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Tradition is a charm for Ohio State

Buckeyes rewarded with gold pants for beating rival Wolverines

By George M. Thomas Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Friday, Nov 16, 2007

Michigan spent years beating the pants off Ohio State.

Then Francis Schmidt arrived in Columbus in 1934 to resurrect the moribund OSU football program. Legend has it that during his interview, when asked how his teams would do against Michigan, he simply replied: ''They put their pants on one leg at a time just like we do.''

It was then that Schmidt gave OSU one of its greatest traditions. Since 1934, every Buckeyes player and coach on a team that beats the rival from the north receives a gold pants charm. It's a coveted piece of sports memorabilia, with one pair having sold for $1,000 on eBay recently.

Veteran players concede that they were confused about what the charms were when they arrived at Ohio State as freshman.

''Growing up, I heard about it, and I thought you get a real pair of gold pants; I didn't know what it was,'' linebacker Marcus Freeman said. ''Then when I got here and got my first pair, you see it's a little charm, but then you learn what an important tradition it is.

''My first pair, I gave to my mother, my second pair I gave to my father, and my third pair I gave to my brother, so I hopefully have to get another pair to keep for my
self.''

It's after they're
indoctrinated into the OSU football culture that the significance of those little charms is appreciated.

''They're up there. My mom has one pair, and I gave my sister two pairs,'' right tackle Kirk Barton said. ''I've really got to work to even it out. That's kind of a driving force this week, something I've been thinking about ever since I gave my sister that pair from last year. They mean a lot to me.''

The charms will mean more for this senior class in that they have the opportunity to leave Columbus with four of the mementos.

More important, it points to how Ohio State has come to dominate this series since coach Jim Tressel's arrival.

Since donning his sweatervest in Columbus, Tressel is 5-1 against Michigan.

In the past three games, the Buckeyes have outscored the Wolverines 104-81 and often have left their rivals perplexed as they manage to pull out victories.

The faces have changed in that time, however.

The Buckeyes won't be able to rely on quarterback Troy Smith to pull them through as he did in previous years. In the three games he started, Smith completed 69-of-101 passes for 857 yards and seven touchdowns. He rushed for 194 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries. He was the first quarterback since William ''Tippy'' Dye to beat Michigan three consecutive times.

Todd Boeckman (168-of-259 for 2,114 yards, 23 touchdowns and 11 interceptions) will assume that role this year. He said he knows what to expect in the game because of Smith.

''He was just such a great leader. He led by example, he led by watching film, doing little things like that,'' Boeckman said. ''I've got to be in the film room, knowing hopefully every snap what they're going to do, when they're going to do it and things like that.''

What Boeckman will have to do is shake off his performance against Illinois. He threw three interceptions and made some questionable decisions.

Despite what happened in that game, he hasn't lost the confidence of his coach.

''I feel good about Todd Boeckman. He learns every step of the way,'' Tressel said. ''He's a guy that even when he errs, knows exactly why he erred, and then can do something about it, can learn from it. I think Todd methodically has gotten better as the year has gone on.''

For Barton, a fourth set of gold pants would even things within his family, but a victory over Michigan would put him on par with a former teammate.

''If I don't, then I'll hear about it from T.J. Downing,'' Barton said. ''Even though he redshirted his first year, he still has four, so I'd hear about that for the rest of my life, so I have to make sure I shut him up.''

There is another motivation for the Buckeyes: making up for last week's loss on Senior Day, wide receiver Brian Hartline said.

''We apologized to the seniors for the loss, but Michigan is Michigan, and this is a make-or-break game like it is any other year,'' he said. ''Is it more important following a loss? I don't know. You can't really get much more important than just the two teams playing one another.''

George M. Thomas can be reached at sportswriterabj@sbcglobal.net. Read his blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/sportsblitz/.
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Michigan spent years beating the pants off Ohio State.

Get the full article here.


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