BY JOHN ERARDI
The Cincinnati Enquirer
COLUMBUS - Ohio State offensive guard Rob Murphy and his colleagues on the line are going to be key in today's game with Michigan, because quarterback Joe Germaine is going to need time to throw the football to give OSU its best chance to win.
Murphy, a graduate of Moeller High School, was asked earlier in the season what was the key to beating Michigan. The Enquirer saved the quotation for today's paper, figuring it might come in handy.
"The team from up north always comes in here the same way," said Murphy, a four-year starter. "If you didn't know their (win-loss) record, you'd think it was 10-0, because that's what they act like. 'We are going to kick your (butt).' It's an air of total confidence. That's the attitude we need (in this game)."
In three of the past five seasons, it was easier for the Wolverines to have such an attitude, because they came into the game as "spoilers." Three times, they knocked the Buckeyes out of the picture for a national championship.
This year, it's the Buckeyes who are the spoilers, even though they don't like such a tag - not after being rated the No. 1 team in the country until being upset 28-24 by Michigan State here two weeks ago.
If No. 11 Michigan (8-2, 7-0 in the Big Ten) wins the game, it is going to the Rose Bowl. No. 7 Ohio State (9-1, 6-1) can go to the Rose Bowl only if it wins and Wisconsin gets beat at home by Penn State today.
"That (Michigan State loss) humbled us very much," Germaine said. "That may turn out to be a good thing."
OSU is all but out of the national title picture. It would probably require losses by Tennessee, UCLA, Kansas State and Texas A&M for the Buckeyes to climb back into it, and set up a national title game in the Fiesta Bowl with Florida or Florida State.
But so rare have been OSU victories over Michigan in recent years - the Buckeyes have lost three in a row, and are 1-8-1 in coach John Cooper's tenure - that beating Michigan is more important than winning a national title in the eyes of most OSU fans.
"The whole Michigan week is so intense, I wouldn't wish it on anyone," said Murphy, in another quote the Enquirer saved. "The fans here are so fickle. If we go 1-and-10 and beat Michigan, it's a helluva year."
That is only a slight exaggeration. A lot of people deserted the Buckeyes emotionally after the loss to Michigan State, but there will be pulled hamstrings throughout the state today from people jumping back on the bandwagon if OSU beats Michigan.
That's fine with Cooper. He just hopes the fans at the Horseshoe are into the game - and rockin' loud - to give the Buckeyes an emotional edge and the best chance to win the game.
"This is probably the most subdued crowd of 95,000 people for any place in the country," Cooper said this week. "You cannot believe the number of complaints about the lack of noise at the Michigan State game."
What he remembers best about his lone victory over Michigan four years ago (22-6 in Columbus) was the students swarming the field.
"I think the fans really helped us win the game that year, with all the noise," he said.
Michigan is a 9ï-point underdog, despite riding an eight-game winning streak with back-to-back victories over top-10 teams Penn State and Wisconsin by a combined score of 54-10.
The Buckeyes are viewed as having the much more potent offensive attack, with both teams having defenses regarded as relatively equal.
But the Buckeyes aren't buying into the favorite's role.
"In '95 and '96, I thought we were just unbeatable," OSU linebacker Jerry Rudzinski said. "I thought if we had a decent day of football, we'd come out on top. And Michigan proved us wrong."
