2007 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

Last updated

2007 Ohio State Buckeyes football
Buckeyes logo.svg
Big Ten champion
Conference Big Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 4
APNo. 5
Record11–2 (7–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinator Jim Bollman (7th season)
Offensive scheme Multiple
Defensive coordinator Jim Heacock (3rd season)
Co-defensive coordinator Luke Fickell (3rd season)
Base defense 4–3
Captains
Home stadium Ohio Stadium
(Capacity: 102,329)
Seasons
  2006
2008  
2007 Big Ten Conference football standings
ConfOverall
Team W L  W L 
No. 5 Ohio State $  7 1   11 2  
No. 18 Michigan  6 2   9 4  
No. 20 Illinois  %  6 2   9 4  
No. 24 Wisconsin  5 3   9 4  
Penn State  4 4   9 4  
Iowa  4 4   6 6  
Purdue  3 5   8 5  
Indiana  3 5   7 6  
Michigan State  3 5   7 6  
Northwestern  3 5   6 6  
Minnesota  0 8   1 11  
  • $ BCS representative as conference champion
  • % BCS at-large representative
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2007 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented Ohio State University during the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Buckeyes were coached by Jim Tressel and played their home games in Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. Tressel led the Buckeyes to their fourth Big Ten Conference championship and third BCS National Championship Game in six years. The team finished the season with overall record of 11–2, with losses to conference-rival Illinois and LSU in the 2008 BCS National Championship Game.

Contents

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
September 112:00 p.m. Youngstown State *No. 10 BTN W 38–6105,038
September 812:00 p.m. Akron *No. 11
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
BTNW 20–2104,317
September 153:30 p.m.at Washington *No. 10 ESPN W 33–1474,927
September 223:30 p.m. Northwestern No. 9
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
ABC/ESPNW 58–7105,178
September 298:00 p.m.at Minnesota No. 8 ESPN2 W 30–751,611
October 68:00 p.m.at No. 20 Purdue No. 4ABCW 23–765,497
October 1312:00 p.m. Kent State *No. 3
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
BTNW 48–3105,051
October 203:30 p.m. Michigan State Dagger-14-plain.pngNo. 1
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
ABCW 24–17105,287
October 278:00 p.m.at No. 25 Penn State No. 1ABCW 37–17110,134
November 312:00 p.m.No. 19 Wisconsin No. 1
  • Ohio Stadium
  • Columbus, OH
BTNW 38–17105,449
November 103:30 p.m. Illinois No. 1
ABC/ESPNL 21–28105,453
November 1712:00 p.m.at No. 23 Michigan No. 7ABCW 14–3111,941
January 7, 20087:00 p.m.vs. No. 2 LSU *No. 1 FOX L 24–3879,651
  • *Non-conference game
  • Dagger-14-plain.pngHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time
Panoramic view of the Buckeye vs. Wildcats game Panoramic view of Ohio Stadium.jpg
Panoramic view of the Buckeye vs. Wildcats game

Previous season

The 2006 Buckeyes squad finished the season as Big Ten Conference champions and ranked #2 in the final AP and Coaches' polls. They finished the regular season undefeated and advanced to the 2007 BCS National Championship Game where they lost to the Florida Gators, ending the season with a record of 12–1.

The Buckeyes kick off. Ohio State Buckeyes kickoff 2007.jpg
The Buckeyes kick off.

Preseason

On March 6, Coach Jim Tressel announced the hiring of Assistant Coach Taver Johnson. Johnson is a native of Cincinnati and a graduate of Wittenberg University. He had spent most of his coaching career at Miami University and had a very brief stint with the Oakland Raiders. Coach Johnson will replace Tim Beckman, who left Ohio State to become Defensive Coordinator at Oklahoma State University. Coach Johnson will coach the Cornerbacks.

Watch lists

Linebackers James Laurinaitis and Marcus Freeman along with defensive end Vernon Gholston were among the list of 65 players under consideration for the Bednarik Award while Chris "Beanie" Wells was on the 65-player list for the Maxwell Award.

Coaching staff

Results

Youngstown State

Youngstown State at Ohio State
1234Total
Youngstown State03306
No. 20 Ohio State71431438

[1]

Akron

Akron at Ohio State
1234Total
Akron20002
No. 11 Ohio State0310720

[2]

Washington

Ohio State at Washington
1234Total
No. 10 Ohio State03141633
Washington070714

[3]

Northwestern

Northwestern at Ohio State
1234Total
Northwestern00707
No. 9 Ohio State281713058

[4]

Minnesota

Ohio State at Minnesota
1234Total
No. 8 Ohio State1463730
Minnesota07007

[5]

Purdue

#4 Ohio State Buckeyes (5–0) at #23 Purdue Boilermakers (5–0)
Quarter1234Total
Ohio St1433323
Purdue00077

at Ross–Ade StadiumWest Lafayette, Indiana

Game information

[6]

Kent State

Kent State at Ohio State
1234Total
Kent State00033
No. 3 Ohio State72810348

[7]

Michigan State

Michigan State at Ohio State
1234Total
Michigan State0014317
No. 1 Ohio State1077024

[8]

Penn State

Ohio State at Penn State
1234Total
No. 1 Ohio State10771337
No. 25 Penn State703717

[9]

Wisconsin

Wisconsin at Ohio State
1234Total
No. 19 Wisconsin3014017
No. 1 Ohio State7372138

Ohio State sets record with 20th straight Big Ten win. [10]

Illinois

Illinois at Ohio State
1234Total
Illinois1477028
No. 1 Ohio State1407021

[11]

Michigan

Ohio State at Michigan
1234Total
No. 7 Ohio State077014
No. 23 Michigan30003

[12]

National Championship Game

LSU vs. Ohio State
1234Total
No. 2 LSU3217738
No. 1 Ohio State1007724

On January 7, 2008 the Buckeyes played at the BCS National Championship game in New Orleans, Louisiana in the Louisiana Superdome. This was the first time in the school's history that the football team had played back to back National Championship games. The Buckeyes ended up losing the game to the Louisiana State University Tigers, 38–24. After a strong initial start (a 10–0 run in the first quarter in favor of the Buckeyes), the LSU Tigers went on one of their own, 31–0, from the first to third quarters. Two key pivotal special teams plays contributed to the LSU run, one being a blocked 38 yard Ryan Pretorius (Ohio State) field goal in the first quarter, and a roughing the kicker penalty committed by Austin Spitler (Ohio State) on a punt that extended an LSU touchdown drive in the third. Both teams scored 14 points in the second half which lead to a Tigers' victory due to the 2nd quarter LSU scoring deficit.

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend:██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes
Week
PollPre1234567891011121314Final
AP 11121088431 (50)1 (57)1 (59)1 (60)7531 (50)5
Coaches 101110984 (1)3 (2)1 (56)1 (58)1 (56)1 (55)753 (6)1 (46)4
Harris Not released7431 (110)1 (111)1 (114)1 (112)753 (11)1 (98)Not released
BCS Not released11117531Not released

Players

Roster

Wide receivers
  • 5 Dukes, Albert – Junior
  • 9 Hartline, BrianSophomore
  • 89 Hummel, Garrett – Freshman
  • Jordan, Devin – Senior
  • 18 Sharp, Luke – Junior
  • 18 Lyons, Devon – Junior
  • 86 Potokar, Dan – Sophomore
  • 80 Robiskie, BrianJunior
  • 15 Ruhl, Kyle – Junior
  • 12 Sanzenbacher, DaneFreshman
  • 4 Small, Ray – Sophomore
  • 81 Ullery, Brent – Senior
  • 19 Washington, Taurian – Freshman
Offensive tackles
  • 74 Barton, KirkSenior
  • 75 Boone, AlexJunior
  • 65 Ebner, Doug – Junior
  • 66 Moses, Andrew – Sophomore
  • 77 Smith, Connor – Freshman
  • 76 Sika, Scott – Sophomore
  • 69 Slagle, Zach – Freshman
Offensive guards
  • 68 Blankenship, Evan – Freshman
  • 70 Browning, Bryant – Freshman
  • 78 Dye, Daniel – Senior
  • 67 Mitchum, Kyle – Junior
  • 63 Person, Ben – Junior
  • 71 Rehring, Steve – Sophomore
  • 79 Skinner, Jon – Junior
Centers
  • 64 Cordle, Jim – Sophomore
  • 57 Malone, Chris – Sophomore
Tight end
  • 86 Ballard, JakeSophomore
  • 46 Larson, J.D – Sophomore
  • 82 Miller, Andy – Freshman
  • 88 Nicol, Rory – Junior
  • 87 Smith, Brandon – Junior
Quarterback
  • 17 Boeckman, ToddJunior
  • 14 Bauserman, Joe – Freshman
  • 7 Henton, Antonio – Freshman
  • 13 Kacsandi, Ben – Junior
  • 11 Schoenhoft, Rob – Sophomore
 
Running back
  • 46 Christian, K.C. – Freshman
  • 35 DeLande, Bo – Freshman
  • 33 Gantz, Joe – Sophomore
  • 2 Herron, Daniel – Freshman
  • 16 Robinson, Trever – Senior
  • 3 Saine, BrandonFreshman
  • 28 Wells, ChrisSophomore
  • 34 Wells, Maurice – Junior
  • 24 Williams, Marcus – Freshman
Fullback
  • 49 Johnson, Dionte – Senior
  • 43 Olson, Aram – Freshman
  • 48 Smith, Spencer – Freshman
  • 42 Whaley, Tyler – Senior
Defensive lineman
  • 92 Daly, Brett – Senior
  • 92 Denlinger, Todd – Sophomore
  • 50 Gholston, VernonJunior
  • 90 Gray, Bryan – Sophomore
  • 95 Rietschlin, Chris – Junior
Defensive tackles
  • 93 Abdallah, Nader – Junior
  • 97 Heyward, CameronFreshman
  • 72 Larimore, Dexter – Freshman
Defensive end
  • 78 Barrow, Alex – Junior
  • 57 Ingham, Tom – Sophomore
  • 9 Rose, Robert – Freshman
  • 98 Thomas, Solomon – Freshman
  • 87 Wilson, Lawrence – Junior
  • 84 Worthington, Doug – Sophomore
Cornerbacks
Defensive backs
  • 5 Chekwa, Chimdi – Freshman
  • 32 Clifford, Eugene – Freshman
  • 36 Daniels, Matt – Junior
  • 39 Dougherty, Michael – Junior
  • 30 Evege, Donnie – Freshman
  • 41 Haslam, De'Angelo – Senior
  • 2 Jenkins, Malcolm – Junior
  • 24 Schwartz, Grant – Freshman
  • 11 Scott, James – Freshman
  • 20 Washington, DonaldSophomore
  • 17 Willis, Zach – Junior
 
Linebackers
  • 1 Freeman, MarcusSenior
  • 37 Gibson, ThaddeusFreshman
  • 6 Grant, Larry – Senior
  • 7 Hines, Jermale – Freshman
  • 51 Homan, Ross – Sophomore
  • 44 Johnson, Mark – Freshman
  • 33 Laurinaitis, JamesJunior
  • 59 Libby, Kyle – Freshman
  • 49 Lukens, Ryan – Junior
  • 26 Moeller, Tyler – Freshman
  • 36 Rolle, Brian – Freshman
  • 38 Spitler, Austin – Sophomore
  • 55 Terry, Curtis – Senior
Safety
  • 8 Gant, Aaron So.
  • 3 O'Neal, Jamario Jr.
  • 14 Oliver, Nate Fr.
  • 23 Patterson, Nick Jr.
  • 25 Pentello, Rocco Fr.
  • 21 Russell, Anderson So.
  • 10 Torrence, Devon Fr.
Long snappers
  • 52 Curtis, Don – Freshman
  • 61 Haas, Jackson – Senior
  • 53 Howe, Patrick – Freshman
  • 56 Makridis, Dimitrios – Senior
  • 96 McQuaide, Jake – Freshman
Kickers
  • 12 Barclay, Devin – Freshman
  • 39 Good, Andrew Jr.
  • 41 Mattimoe, Matt – Sophomore
  • 20 Pettrey, AaronSophomore
  • 85 Pretorius, Ryan Jr.
Punters
  • 15 Trapasso, A.J. – Junior
  • 48 Thoma, John – Sophomore
  • 24 Wuokko, Kyle - Sophomore
  • 94 Bartholomew, Benjamin – Freshman

2008 NFL draftees

PlayerRoundPickPositionNFL club
Vernon Gholston 16Defensive end New York Jets
Larry Grant 7214Linebacker San Francisco 49ers
Kirk Barton 7247Tackle Chicago Bears

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References

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  10. "Ohio St. Gets Big Ten Record 20th Straight Conference Win". ESPN. November 3, 2007. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  11. "Illinois Shocks Top-Ranked Ohio State in Columbus". ESPN. November 10, 2007. Archived from the original on October 23, 2021. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  12. "Ohio State Takes Down Michigan for Sixth Time in Seven Years". ESPN. November 17, 2007. Retrieved October 11, 2014.