The Carolina Panthers (and their four Buckeye alums) stomped a mudhole into Carson Palmer and the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday night in the NFC championship.
Cam Newton (deservedly) earned the headlines after Carolina earned its second Super Bowl berth in franchise history, but the game ball went to a lesser-heralded star, Ted Ginn Jr.
Ginn has played with four teams in five NFL stops since Miami drafted him with the No. 9 pick in the 2007 NFL draft. He even played for the Cardinals in 2014, when he was mostly as a special teams weapon.
On Saturday night, Teddy turned back the clock. He logged 73 all-purpose yards in the first quarter alone, including a 22-yard reverse touchdown run in which he ran about 92 yards.
What truly earned him the admiration of coach Ron Rivera, however, was a play late in the second quarter in which Ginn found himself transformed back into his old position of DB.
With the Cardinals trailing 24-7 Patrick Peterson intercepted a Cam Newton pass and sprinted for what appeared to an inevitable pick-6.
What he didn't take into account: A six-yard head start is not enough when up against Ginn in a foot race.
The hustle proved crucial. The next play, Ohio State alum Kurt Coleman intercepted Carson Palmer in the end zone, all but killing any chance of the Cardinals clawing their way back into the game.
"Y'all know how much this means to me," Ginn told his jubilant teammates afterwards. "Now let's go win this Super Bowl!"
