The last time Ohio State and Miami met on the football field, the Buckeyes ended their 34-year national title drought and the Hurricanes failed to record their 34th straight victory and second consecutive BCS championship.

Miami entered the 2003 Fiesta Bowl regarded as one of the best teams in college football history, having returned to the dominance in game play and attitude that led to an ESPN documentary, “The U.”

Twenty-six players from that Miami team were selected in the NFL draft.

“That was as fast a game, and I don’t mean in time duration, I mean in the way people were flying around the field, as I think I’ve ever been in,” OSU coach Jim Tressel said.

Since that game, however, the Hurricanes have appeared in only one BCS game, defeating Florida State in the Orange Bowl after the 2003 season.

The Buckeyes have moved in the opposite direction and have played in a BCS bowl in six of the seven seasons since the two teams last met.

Because of its lack of national relevance over the past seven seasons, the rematch may mean more for Miami than for OSU.

“I don’t think people really understand,” said OSU linebacker Brian Rolle, an Immokalee, Fla., native. “When I go home, people tell me, ‘We can’t wait for that game to get you back (for the national championship game).'”

Others are less concerned with the game’s impact on Miami fans and players.

“It they are bothered by (the loss), then so be it,” Buckeye center Michael Brewster said.

Part of the game that still bothers the ‘Canes is the pass interference call against Miami on fourth down in overtime. A no-call would have resulted in a Miami championship.

“A call was made and you have to go play the rest of the plays and that’s how history was written,” Tressel said.

Controversial or not, the call and the game itself are not as relevant to the players involved in Saturday’s contest.

“I was 13 then, I don’t think I had the attention span to sit down and watch a whole game,” Brewster said.

Despite being distant memories, the game might have made some difference in recruiting.

“That’s when I first recognized who Ohio State was and started paying attention to Ohio State,” OSU cornerback Chimdi Chekwa said.

Rolle, a Hurricanes fan growing up, offered a different perspective.

“I was like, ‘Man, forget those Buckeyes,'” he said. “(Miami) is the only place I wanted to go … it didn’t pan out the way I wanted to, but I’m here at Ohio State and I love it.”

On Saturday, both players will have to deal with a talented team attempting to be nationally relevant once again.

“We want to see Miami back in the national title hunt,” former Miami quarterback Ken Dorsey told ESPN. “This (game) is potentially a starting point for that more than anything.”

OSU players agree.

“We know they’re going to play like a fast, feisty, swagger team,” Rolle said following OSU’s season-opening victory over Marshall. “You get the feeling like (Miami) feels like they’re back on the map like they were in the early 2000s.”