Ohio State will not repeat as national champion. Michigan saw to that Saturday with a convincing 35-21 victory at Michigan Stadium.
If you want to know what all the fuss is about over the Bowl Championship Series, why non-BCS schools are fighting to get in, you need to come to a Michigan-Ohio State football game on a crisp autumn afternoon. Saturday the 100th meeting between these rivals drew an NCAA-record 112,118 fans.
PHOTO: AP
A year ago Ohio State was the feel-good story of college football, an undefeated team led by an elusive freshman named Maurice Clarett. Led by the 19-year old Clarett, Ohio State defeated Miami in double overtime to win the championship.
On Saturday, Andy Geiger, the university's athletic director, stood outside the Ohio State locker room looking disappointed but relieved. Geiger suspended Clarett for the season after accusing him of violating National Collegiate Athletic Association bylaws concerning benefits for athletes and for misleading investigators.
"It's the most difficult thing I have ever coped with," Geiger said. "I tried to do right, stay on the high road, protect the kid's privacy. I tried to do the right thing by him, tried to keep him with the program, keep him in school, and each week it fell apart a little bit."
Why write about Maurice Clarett on a day when Michigan won the Big Ten Championship, snapped a losing streak to Ohio State and knocked the Buckeyes out of the national championship picture?
Clarett remains compelling because he was such a central part of the Buckeyes' championship run last season. This season he is compelling because of his absence.
In fact, in this surprising season for Ohio State, Clarett, last year's star, has become in some ways a forgotten man. Earlier this season Geiger ordered Clarett's jersey to be removed from the campus bookstore. Geiger said he was in a no-win position.
"If we keep them in, we're being hypocritical and we're trying to capitalize and make money on him in an hour of disgrace, in an hour of difficulty and all that sort of things," Geiger said. "If we take them out, then we're cowardly or we're denigrating people who wore it before or we're taking away the option that the fan has. As I thought about it, I just felt we ought to take them out of the stores."
As Ohio State began building momentum this season, the arrogance of Buckeyes fans began to kick in. Some took to wearing "Clarett Who?" T-shirts. He was like a discarded piece of paper, though the Buckeyes certainly needed him against Michigan on Saturday.
The Clarett situation disturbed me all season in ways that underscore the most exploitive elements of big-time college football.
Clarett was wrong and will suffer the consequences. He short-circuited a promising college career and severely damaged his chances of long-term success in the National Football League.
But what about Ohio State? I don't see or hear blame being accepted by its leadership -- Jim Tressel, the coach, and Geiger the athletic director -- for lack of institutional control.
"I'd be the last person to tell you I did everything right and other people did everything right," Geiger said.
Geiger's somber mood was in sharp contrast to the mood inside the box of Mary Sue Coleman, the Michigan president. I spent the waning minutes of the game with Coleman. When Michigan clinched the victory on Chris Perry's 15-yard run, Coleman erupted in celebration with everyone else in the stadium.
"Look at all this," Coleman said, waving her arm at the fans. "This connects people to the university in a way that allows them to participate. There's nothing quite like the atmosphere around Michigan football."
Largely because of Clarett, I have been rethinking my position on the need to have a playoff system in Division I-A football. I'm convinced that we need to place less of an emphasis on winning the ultimate game, not more.
The magnitude of a playoff championship game will eventually render games like Ohio State-Michigan less meaningful. They will simply become preludes to the ultimate game. If you don't reach the national championship game, or if you get upset or eliminated along the way, an otherwise successful season will become a failure.
You tempt the Claretts of the world to take shortcuts that in the long run lead to dead ends; you tempt the Ohio States of the world to contemplate making the offer.
"There are no winners," Geiger said, summarizing the university's yearlong Clarett saga. "No winners in this game."
In an atmosphere of mistrust and animosity, that's about the wisest statement you can make about Ohio State's entire season.
No. 1 Oklahoma 56, Texas Tech 25
In Lubbock, Texas, Jason White threw for 394 yards and four touchdowns and Kejuan Jones scored five TDs, keeping Oklahoma on track for a berth in the national championship game.
The Sooners (12-0, 8-0 Big 12) finished off their 10th unbeaten regular season in 65 years and need only to win the Big 12 title game on Dec. 6 in Kansas City to assure a Sugar Bowl bid.
Oklahoma, which last went unbeaten during its national championship season in 2000, has won 13 straight games -- the longest current streak in Division I-A.
Red Raiders quarterback B.J. Symons broke Ty Detmer's 13-year-old NCAA Division I-A single-season record for passing yards in the second quarter, but finished with a season-low 230 yards. Symons, only a one-year starter at Tech, also threw five interceptions.
Texas Tech is 7-5 overall and 4-4 in the Big 12.
No. 2 Southern California 47, UCLA 22
In Los Angeles, Matt Leinart threw for 289 yards and two touchdowns, and Mike Williams had 11 catches for 181 yards and two scores for Southern California.
Southern Cal (10-1, 6-1 Pac-10), which had slipped to third behind Ohio State in the BCS rankings, got a boost when Michigan beat the Buckeyes in a game that finished just before the Trojans took the field at the Coliseum.
The Trojans led 33-2 at halftime, with Leinart passing for 273 yards in the half and Williams making all 11 of his catches. Williams didn't play in the second half, and Leinart went to the sideline late in the third quarter.
The Trojans overwhelmed the Bruins (6-6, 4-3) early, scoring touchdowns on their first three possessions and adding a field goal for a 24-0 lead en route to their fifth win in a row over UCLA.
No. 3 LSU 17, No. 15 Mississippi 14
In Oxford, Mississippi, LSU held Eli Manning and high-scoring Mississippi in check for three quarters, then withstood a fourth-quarter rally to keep the Rebels from clinching the SEC West.
Matt Mauck threw two TD passes for LSU (10-1, 6-1), which now controls the SEC West race and can clinch its second trip to the conference title game in three years with a victory over Arkansas.
Ole Miss (8-3, 6-1) had its chances to pull off a second straight fourth-quarter comeback victory. Jonathan Nichols, who had missed only one of 24 field-goal attempts coming in, was wide right on a 36-yarder that would have tied the game at 17 with 4:15 left.
The Rebels got one last chance with 2:15 left, but Manning was incomplete on three straight passes and on fourth down he was tripped pulling away from center by one of his linemen. Manning was 16-for-36 for 200 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
No. 6 Georgia 30, Kentucky 10
In Athens, Georgia, Billy Bennett kicked three field goals to become the Southeastern Conference's career scoring leader and David Greene threw for 289 yards for Georgia.
The Bulldogs (9-2, 6-2 SEC) gained at least a share of the East Division title with Florida. Bennett, who has 382 points, also set an SEC record with 80 career field goals.
Kentucky (4-7, 1-6) was held to 212 yards of total offense.
Washington 27, No. 8 Washington St. 19
In Seattle, Cody Pickett threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Corey Williams with 1:10 to play, lifting Washington past Washington State in another thrilling Apple Cup.
Pickett was ineffective most of the game, but he came through to direct a 73-yard, fourth-quarter drive that saved the Huskies (6-6, 4-4 Pac-10) from their first losing season since 1976.
Marquis Cooper sealed the win for Washington when he intercepted a pass by freshman Josh Swogger and returned it 38 yards for the final TD. Washington also denied the rival Cougars (9-3, 7-2) a chance at a third straight 10-win season.
No. 9 Tennessee 48, Vanderbilt 0
In Knoxville, Tennessee, Casey Clausen threw three touchdown passes and scored on a sneak in Tennessee's 21st straight victory over Vanderbilt.
On the Vols' third drive of the game, Clausen broke Peyton Manning's school record of 132 passes without an interception and pushed the mark to 143 before Vanderbilt's Bill Alford picked off a pass in the second quarter. Clausen finished 15-of-29 for 262 yards and didn't play in the fourth quarter.
Mark Jones returned a punt 58 yards for a touchdown for the Volunteers (9-2, 5-2 Southeastern Conference).
The Commodores (2-10, 1-7) finished with a losing record for the 21st season in a row.
Boston College 34, No. 12 Virginia Tech 27
In Blacksburg, Virginia, Paul Peterson threw a 64-yard touchdown pass to Grant Adams with 4:40 to play and Boston College ruined Virginia Tech's Big East farewell party.
Derrick Knight, ran for 197 yards to become the Eagles career rushing leader, and clinched the victory by breaking loose for a 60-yard run. He also scored two TDs and broke Mike Cloud's school record of 3,597 yards. Knight has 3,603.
Boston College (7-5, 3-4 Big East) boosted its bowl stock considerably, while Virginia Tech (8-3, 4-3) -- heading to the Atlantic Coast Conference next season -- might have squandered its chance at a Gator Bowl bid.
No. 13 Miami 34, Rutgers 10
In Miami, Brock Berlin threw two touchdown passes in a 28-point third quarter to help put Miami a victory away from a fourth consecutive Big East title and a berth in a BCS game.
Miami (9-2, 5-1) plays at No. 21 Pittsburgh next Saturday.
Sean Taylor returned an interception for a TD, Kevin Everett had two scoring catches and Jarrett Payton ran for 82 yards.
No. 16 Purdue 24, Indiana 16
In Bloomington, Indiana, Kyle Orton threw two touchdown passes to John Standeford, then found him again late for a 56-yard pass play to seal Purdue's victory.
By winning the Old Oaken Bucket for the sixth time in seven years, Purdue (9-3, 6-2) clinched a share of second in the Big Ten and solidified its hopes for a New Year's Day bowl game. Indiana (2-10, 1-7) closed its season by losing eight of its last nine.
Standeford had six catches for 151 yards and moved within four of passing Illinois' David Williams for the Big Ten career record.
Indiana's BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran for 155 yards.
No. 17 Iowa 27, Wisconsin 21
In Madison, Wisconsin, free safety Sean Considine broke up John Stocco's pass in the end zone on the final play to preserve Iowa's victory over Wisconsin.
Considine, whose interception of Matt Schabert's pass in the third quarter led to the Hawkeyes' go-ahead score, batted down Stocco's throw intended for Jonathan Orr on fourth-and-goal from the 4 with no time left.
The Hawkeyes (9-3, 5-3 Big Ten) avoided an 0-4 conference road record by scoring the game's final 20 points. The Badgers dropped to 7-5 overall and 4-4 in conference play.
No. 18 Miami, Ohio 49, Ohio 31
In Athens, Ohio, Ben Roethlisberger threw four touchdown passes, and Miami of Ohio rolled to its 10th straight victory.
The RedHawks (10-1, 7-0 Mid-American) shattered school records for points and yards in a season while extending their longest winning streak since 1975.
Ryne Robinson returned a punt 70 yards for a touchdown, helping Miami pile up the most points by either team during the 58-year rivalry. Ohio (2-9, 1-6) has lost five in a row overall and nine of its last 10 games against Miami.
No. 19 Kansas St. 24, Missouri 14
In Manhattan, Kansas, Darren Sproles ran for a school-record 273 yards and two touchdowns, and Kansas State (10-3, 6-2) clinched the Big 12 North title with its sixth straight title.
Sproles, a junior who has run for 1,713 yards this season, also became Kansas State's career all-purpose yards leader and broke the school single-season rushing record for the second straight year.
Sproles, who had a school-record 43 carries, broke the mark of 252 yards set by Mike Lawrence against Iowa State in 1996.
The Tigers are 7-4 overall and 3-4 in the Big 12.
No. 21 Pittsburgh 30, Temple 16
In Philadelphia, Brandon Miree ran for a career-high 188 yards and two touchdowns for Pittsburgh in his first game since breaking his right leg Sept. 20 against Toledo.
The win kept the Panthers (8-3, 5-1) in contention to win at least a share of the Big East title and play in a BCS bowl.
Larry Fitzgerald, the nation's leading receiver, finished with seven catches for 102 yards. He scored twice to extend his NCAA record to consecutive games with a touchdown to 17.
No. 22 Bowling Green 41,
Ball St. 14
In Muncie, Indiana, Josh Harris threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more scores for Bowling Green.
B.J. Lane scored on a 78-yard run and finished with 115 yards on six carries for Bowling Green (9-2, 6-1 Mid-American Conference). Ball State (4-8, 3-5) lost its fourth game in a row.
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