Silver Bullet Points

This time next week...

It's not often the "big uglies" up front (a la Keith Jackson) get a flattering spread in SI.

Kirk Barton has been campaigning for his fifteen minutes of fame since he got to OSU and has finally stepped onto the national scene with his pal Alex Boone in a brief pre-game feature from last week's Sports Illustrated. It helps that Barton is highly quotable (as noted in the article) and coming off an All America season (as noted in the article).

Austin Murphy thinks the battle between the Buckeyes and the Tigers will be won in the trenches and that OSU has the advantage up front thanks to "the finest pair of tackles in the nation." And Barton says everyone hates him...

The article also recalls darker times when Boone, Barton's scruffy doppleganger, was arrested for drunk driving and apparently downing "30 to 40 beers per day." An unidentified brother in OSU's prestigious Phi Tau fraternity was quick to dismiss Boone as a "lightweight."

• Let's hope Barton and Boone are as good as advertised, because it sounds like Tressel is going to run it at the Tigers any way he can. Suffice it to say that a surprise appearance by Antonio Henton behind center in the biggest game of the year would be gutsy. Boeckman may not have looked like himself towards the end of the season, but Henton is green, sooo green. Past stating the obvious, a dual QB look from both teams certainly adds an extra layer of intrigue to the game.

• Washington is good to go for bowl game

• The Dispatch reviews the year in sports, attempts to generate interest in professional hockey

• I'm not sure how long this has been around, but shame on you if you haven't started spending at least an hour each day reading about the game.