Buckeyes get the monkey off

Jim Tressel and the Buckeyes needed this one -- not just because it was a chance to finish strong, but for the long-term credibility of the Ohio State football program, and even the entire Big Ten. Ohio State came into the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Citi on Friday on a three-game bowl losing streak, and came out with an impressive 26-17 win over the #8 Oregon Ducks. And no Big Ten team had won a BCS bowl since January 2006, when the Buckeyes beat Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl and Penn State beat Florida State in the Orange Bowl.

Terrelle Pryor was the obvious MVP, having played the best game of his two-year collegiate career. He threw for a career-high 266 yards on 23-of-37 passing. He threw two touchdown passes and one interception. He also rushed for a Rose Bowl Game Presented by Citi-high 72 yards, and got some big first downs with his feet. There were times when he seemed too quick to run, and maybe should have tried to hit a running back on a hot route or something of that nature, but these are minor quibbles. Pryor played a heck of a game.

Give the Buckeye defense a lot of credit for this victory in the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Citi. They gave up some big running plays to LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner, but they held Jeremiah Masoli and the high-powered Ducks passing game in check. Masoli's numbers were terrible -- 9-for-20, 80 yards, no touchdowns, one pick. And while he did run for a touchdown, Masoli only gained nine yards on the ground, on six carries. Without an effective passing game to lean on, the Ducks only got 12 first downs in the game, to the Buckeyes' 26; and were just 2-for-11 on third down conversions. And the Buckeyes win their first Rose Bowl Game Presented by Citi since 1997, when it was just called the Rose Bowl.

The Buckeyes have become the Big Ten's standard-bearer in the Tressel era, having won or shared six conference titles in Tressel's nine years here, including each of the last five. They've won the Big Ten's only national title in that time, and have won four of the five BCS games the Big Ten has won this century. (Iowa has a chance to add to that total in Tuesday's Orange Bowl.) With Michigan down and out the last couple of years, and nobody else stepping up to challenge them, the Buckeyes have dominated this conference. That has enabled Ohio State to play in eight BCS bowls, the most of any school since the BCS' inception in 1998. May it continue into 2010 and beyond.

Pryor shines in homecoming

The Buckeyes are in control of their own destiny — at least in terms of winning another Big Ten title — in large part because of Pennsylvania native Terrelle Pryor's big game in his home state. Pryor passed for two touchdowns and rushed for one in Ohio State's commanding 24-7 victory over Penn State, and while his overall numbers weren't particularly impressive (8-for-17 passing for 125 yards; five rushes for 50 yards), he made some big plays and avoided any major mistakes. He missed an opportunity for a touchdown at the end of the first half when his throw to a wide-open Dane Sanzenbacher went long, but that was probably the biggest mistake he made, and you'll take that every time.

The Buckeye defense was fantastic, particularly against the Nittany Lions' running game. Evan Royster, who had averaged 95.4 yards a game coming in, went for just 36 yards on 13 carries yesterday, his lowest total of the season. They also held Daryll Clark to 125 yards passing, which was also his lowest total of the year; and got him for one interception, Ross Homan's pick midway through the fourth quarter, which short-circuited Penn State's attempt to mount a comeback.

If the Buckeyes can beat Iowa next week in the Horseshoe, they'll go to the Rose Bowl no matter what happens the following week against Michigan; the other teams that could tie them at 6-2 in the Big Ten would be Iowa, Penn State and Wisconsin, which they would all have beaten this year under that scenario. And you have to like their chances against Iowa, as it appears Hawkeye quarterback Ricky Stanzi will miss the game after hurting his ankle in yesterday's loss to Northwestern. The Hawkeyes showed in that game that they aren't the same team without Stanzi, who probably would have led them to victory against the Mildcats.

Obviously, there will be no Big Ten team in the national championship this year, but if the Buckeyes get into the Rose Bowl and win it, they could get back into the top 10, and maybe even the top five. And if they do win the Big Ten, it would be the fifth straight year they've won or shared that title. That's definitely worth rooting for.

Disappointing weekend

I know it's Tuesday, and the Buckeyes played three days ago, and the Browns played two days ago. I wasn't eager to write about them until now. For that matter, I'm not eager to write about them now either, but I do have a few thoughts I want to get down.

First, on the subject of the Buckeyes: The fighting Tressels should be proud of their effort against one of the nation's very best teams. But they should also be disappointed that they didn't close the deal. And no doubt they are. The defense played tremendously well over the first 3 1/2 quarters, with USC's only touchdown to that point having been set up by a long interception return. Really, the OSU defense's only weak moments were at the ends of both halves. Behind freshman quarterback Matt Barkley, the Trojans put together drives of 61 and 77 yards in the second quarter (the first resulting in a missed field goal; the second in a made field goal), and of course the 86-yard drive that led to the winning score with 65 seconds to go. The Buckeyes had numerous chances to stop that drive, but USC kept pulling out clutch plays. It would have been nice if they could stop a quarterback sneak up the middle when they knew it was coming, but all in all, it was a pretty good effort by the defense.

Terrelle Pryor made some big mistakes in this game. On the Buckeyes' last possession, Pryor looked totally lost trying to operate a 2-minute offense. Of course, he threw an interception on OSU's first possession that led to USC's first touchdown, and often chose to pass when it was clear he should have run. He went 11-for-25 passing, which just won't get it done without a strong running game, which the Buckeyes never did get going.

The loss puts a serious crimp in Ohio State's national title hopes, but doesn't dash them entirely. One-loss teams do get into the national championship. They're now ranked 11th in both polls, and there's still a long, long way to go on the season.

And the Browns ... Well, they looked good in the first half, but they pretty much fell apart in the second. But at least they scored their first offensive touchdown since their 10th game of 2008.