Ken Gordon comments on the lack of buzz in the run-up to kickoff
As of Friday, there were a grand total of two national media members here, both from ESPN.com. Heck, there were only two Ohio newspapers represented -- Columbus and Cleveland -- until a few other reporters showed up Thursday and Friday.
It's a sign of the times, newspaper-wise, with slashed staffs and budgets. Akron and Dayton stopped covering Ohio State regularly this year. In the past, Canton and Mansfield would have sent reporters to a bowl, but they're not here, either.
I've noticed a little bit of that as well. There seems to be a sort of fatigue among Buckeye fans which probably stems from getting thumped in three straight big games and the fact that the season didn't exactly play out as anticipated. It doesn't mean fans will be doing other things Monday night, but you can definitely feel it.
Texas fans are likely in the same boat -- having to settle for a matchup with a just-decent Ohio State team instead of playing for the crystal football. From press accounts, it appears as if the coaches and players have been grilled more on Oklahoma than they have been about the Buckeyes.
Are you more or less pumped than you thought you'd be?
Trick or Treat
Surprise! Not only will Rehring and Person both be starting Monday night, but they're flipping sides! I'd like to think we've seen the depths of Buckeye line play this season, so maybe Bollman's crazy idea pays off.
A Word on Pryor and the Media
It was big news Friday day when Tressel held Pryor back from speaking with the press. Partly because this broke unwritten bowl protocol of making a team's starters available and partly because the ones most burdened by this decision are also the ones that produce the news.
The quasi-official explanation given was that Pryor (and fellow MIA starter, Brewster) were freshmen. But it was also a stroke of tactical brilliance out of the Vest. Pryor is your typical cocky confident freshman star and has already slipped by saying some very unsenatorial things this season. Whether it's saying college football is like high school or taking shots at Mark May, he's flashed his youth on more than one occasion. Why take a chance on giving the Horns any bulletin board material.
Besides, Tressel surely remembers what his last hotshot freshman starter said and did during a bowl week in Arizona.
