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Arch: Buckeyes miss out on 'do or die' chance

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By Tom Archdeacon, Staff Writer Updated 10:56 AM Sunday, September 13, 2009

Southern Cal rocked all night long.

Two hours before USC’s national showdown with Ohio State on Saturday night, Sept. 12, a Columbus motorcycle cop — his blue light flashing — came flying into the Ohio Stadium parking lot near the visitors dressing room and yelled at waiting security guards: “They’re coming. ... They’re coming. ... Move everybody back.”

Because of the location, many in the crowd of fans were dressed in Southern Cal colors, though their numbers still were dwarfed by the Ohio State faithful, some who began the call-and-answer chant: “OH...IO.”

Soon four white Lakefront Lines buses — one directly behind the other — came lumbering into the parking lot. What happened next made even the chanting Bucks fans stop and watch in a bit of awe — something they would be forced to do late in the game as well.

The buses carrying the USC team, its band and travelling party — slowly started to sway back and forth. The closer they got to the dressing room door, the more they began to rock, and finally when they pulled to a stop, they were lurching violently from one side to the other.

As a USC fan explained it to me, a few years ago, the Trojans team buses pulled into an opponent’s stadium and rival fans began to rock the buses and shout insults.

That’s when the USC guys decided to take matters into their own hands. Now, whenever they pull into an opposing stadium, they rock the buses themselves.

It’s become a USC tradition.

So is what happened later in the Horseshoe, where in front of a stadium record crowd of 106,033, USC came from behind to edge Ohio State 18-15.

It was the Buckeyes’ fourth loss in a row in a national showcase game and while it wasn’t embarrassing like the other three — in national title games against Florida (2006 season) and LSU (2007) and to USC 35-3 last year — it makes national title hopes for this season a long shot.

Coupled with the 31-27 close call they had with Navy in the season opener, the Bucks won’t get any more love in the national polls after this.

As Jake Ballard, the tight end from Springboro High put it so succinctly before the game: “If you lose this game, you have no chances. It’s do or die right here.”

USC did it when it had to and in the process a star was born. The Trojans freshman quarterback Matt Barkley proved he was as good as billed when he led USC on a late-game, 14-play, 86-yard drive that ended with the go-ahead 3-yard touchdown run by tailback Stafon Johnson with 65 seconds left.

The Trojans are riding a 13-year winning streak over Big Ten teams, going all the way back to 1996 and a 24-7 victory by Penn State in the Kick-Off Classic.

“You’ve got to give them credit, they made the plays when they had to and they go home with the spoils,” OSU coach Jim Tressel said afterward. “(Joe) McKnight is a great back for them and their young quarterback got the ball to the right people.

“We just didn’t take advantage of our field position tonight. We need to score more than five points in the second half. That’s not enough.”

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