DaytonDailyNews.com

COLUMBUS — Ohio State quarterback Todd Boeckman plans to watch South Florida play at Rutgers tonight on ESPN, but not because he wants to size up a potential future opponent.

Although the No. 1 Buckeyes would face the second-ranked Bulls for the national title if the season ended today, Boeckman will be tuning in for entertainment, not information.

"I don't know why you wouldn't (watch)," he said. "They're the only game on, and it's a chance to see two of the best teams in the country."

OSU coach Jim Tressel has preached about the hazards of taking the No. 1 ranking too seriously, and the players seem to have gotten the message.

"We know how to handle ourselves because we went through this last year," Boeckman said. "It's not where we start or where we are in the middle of the season. It's how we finish."

The Buckeyes vaulted into the top spot after upsets of No. 1 LSU and No. 2 Cal on Saturday. It was the first time the top two teams have been beaten on the same day in 11 years, but Tressel didn't sense any euphoria sweeping over his squad.

"The only euphoria about being No. 1 is if you're that in the middle of January," he said. "It hasn't been discussed. Now, is it talked about by individuals? Maybe. (But) not by this individual."

The Buckeyes' distrust of midseason rankings may be why they've fared so well under Tressel as the favored team. They've played 64 games while rated in the Top 25 during his tenure and have lost only seven times to teams that were either ranked lower or not ranked at all.

Michigan State, which visits OSU on Saturday, would like to repeat its 1998 upset of the No. 1 Buckeyes in Columbus. But Spartans coach Mark Dantonio, who was an assistant at MSU then, sees few parallels between that game and this one.

"These are different football teams, and it's a different time," he said. "Coach Tressel is very, very good about not letting his players get too far ahead of themselves and keeping them current and keeping them focused on the task at hand. I would anticipate some of the things where we may have been underestimated a little bit in the past would not occur this time."

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