It’s the return of the Friday Fun! Yeah for fun on Fridays! This week, we look at the Top 5 moments of OSU Football for us MotSaGers. We hope you’ll join in with your top 5 moments in the countdown. Here we go:

#5:

el Kaiser – This one may be out-there, but one of the best moments of 2006, for me, was Vince Young announcing for the NFL draft in the spring. I told anyone who’d listen that this opens the door for OSU’s chances for Glendale. That was a glorious day. It was a Sunday, if I remember correctly.

Zeke – Who can forget Joe Pa running off the field with the bowel issues. That was priceless.

sportsMonkey – Laurinaitis forcing a fumble against Texas at the goal line, for two reasons. First, because Texas was about to score, which would have made the game interesting. After the forced fumble, Texas gave up and OSU cruised to an easy victory. Secondly, it allowed fans to breathe a bit easier, knowing that the Little Animal was stepping up to fill A.J. Hawk’s shoes.

#4:

el Kaiser – The Heisman Trophy ceremony. I was a little put-off by the constant reminder of Troy’s past transgressions, but outside of that, ESPN did a good job building Troy up as a kid who overcame a lot of adversity to rise above and better himself. Troy was a class act all season long and this was just icing on the cake.

Zeke – 3rd and 1 play action pass Troy Smith to Ted Ginn Jr. in the Michigan game.

sportsMonkey – Smith to TGJr for a zillion-yard rainbow TD pass in the Fiesta Bowl (counts as 2006, right?) on their first possession. Ginn made all the overconfident Irish fans in the stands wet their pants a little. We have to play against this for the next three hours? I still remember Brent Musberger’s reaction: “Get out your adding machines, folks; here comes OSU.” IMO, this is the game that represented the peak of the entire recent OSU era; the offense was clicking like a machine and the defense was merciless.

#3

el Kaiser – Troy Smith to Brian Robiskie in the back of the end zone, against Iowa. Everything about that play was perfect. Troy’s throw, before Robo was even looking, was pin-point perfect. Robiskie looked back and the ball was right on the money. Just another stellar play by Troy.

Zeke – Troy Smith wins the Heisman.

sportsMonkey – The OSU/UM game. Antonio Pittman providing the iconic image that will define the game’s legacy. Beanie Wells trampling and kicking through the entire ‘vaunted’ UM defense on his way to a 52-yard TD rush. OSU moving 98 yards in a few plays thanks to a huge 46-yard play between Smith and Robiskie, with the remaining yards provided on the most brilliantly executed misdirection move ever, as Troy went play-action to TGJr and threaded the needle on a 38-yard TD. You can see all these highlights here.

#2

el Kaiser – Vernon Gholston’s one-arm beat down of Albert Young. You’ve seen the video a hundred times. You seen those arms even more. But those arms don’t haunt your nightmares like they do Young’s.

Zeke – Chris “Beanie” Wells spin move in the Michigan game.

sportsMonkey – Smith to Robiskie against PSU. The prototypical “Heisman highlight” clip.

#1

el Kaiser – The entire Michigan game. I can’t pick a single play. Beanie’s spin move. Pittmans gash right up the gut. Troy’s play-action to Ginn. So many memories from one of the greatest OSU/UM games ever. It was thrilling, nerve wracking, ultimately satisfying. Is there a better way to end the season other than pounding Michigan? Methinks not.

Zeke – Troy Smith’s pass to Brian Robiskie in the Penn State game.

sportsMonkey – Gonzalez’s catch and scramble TD in the Iowa game. Again, any time you make Musberger say, “Are you kidding me?!?” you know it was a memorable play.

So let us know what your favorite moments were in the comments!

We had the bittersweet news from Gonzo last week and we’re expecting news from both Antonio Pittman and Ted Ginn, Jr. today.

I think it’s a foregone conclusion with Antonio Pittman. He’s holding his press conference from his high school in Akron, Ohio. It would seem odd that he would announce that he was staying away from campus, so Pittman is most likely gone. Pittman was a great running back and he’ll be missed, but this announcement should usher in the Beanie Era.

Ted Ginn, Jr. is a different story. The sportsMonkey and I were discussing this last week, and we were debating whether he would be going or not. His dad has said that his injury will not affect his decision. He’s projected as being picked in the middle of the first round, which is my argument for him going. The monkey thinks he’ll be coming back for a senior season, building his legacy from “Totally Awesome Buckeye” to “Super Hero Buckeye” status. He could shatter most receiving and returning records and help the younger Buckeyes learn the ropes. He could ascend to the Buckeye Mount Olympus.

We should know who’s going where today.

UPDATE (sportsMonkey here):
Michigan fans are now rejoicing. (Thanks to Woody Hayes for the update.)

Anthony Gonazales will be holding a press conference this afternoon at 2 PM to announce his plan to either stay for his senior year or declare for the draft. Personally, I think he’s going to stay. He said in a post-game interview after the BCS Title game that he didn’t want his career at Ohio State to end like that. The NFL has informed him that he would go in the second round of the draft, since this year’s class has a handful of really good receivers.

Ted Ginn, Jr. and Antonion Pittman will also be making annoucements in the next week or so.

If Gonzo goes, I wish him the best of luck. If he stays, I hope he has a monster year. No matter what he does, we will never forget this:

We’ll be checking in from time to time for a semi-live blog. We know most everyone will be watching, so it won’t be anything great, but we hope everyone enjoys the game.

End of the first half

Florida: 34
OSU: 14

Ugggh. I’m not feeling very good right now.

Final

Florida: 41
Ohio State: 14

Now that I’ve had a few minutes of “alone time” I’ll just share a few observations. Not really in the mood for some in-depth analysis, for obvious reasons.

First and foremost, even though our Buckeyes got out-played in every way tonight, this has still been an excellent season. 12-0 was no small feat, with big wins over Texas and Michigan. The Heisman Trophy for Troy Smith was a fitting end to a superb regular season. The Buckeyes provided with thrills and happiness for 12+ weeks, and for that, I’m thankful.

Secondly, all the credit to Florida and Urban Meyer. They had a great game plan and executed it well. They were well coached and that defense was stifling. Congratulations to them.

It’s hard to pinpoint a moment in the game or a particular weakness or strength that made the difference, but here are a few:

Losing Ginn to injury was a huge loss. Not having a burner that could stretch the defense and occupy two defenders cannot be understated. It was a huge loss.

The fumble on the 5 yard line the possession after failing to convert on fourth down. That hurt. Going for it on fourth on our thirty was gutsy and I think it was the right call, but it ended in disaster. That 10 point swing was huge.

Their defensive front four was huge. They played lights out, and we could not find any offensive rythm. We were playing on our heels all night.

The pass defense was horrible. It seemed like there was a gaping hole in the middle of the field EVERY PASSING PLAY. Adjustments weren’t made soon enough.

Our defense was put in a lot of bad situations early on. The aforementioned fumble, the two personal foul penalties on the kickoff and a subsequent punt really put a strain on our defense. That was huge, giving them short fields and they converted each opportunity. Our defense came out in the second half and played inspired but got no help from the offense.

I feel bad for the seniors going out on a sour note like this. It shouldn’t have to end like this, but someone had to win and someone had to lose.

Congratulations to the Gators, you guys played lights-out and shocked Buckeye fans (and everyone else) everywhere.

And thanks to the 2006 Ohio State football team. You came up short but we still love you. GO BUCKS!

The longest 51 days EVER have finally come to an end, placing us a meager 12+ hours from kick-off of the BCS National Championship Title Game between your (and our) Buckeyes of The Ohio State University and the Gators of the University of Florida. If today isn’t your least productive day of 2007, tomorrow most certainly will be. I’m still waiting for the Mayor to shut the city down on Tuesday so everyone can recover.

good stuff to read. You won’t be doing anything else today, will you? I’ll be the first to admit, though, I’ve read enough analysis to make one’s eyes bleed. It’s all good stuff, believe me, but I’m through. I just want the game to be here, like now!

But by now, you’ve read the articles, read the blogs and forums, and you’ve already decided what color your “2006 National Champions” football T-shirt is going to be (mine will be gray). Now’s the time to put your money where your mouth is. It’s the last prediction thread of the season. Bring your A-game, everyone.

Of course, we’ve got Vegas’ take on the game. They’re still giving the Buckeyes 7 points with an over/under around 46 points. So what say you? What’s the final score? Are going over or under with the points?

Urban Meyer supposedly thinks Chris Leak is just as good as Troy Smith. That’s like comparing Superman to the Shoveler. What was he thinking? How many more yards will Smith account for than Leak? (o/u 100 yards)

Little Animal Laraunaitis has been taking the ball away from everyone this season. Does he get an INT against the Gators?

Finally, as this is the last game for a lot of seniors, which senior (excluding Troy, of course) has the biggest impact on the outcome of the game?

el Kaiser’s predictions
Final Score: OSU: 31 UF: 17
Troy is going to razzle and dazzle while Leak is continually frustrated by OSU’s D. Troy smith accounts for 101 yards more, over.
While Little Animal has a big game, he does not intercept a pass. He will, however, be responsible for at least one turnover.
Quinn Pitcock is the senior that has the biggest impact. If Quinn and the boys can shut down the run, forcing Florida to pass more than they want, it will be huge. He’ll also be bringing the pain with his pass rush. Pitcock will be HUGE.

sportsMonkey’s predictions
Final Score: I think Florida will “earn” 14 points, while OSU will finish between 28-35. Florida could score a late TD against OSU’s freshman class after the game is out of reach. So I’ll split the difference and predict 31-17, OSU (although that number seems to indicate Florida will score a FG, which they can’t seem to do this season).
Leak vs. Smith: Under 100 yards difference for two reasons: I expect Leak to play catch-up, inflating his numbers, and I expect to see Tressel give Zwick a graduation present with a series or two behind center (assuming the game is out of reach).
Little Animal: Leak is the worst QB (INT-wise) OSU has seen this year, so I think he gets an INT tonight.
Which senior?: The always-underappreciated Stan White, Jr. will sacrifice his body for Smith, Pittman, and Wells one last time. Honorable mention: Pitcock and Roy Hall

Zeke’s predictions
We’ve already had two 31-17 predictions and I would agree that the 10-14 point difference is about right. The Buckeye’s have too many weapons for the Florida defense to stop. I have to admit I was tempted to predict a low scoring affair, but when all is said and done the Buckeyes will get their points and Florida will get a late TD and 2-point conversion to make it seem respectable.
Final Score: OSU: 35 UF: 22
100 yards is a lot; however, Troy Smith plays his best in big games. Smith ends his Buckeye career with more than 350 total yards as compared to less than 250 for Chris Leak, Over.
I suspect that little animal will be doing a lot of spying during the game, especially when Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin are in the game. LA will contribute mightily to the game, but not with an INT.
John Kerr is going to be huge! In all seriousness, Brandon Mitchell is the senior that has the biggest impact. Even though Laurinaitis does not get an INT, I do expect the secondary to get a couple. Mitchell will get one and have another solid yet quiet game.

I noticed people are coming to the site in search of information about Maurice Wells transferring to another school at the end of the year. Wells is apparently struggling with the transition from being a prep school all-star to being relegated to the third string. He’s considering a transfer to an ACC or SEC school. He’s done the right thing and said he won’t make a decision until after Monday’s game, but I think it’s a foregone conclusion, especially with Brandon Saine coming in next year. Maurice sees the writing on the wall.

Maurice is quoted in the Columbus Dispatch as saying:

“But just being on a team is not all I want. I want to play and hopefully make it to the next level, or at least have a chance. And if I feel I can’t do that at Ohio State I would definitely leave.”

This would be the second running back to leave this year. Erik Haw left before the season started.