For the second consecutive year, #2 Ohio State will take on their 71-North opponent Youngstown State to open up the 2008 college football season. In 2007, the Buckeyes handed the Penguins their first season-opening loss in 11 years when they defeated them 38-6 in front of 105,000 scarlet and gray fans at Ohio Stadium. For many top-25 teams not named Michigan, the first game usually plays out as follows: A somewhat competitive 30 minutes of football followed by another two quarters of second-team work. This is due to the fact that many upper level division 1A schools elect to schedule FCS opponents as preparation for the more difficult non-conference opponents and corresponding conference games. OSU has YSU, Georgia will play Georgia Southern, Oklahoma takes on Chattanooga and West Virginia tackles Villanova. No offense meant to the highly gifted championship subdivision teams but they simply do not match up talent wise and after this first few quarters their fate is almost inevitable. With that being said, look for an exciting game as the first one always is, full of scoring, nice defensive plays, plenty of Buckeyes off the roster and a 30-point win. More specifically, below are some of the exciting elements to look for during Saturday’s game on both sides of the football.
