The 2007 Ohio State Buckeyes football team was an American football team that represented the Ohio State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. In their seventh year under head coach Jim Tressel, the Buckeyes compiled an 11–2 record (7–1 in conference games), won the Big Ten championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 408 to 166. The Buckeyes did not play any opponents ranked in the top ten during the regular season, and its sole regular-season loss was to unranked Illinois. They concluded the season with a 38–24 loss to No. 2 LSU in the 2008 BCS National Championship Game. The Buckeyes were ranked No. 5 in the final AP poll.

The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Todd Boeckman (2,379 passing yards, 63.9% completion percentage), running back Beanie Wells (1,609 rushing yards, 5.9 yards per carry), wide receiver Brian Robiskie (55 receptions for 935 yards), linebacker James Laurinaitis (70 solo tackles, 121 total tackles), and kicker Ryan Pretorius (102 points). For the second year in a row, Laurinaitis was selected as a consensus first-team All-American. Six Ohio State players received first-team honors on the 2007 All-Big Ten Conference football team: Laurinaitis; Boeckman; Wells; offensive tackle Kirk Barton; defensive end Vernon Gholston; and defensive back Malcolm Jenkins.

The team played its home games in Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

Schedule

Rankings

Preseason On March 6, Coach Jim Tressel announced the hiring of Taver Johnson as an assistant coach in charge of cornerbacks. A native of Cincinnati, Johnson replaced Tim Beckman, who left Ohio State to become defensive coordinator at Oklahoma State University.

Game summaries Youngstown State

Akron

Washington

Northwestern

Minnesota

Purdue

Kent State

Michigan State

Penn State

Wisconsin

Ohio State sets record with 20th straight Big Ten win.

Illinois

Michigan

National Championship Game

On January 7, 2008 the Buckeyes played at the BCS National Championship game in New Orleans, Louisiana in the Louisiana Superdome. This was the first time in the school's history that the football team had played back to back National Championship games. The Buckeyes ended up losing the game to the Louisiana State University Tigers, 38–24. After a strong initial start (a 10–0 run in the first quarter in favor of the Buckeyes), the LSU Tigers went on one of their own, 31–0, from the first to third quarters. Two key pivotal special teams plays contributed to the LSU run, one being a blocked 38 yard Ryan Pretorius (Ohio State) field goal in the first quarter, and a roughing the kicker penalty committed by Austin Spitler (Ohio State) on a punt that extended an LSU touchdown drive in the third. Both teams scored 14 points in the second half which lead to a Tigers' victory due to the 2nd quarter LSU scoring deficit.

Personnel Coaching staff Jim Tressel – head coach (7th year) Jim Bollman – offensive line/offensive coordinator (7th year) Joe Daniels – quarterbacks (7th year) Luke Fickell – co-defensive coordinator / linebackers coach (6th year) Jim Heacock – defensive coordinator / defensive line (12th year) Paul Haynes – safeties (3rd year) Darrell Hazell – assistant head coach / wide receivers (4th year) Taver Johnson – cornerbacks (1st year) John Peterson – tight ends / recruiting coordinator (4th year) Dick Tressel – running backs (7th year) Bob Tucker – director of football operations (13th year) Stan Jefferson – director of player development (4th year) Eric Lichter – director of football performance (2nd year) Butch Reynolds – speed coordinator (3rd year) Jeff Uhlenhake – strength coordinator (1st year)

Roster Wide receivers 5 Dukes, Albert – Junior 9 Hartline, Brian – Sophomore 89 Hummel, Garrett – Freshman Jordan, Devin – Senior 18 Sharp, Luke – Junior 18 Lyons, Devon – Junior 86 Potokar, Dan – Sophomore 80 Robiskie, Brian – Junior 15 Ruhl, Kyle – Junior 12 Sanzenbacher, Dane – Freshman 4 Small, Ray – Sophomore 81 Ullery, Brent – Senior 19 Washington, Taurian – Freshman

Offensive tackles 74 Barton, Kirk – Senior 75 Boone, Alex – Junior 65 Ebner, Doug – Junior 66 Moses, Andrew – Sophomore 77 Smith, Connor – Freshman 76 Sika, Scott – Sophomore 69 Slagle, Zach – Freshman

Offensive guards 68 Blankenship, Evan – Freshman 70 Browning, Bryant – Freshman 78 Dye, Daniel – Senior 67 Mitchum, Kyle – Junior 63 Person, Ben – Junior 71 Rehring, Steve – Sophomore 79 Skinner, Jon – Junior

Centers 64 Cordle, Jim – Sophomore 57 Malone, Chris – Sophomore

Tight end 86 Ballard, Jake – Sophomore 46 Larson, J.D – Sophomore 82 Miller, Andy – Freshman 88 Nicol, Rory – Junior 87 Smith, Brandon – Junior

Quarterback 17 Boeckman, Todd – Junior 14 Bauserman, Joe – Freshman 7 Henton, Antonio – Freshman 13 Kacsandi, Ben – Junior 11 Schoenhoft, Rob – Sophomore Running back 46 Christian, K.C. – Freshman 35 DeLande, Bo – Freshman 33 Gantz, Joe – Sophomore 2 Herron, Daniel – Freshman 16 Robinson, Trever – Senior 3 Saine, Brandon – Freshman 28 Wells, Chris – Sophomore 34 Wells, Maurice – Junior 24 Williams, Marcus – Freshman

Fullback 49 Johnson, Dionte – Senior 43 Olson, Aram – Freshman 48 Smith, Spencer – Freshman 42 Whaley, Tyler – Senior

Defensive lineman 92 Daly, Brett – Senior 92 Denlinger, Todd – Sophomore 50 Gholston, Vernon – Junior 90 Gray, Bryan – Sophomore 95 Rietschlin, Chris – Junior

Defensive tackles 93 Abdallah, Nader – Junior 97 Heyward, Cameron – Freshman 72 Larimore, Dexter – Freshman

Defensive end 78 Barrow, Alex – Junior 57 Ingham, Tom – Sophomore 9 Rose, Robert – Freshman 98 Thomas, Solomon – Freshman 87 Wilson, Lawrence – Junior 84 Worthington, Doug – Sophomore

Cornerbacks 13 Amos, Andre – Sophomore 4 Coleman, Kurt – Sophomore 2 Jenkins, Malcolm – Junior 29 Lane, Shaun – Junior

Defensive backs 5 Chekwa, Chimdi – Freshman 32 Clifford, Eugene – Freshman 36 Daniels, Matt – Junior 39 Dougherty, Michael – Junior 30 Evege, Donnie – Freshman 41 Haslam, De'Angelo – Senior 2 Jenkins, Malcolm – Junior 24 Schwartz, Grant – Freshman 11 Scott, James – Freshman 20 Washington, Donald – Sophomore 17 Willis, Zach – Junior Linebackers 1 Freeman, Marcus – Senior 37 Gibson, Thaddeus – Freshman 6 Grant, Larry – Senior 7 Hines, Jermale – Freshman 51 Homan, Ross – Sophomore 44 Johnson, Mark – Freshman 33 Laurinaitis, James – Junior 59 Libby, Kyle – Freshman 49 Lukens, Ryan – Junior 26 Moeller, Tyler – Freshman 36 Rolle, Brian – Freshman 38 Spitler, Austin – Sophomore 55 Terry, Curtis – Senior

Safety 8 Gant, Aaron So. 3 O'Neal, Jamario Jr. 14 Oliver, Nate Fr. 23 Patterson, Nick Jr. 25 Pentello, Rocco Fr. 21 Russell, Anderson So. 10 Torrence, Devon Fr.

Long snappers 52 Curtis, Don – Freshman 61 Haas, Jackson – Senior 53 Howe, Patrick – Freshman 56 Makridis, Dimitrios – Senior 96 McQuaide, Jake – Freshman

Kickers 12 Barclay, Devin – Freshman 39 Good, Andrew Jr. 41 Mattimoe, Matt – Sophomore 20 Pettrey, Aaron – Sophomore 85 Pretorius, Ryan Jr.

Punters 15 Trapasso, A.J. – Junior 48 Thoma, John – Sophomore 24 Wuokko, Kyle - Sophomore 94 Bartholomew, Benjamin – Freshman

2008 NFL draftees Vernon Gholston 1 6 Defensive end New York Jets Larry Grant 7 214 Linebacker San Francisco 49ers Kirk Barton 7 247 Tackle Chicago Bears

References