game. Since then, he went just 3-5 on field goals up until the game-winner Saturday, with a missed field goal early in the fourth quarter that would have made it a two-possession game.
Barclay knew missing again in overtime wasn’t an option.
“I knew that I had an opportunity to redeem myself,” he said. “And I knew right when I hit it that it was good.”
Barclay admitted to being nervous prior to the kick, but coach Jim Tressel never doubted that his kicker could do the job.
“We had so much confidence in Devin that we were going backwards to make his kick longer,” Tressel joked after the game.
For Barclay, his journey to the OSU football team has been a strange one. After playing professional soccer for more than five years after high school, which included a stint with the Columbus Crew, he decided to use his remaining NCAA eligibility to kick for the Buckeyes.
“I was kind of thrust into this unexpectedly,” Barclay said. “But the feeling is unbelievable. All the hard work, all the 6 a.m.s, all the time spent at the facility … it’s absolutely worthwhile. It was a wonderful experience, and I’ll remember it for the rest of my life.”
Defense bends, doesn’t break
Iowa quarterback James Vandenberg, making his first career start, was supposed to be the weak link coming into the game.
Instead, coach Kirk Ferentz and the Hawkeyes put their Big Ten title hopes on the back of the redshirt freshman, having him put the ball in the air 33 times, accounting for 233 of the team’s 300 total yards.
For most of the game, Vandenberg appeared unfazed, but in overtime the swarming OSU defense finally got to him and the rest of the Hawkeye offense. After starting just 25 yards from the goal line, the Hawkeyes were pushed back 16 yards, which took them out of field-goal range and forced Vandenberg to heave a desperation pass that became OSU senior Anderson Russell’s second interception of the day.
“He’s probably the most accurate QB we’ve seen all season,” Russell said. “[The interception] goes to the D-line. They did a good job getting pressure, and he was just throwing the ball up, trying to make a play, and I was in the right place at the right time.”
After the game, senior captains Austin Spitler and Kurt Coleman said that the fact the defense saved its best for last was no coincidence and is a big reason why this season’s OSU defense has been one of the best.
“We let a lot of opportunities slip away, but we fought back and responded to the adversity we faced,” Spitler said. “We never gave up, and that says a lot about our team.”
“We kept on fighting — that’s what our team is all about,” Coleman said.
Running game takes pressure off Pryor
For most of his OSU career, Terrelle Pryor has accounted for an overwhelming majority of the Buckeyes’ total offense, already becoming among the 10 largest gainers in OSU history after less than two full seasons.
But Saturday, in contrast to Iowa’s game plan, the OSU coaching staff didn’t ask its young quarterback to put Rose Bowl hopes on his shoulders.
Instead, the “Boom and Zoom” combination of Daniel Herron and Brandon Saine rushedfor 200 of the offense’s 322 total yards and scored all three touchdowns.
“Those two guys are guys that have been here three years,” Tressel said. “They’ve been with the seniors for a long time, and they were not going to let those seniors down.”
The performance against Iowa was what many expected all year from the combo, but injuries made it difficult for the duo to find their rhythm. Saturday was a sign of what many hoped and believed the “Boom and Zoom” combo could be.
“The times I was out of the game were perfect for me,” Saine said. “I was able to catch my breath while ‘Boom’ was in there rocking. It worked out well.”
Saine needed all his breath for both of his touchdown runs, one of which was 49 yards, the other 22. If it’s possible for a former state 100-meter dash champion to find another gear, Saine said he did it Saturday.
“The cutback was right there. I just followed a couple blockers, and once I saw the goal line, I knew I had to get in.”
Celebration in Columbus… for now
Ohio State clinched a fifth-straight Big Ten title, its first trip to the Rose Bowl since 1997 and a victorious senior send-off. But the celebration didn’t last long.
“We told our guys they could have three hours and savor that, but when the clock strikes 12, we know what week it is, and that’s exciting,” Tressel said.
Tressel referred to Michigan week, and although the Wolverines are only 5-6 on the season, the OSU players and coaches know they can’t overlook the team from up north, especially with Michigan needing a win to become bowl-eligible.
“It’s Michigan time now,” Pryor said. “It’s going to be a fight, no matter what the record is.”
Pryor did acknowledge that after what was probably the biggest win of his Buckeye career, he took a moment to hug Tressel and congratulate him on making his first Rose Bowl, but he joked that all he wanted to do was get off the field after the win as the fans stormed the field.
“I was trying to get out man. Kids were in there drunk and hitting me all hard,” he said, laughing.
The opponent for next week is known, but OSU’s Rose Bowl opposition is still undecided. Oregon currently leads and controls its destiny in the Pac-10. Other possibilities include Stanford, Arizona and Oregon State.
But as many were thinking about Michigan or possible Rose Bowl matchups, one player did seem to be savoring the moment after the big win.
When asked to make a statement after the game, senior lineman Jim Cordle poured a cup of water over his head and shouted, “We did it, Baby! We won! These guys up here, we’ve got five rings now. We did it! We won!”
As the room filled with laughter, fellow senior Kurt Coleman shook his head and smiled.
“He’s still the crazy man,” he said.
