Another tryout; Boeckman still waiting

Defensive tackle Nader Abdallah will head to Jacksonville Jaguars minicamp this weekend, hoping to earn a free-agent contract. He sounds pretty fired up that he’ll get an offer. Meanwhile, quarterback Todd Boeckman definitely will sign a deal soon, but he’s…
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To stay or go?

The draft is complete, with seven OSU players taken, but none after Marcus Freeman went in the fifth round. The players left waiting to sign free-agent deals were offensive tackle Alex Boone, defensive tackle Nader Abdallah and quarterback Todd Boeckman….
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Ohio State Spring Football: Breakdown of Quarterbacks

The 2009 version of the Ohio State Buckeyes will have to replace much of the star power which produced one of the most successful four-year runs in the program’s illustrious history. 
Led by All-American-caliber players such as James Laurinaitis, Marcus Freeman, and Malcolm Jenkins on defense, and Chris Wells, Brian Robiskie, Alex Boone, and Todd Boeckman on offense, the culminating…
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Hartline Gone; Coleman, Small Staying

Brian Hartline has announced he’s going pro and Ray Small and Kurt Coleman are not.
My initial thoughts are that if the rumors of Hartline discontent with Pryor are true, then that’s the only choice he had. Being best friends with Todd Boeckman and seeing him lose his starting QB job to an upstart freshman certianly [...]
Story By Men of the Scarlet and Gray

Ohio State’s Hartline decides to turn pro

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Ohio State junior wide receiver Brian Hartline announced today that he will forgo his senior season and enter the NFL draft.

Hartline is the second Ohio State player to turn pro early, joining running back Chris "Beanie" Wells. He ranked second on the team in touchdown catches (4) and tied for second in receptions (21) this fall.

"I am thrilled to declare my eligibility for the National Football League draft," Hartline said in a statement. "Everyone involved within The Ohio State University football program has done a tremendous job for me. I want to thank all of them, particularly coach [Jim] Tressel, for helping me to succeed as both a student and an athlete during my time here. I would especially like to thank the media and the fans of Ohio for being great to me and to my family throughout my career.

"I have had an outstanding experience at OSU and am thankful for the support I continue to receive. I now look forward to testing myself against the top competitors in the National Football League. "

Hartline didn't improve his draft stock this season, as Ohio State ranked 105th nationally in pass offense (150.2 ypg) and his receptions total dropped significantly. But his decision to turn pro isn't a huge surprise, namely because Hartline seemed to feel part of the Buckeyes' outgoing senior class.

He redshirted in 2005 but went through school with players like fellow wideout Brian Robiskie and quarterback Todd Boeckman. It's not to say Hartline wouldn't have had a big 2009 season alongside Terrelle Pryor, but many of his peers would no longer be on the roster.

Hartline's departure accelerates Ohio State's youth movement on the depth chart.

This will definitely be Pryor's team in 2009, and you can expect Pryor's peers like running back Dan Herron and wide receivers DeVier Posey and Lamaar Thomas to take on enhanced roles.

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Best and worst from the Big Ten bowl season

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Before putting a sleepy Big Ten bowl season to bed, it's time to recognize some of the memorable moments from the last few weeks. Contrary to the 1-6 record, the Big Ten produced its share of highlights. And lowlights.

Here they are.

Best closing performance — Iowa running back Shonn Greene capped a tremendous 2008 season in fitting fashion with his 13th consecutive 100-yard rushing performance. Greene punished South Carolina for 121 rushing yards and three touchdowns in the Outback Bowl. The junior then confirmed what many had believed for months and declared for the NFL draft.

	Scott A. Miller/US Presswire
	Shonn Greene punctuated his college career with a victory over South Carolina.

Best catch — Ross Lane's leaping grab in the back of the end zone secured a 23-yard touchdown and gave Northwestern a 23-20 lead over Missouri entering the fourth quarter of the Alamo Bowl. Lane used his entire 6-foot-3 frame to make the reception and managed to get a foot down before tumbling beyond the end line. His catch would have been the signature image had Northwestern held on for the win.

Best catch by a quarterback — OK, Terrelle Pryor is the only Big Ten signal caller who qualified, but he showed impressive athleticism to haul in a 5-yard fade pass from Todd Boeckman for a touchdown. Ohio State's use of Pryor and Boeckman together gave the offense a boost at times, and Pryor's leaping ability had some wondering whether he would be better used as a wide receiver.

Best preview of the future — Michigan State backup quarterback Kirk Cousins continued to boost his stock for the 2009 season with a solid effort in limited action at the Capital One Bowl. Cousins spelled Brian Hoyer for a series and completed 4 of 5 pass attempts, leading Michigan State into Georgia territory and setting up a long field-goal attempt. Though he'll have to beat out Keith Nichol for the starting job in the offseason, Cousins looked game-ready this fall.

Best performance by a secondary — Iowa's back four continued to cause problems in the Outback Bowl, as they did throughout the second half of the season. Safety Tyler Sash recorded two interceptions and cornerback Bradley Fletcher had an interception and a forced fumble. Cornerback Amari Spievey added a pass breakup as the Hawkeyes flustered South Carolina's Stephen Garcia.

Best comeback: Had Ohio State held on to beat Texas, Boeckman would have been the top story. After sitting on the bench for the final nine regular-season games, Boeckman returned to meaningful action and gave the Buckeyes' offense a much needed boost against Texas. He sparked the offense with a 48-yard pass to Brian Robiskie and hit Pryor for the team's first touchdown.

Worst quarter — The Big Ten's second-quarter blues continued in BCS games as Penn State was outscored 24-0 in the second quarter of the Rose Bowl. Penn State had taken USC's first punch and mounted an impressive scoring drive, but the Nittany Lions committed out-of-character mistakes in the second quarter and couldn't stop Mark Sanchez and the Trojans, who took a 31-7 halftime lead.

Worst turnover — It seems hard to fathom given the final score, but Wisconsin outplayed Florida State for the first quarter of the Champs Sports Bowl and had the ball inside the Noles' red zone early in the second quarter. Quarterback Dustin Sherer attempted a lateral that fell incomplete, and Florida State's Derek Nicholson wisely picked up the ball and raced 75 yards to the end zone. Wisconsin players thought Sherer had thrown an incomplete forward pass and didn't bother to chase Nicholson. They would never catch Florida State.

Worst tackle — Safety Anderson Russell had been one of Ohio State's defensive standouts in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, recording an interception, a forced fumble and a pass breakup to go along with nine tackles. But unfortunately, Russell's lasting image will be a missed tackle on wide receiver Quan Cosby that allowed Texas to score the game-winning touchdown with 26 seconds left. Ohio State had tackled extremely well until the final minute, limiting big plays, but Cosby scooted by Russell and into the end zone.

Worst special teams play — Northwestern's Stefan Demos was supposed to punt the ball out of bounds late in the first half, but his kick instead went high and short, right into the hands of dangerous return man Jeremy Maclin. The Missouri star raced 75 yards to the end zone with a minute left in the half, and Northwestern went to the locker room tied at 10-10 after dominating the first 30 minutes. A missed extra point in the third quarter also stung the Wildcats in their overtime loss.

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Corrections in Fiesta Bowl statistics

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

The NCAA made several statistical corrections from the bowl games, including two items from the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl between Texas and Ohio State.

Thanks to ESPN Stats & Information for these items:

• Intentional grounding call against Texas originally entered as incomplete pass and 18-yard penalty instead of 18-yard sack and 0-yard penalty. This gives Colt McCoy 58 pass attempts (not 59)
• One Ohio State pass incorrectly credited to Terrelle Pryor instead of Todd Boeckman.

Here's the updated box score from the game.
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Big Ten helmet stickers: Bowl edition

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

The Big Ten probably wants to forget this postseason after going 1-6 in bowls. But several players stood out, even in defeat, and they deserve recognition. Let's hand out helmet stickers for the final time this season, beginning with the one Big Ten team (Iowa) that actually won its bowl.

Iowa running back Shonn Greene – Playing in what would be his final collegiate game, the Hawkeyes' junior went out with a flourish, racking up 121 rushing yards and three touchdowns against South Carolina in the Outback Bowl. Greene eclipsed 100 rushing yards in all 13 games and set a single-season school rushing record with 1,850 yards.

Iowa strong safety Tyler Sash — South Carolina was in a giving mood (five turnovers), and Sash capitalized with two interceptions, raising his season total to five. Sash, a redshirt freshman who became one of the team's top playmakers, picked off Stephen Garcia's first pass of the game and had interception returns of 45 and 29 yards.

Iowa cornerback Bradley Fletcher — The senior recorded an interception and a forced fumble in his final game in a Hawkeyes uniform. With Iowa up 14-0, Fletcher squashed any chance of a South Carolina rally by intercepting a Garcia pass in the end zone for a touchback. He also forced a fumble on South Carolina's first play of the second half.

Ohio State quarterback Todd Boeckman – He hadn't taken significant snaps since September but gave Ohio State a big lift in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl against Texas. The offense was sputtering until Boeckman found Brian Robiskie for a 48-yard completion on the first play of the fourth quarter. Boeckman later threw a touchdown to fellow quarterback Terrelle Pryor and nearly helped Ohio State to a big upset.

Ohio State's defense — Colt McCoy and Quan Cosby had the final word in Glendale, but Ohio State held the high-powered Texas offense well below its season scoring average. The Buckeyes racked up three sacks and nine tackles for loss and limited big plays until Cosby's 26-yard touchdown with 16 seconds left.

Northwestern quarterback C.J. Bacher — Bacher ended an up-and-down senior season with arguably his best performance in the Valero Alamo Bowl. He threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns against Missouri in a 30-23 overtime loss. Bacher threw only one interception and spread the ball well to his veteran targets.

Northwestern's senior wide receivers — Rasheed Ward, Ross Lane and Eric Peterman combined for 19 receptions, 261 yards and three touchdowns in the Alamo Bowl. All three had scoring receptions of 20 yards or longer, highlighted by Lane's circus catch in the back of the end zone late in the third quarter.

Penn State linebacker Navorro Bowman – The Rose Bowl was a rough one for Penn State's defense, but Bowman certainly did his part with five tackles for loss and a sack. Bowman finished the season with 106 tackles and 16.5 tackles for loss. Next season he'll form the Big Ten's top linebacker tandem with Sean Lee.

Michigan State safety Otis Wiley – Wiley and his fellow defenders held Georgia to three first-half points in the Capital One Bowl and gave the Spartans offense a chance to create some distance on the scoreboard. Michigan State eventually caved against Matthew Stafford, but Wiley had a forced fumble and seven tackles to go along with 87 return yards in his final collegiate game.

Minnesota wide receiver Eric Decker – Decker returned from knee surgery and an ankle injury to boost the Gophers in the Insight Bowl with eight receptions for 149 yards and a touchdown. The junior set Minnesota bowl records for receptions and receiving yards and will return in 2009 as one of the Big Ten's top targets.

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Senior sendoff spoiled for Boeckman, Buckeyes

Posted by ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Perhaps more than any other player, Todd Boeckman has served as a symbol for Ohio State’s senior class. 

He celebrated Big Ten titles and struggled in big games. He earned local and national recognition and endured the pain of subpar performances. And he handled both the highs and the lows with total class. 

Despite losing the starting quarterback job to a true freshman (Terrelle Pryor) in Week 4, Boeckman still joined fellow captains James Laurinaitis, Malcolm Jenkins and Brian Robiskie to meet the media after every game. He remained a leader in the locker room, on the practice field and on the sideline, even if he could no longer be one on Saturdays.

For those reasons, no player on the field at University of Phoenix Stadium had more support than Boeckman as he reclaimed a critical role in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl against Texas. The senior helped Ohio State rally in the fourth quarter and was seconds away from a perfect end to his career when Texas scored the game-winning touchdown to win 24-21. 

“To see him go in there, it proves the old adage that good things happen to good people,” Ohio State tight end Rory Nicol said. “He stayed the course all year. Yeah, he was pissed off in his mind all year long. Who wouldn’t be? He did the right thing, he did what was best for the team.

“He forgot himself.”

But Ohio State didn’t forget about Boeckman, even though Pryor made strides as the starter. The Buckeyes shook things up in bowl practice, pairing Boeckman and Pryor on the field together. 

The combination worked Monday as Boeckman completed five passes for 110 yards, including a 5-yard scoring fade to Pryor, who recorded his first touchdown grab. Boeckman helped set up Ohio State’s go-ahead score with 2:05 left with a 21-yard strike to tight end Jake Ballard on second-and-17. 

“I had no idea how much I was going to play,” Boeckman said. “They just told me to be ready at all times. I’m always looking forward to getting out there and playing with these guys. I had some fun out there today, but unfortunately, we couldn’t get the job done.

“It felt pretty good to get out there and throw the ball around a little bit. I haven’t done that in quite a while.”

Ohio State’s coaches downplayed the two-quarterback scheme leading up to the game, suggesting it would only be used sparingly. But Boeckman took the game’s first snap and found Robiskie for a 14-yard gain. 

He seemed to spark the offense in the first half, and after the unit went silent in the third quarter, his 48-yard completion to Robiskie on third-and-13 changed the game’s complexion.

“Todd is a special guy,” head coach Jim Tressel said. “Every one of us wanted to do all we could to make him a part of the plan. … He stepped in and did a good job.”

The game signaled the start of a major personnel transition for Ohio State, as the 28-member senior class departs following four Big Ten titles but a 1-3 record in bowl games. Running back Chris “Beanie” Wells and wideout Brian Hartline, both juniors, also could also be departing (both said they had not reached a decision about the NFL draft). 

“The seniors have 43 wins throughout their career here,” Boeckman said. “That’s one of the best records in Ohio State’s history. The hard part about that is the last three bowl victories, we didn’t get a win. That’s probably what people are going to remember the most. That’s tough to take.”

The near miss resonated with Pryor, who performed admirably under pressure and will face an even greater burden in 2009. 

“We made a statement, but losing to a team, it’s not good enough,” Pryor said. “You’ve got to win. We hung onto ‘em, but it doesn’t sound great. It’s not right.

“We had an OK season. We needed to finish that game off.”

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Final: Texas 24, Ohio State 21

Posted by ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Texas needed one final push against a staunch Ohio State defense that had kept Longhorns receivers in front of it all game.

The Longhorns got it from wideout Quan Cosby, who wriggled free of Ohio State safety Anderson Russell and sprinted to the end zone for a 26-yard touchdown pass with 16 seconds left. Quarterback Colt McCoy led a masterful drive, as Texas marched 78 yards in 11 plays without using a timeout. Cosby had a huge performance in his final game in a Longhorns uniform.

Though Texas failed to make the statement it needed for split national title, the favored Longhorns survived to notch their fifth straight bowl victory and third in a BCS game.

Ohio State mounted an impressive fourth quarter comeback behind quarterbacks Todd Boeckman and Terrelle Pryor, who hooked up for a touchdown with 7:26 left. The Buckeyes’ ground attack secured the lead despite a hamstring injury to Chris Wells, but a defense that has stepped up all game couldn’t get the final stop.

The Buckeyes weren’t embarrassed like the last two seasons and had control for most of the game, but they ended up dropping their third consecutive postseason contest. The Big Ten did absolutely nothing to improve its national reputation after a 1-6 bowl record, arguably the worst postseason performance in league history. The league has lost six consecutive BCS bowls.

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