NEW ORLEANS (AP) -Ohio State has produced a DVD that has already been panned by its audience.
It might, however, just fire up the Buckeyes for their showdown in the national championship against LSU on Monday night.
Coach Jim Tressel had the team’s video coordinator put together a 10-minute video of clips from television and radio commentators belittling the Buckeyes this season, making fun of their cream-puff schedule and saying they don’t belong in the Bowl Championship Series finale.
The Buckeyes have certainly taken note. The production values might be OK, but the theme didn’t get two thumbs up.
“It was terrible. I had my grandma watch it with me and she started crying,” offensive tackle Alex Boone said. “I threw it away. You don’t keep something like that around.”
Asked if he was upset by the DVD, offensive lineman Kirk Barton said: “Would it make you mad if I made a DVD about people saying how bad your newspaper articles were?”
Ohio State (11-1), the No. 1 team in the polls and the BCS rankings, has many doubters after going through the season without playing a team ranked in The Associated Press Top 20 for the first time since 1936 – the first year of the rankings.
The Buckeyes’ nonconference schedule included games against Ohio opponents Youngstown State (from the Bowl Championship Subdivision formerly known as I-AA), Akron and Kent State.
The video, which can be seen in part on www.YouTube.com, starts with Florida celebrating its lopsided 41-14 victory over the Buckeyes in last year’s BCS title game in Glendale, Ariz.
Some of the Florida players say they won because Ohio State didn’t respect them, while others point out that they played tougher teams in the Southeastern Conference than the Buckeyes.
Then there is footage of the Gators holding up the national championship trophy, with a former Gators defensive tackle Ray McDonald shouting, “Ohio State’s gator bait, baby!”
There are numerous out-takes of TV talk shows with analysts saying the Buckeyes are overrated and that they do not belong in the BCS title game. Another commentator rattles off a long list of teams – Georgia, Southern California, Florida, Oklahoma and others – that are better than Ohio State.
“Sitting there looking at it, I’m thinking, ‘OK, so if we win, how many of these guys are going to actually accept it and apologize and admit they were wrong?,” wide receiver Brian Hartline said. “I would say the majority of them never would.”
That cuts both ways, however.
“If we lose, there’s going to be a lot of bigheaded people out there who think they’re geniuses, or there’s going to be a lot of liars,” Hartline said.
Tressel presented the DVDs to team members before they left for Christmas break. He declined to say much about the DVD except to point out his coaching staff thought it was a good idea.
At the end, LSU fan, political pundit and former Clinton White House adviser James Carville went off on a rant, poking fun at the Buckeyes and the Big Ten.
“I’m sitting there thinking, ‘This hurts,”’ Boone said. “People just talking smack – for 10 whole minutes.”
Other Buckeyes said they weren’t surprised by all the negativity in the DVD.
“We didn’t need a video,” wide receiver Brian Robiskie said. “Any of us could turn on the TV every day and they’re saying something.”
Despite topping the polls for a month during the regular season and having a better record than LSU (11-2), the Buckeyes are underdogs in the game at the Louisiana Superdome.
That’s not exactly a sign of respect.
Add A Comment
THIS IS NOT A GAMBLING SITE – If you think you have a gambling problem click here.
Disclaimer: This site is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Individual users are responsible for the laws regarding accessing gambling information from their jurisdictions. Many countries around the world prohibit gambling, please check the laws in your location. Any use of this information that may violate any federal, state, local or international law is strictly prohibited.
Copyright: The information contained on TheSpread.com website is protected by international copyright and may not be reproduced, or redistributed in any way without expressed written consent.
About: TheSpread.com is the largest sports betting news site in the United States. We provide point spread news, odds, statistics and information to over 175 countries around the world each year. Our coverage includes all North American College and Professional Sports as well as entertainment, political and proposition wagering news.
©1999-2023 TheSpread.com