Game Day, Part I

Ohio State crushed Youngstown State, 43–0, in its season opener but the top story in Columbus is the injury status of Heisman Trophy contender Chris Wells. The 6’1”, 235-pound junior running back known as “Beanie” went down with a right ankle injury in the third quarter.

With the Buckeyes leading 26–0, Wells took a handoff on 1st-and-Goal, then collapsed — fumbling the football despite no contact — after planting his foot for a cut at the 2-yard-line.

The bruising back immediately grabbed his right foot and squirmed on the ground in pain before a team of OSU trainers and coach Jim Tressel ran onto the field. After several minutes of being examined, Beanie was carted off the field before a stunned crowd of over 105,000 at Ohio Stadium.

Before the injury, Wells had 13 carries for 111 yards and a highlight reel 43-yard touchdown run through the heart of the Youngstown State defense. Following the injury, Wells returned to the field wearing a walking boot. According to Coach Tressel, “X-rays (on the right ankle) were negative.”

With a trip to USC in two weeks, Wells’ injury status is a topic of national interest. The Akron, Ohio, product is the focal point of the Buckeyes offense and has a history of taking over big games, most notably a 222-yard, two-TD performance at Michigan and a 146-yard, 65-yard TD outing vs. LSU in the BCS title game last year.

On a more positive note, bluechip true freshman quarterback Terrelle Pryor was impressive in his debut. The 6’6”, 225-pound dual-threat athlete from Jeannette, Pa., completed 4-of-6 passes for 35 yards, while rushing for 52 yards and an 18-yard touchdown on the ground.

During Pryor’s first series, which was OSU’s third possession of the 2008 season, the hotshot recruit wasn’t the only freshman on the field. Pryor was joined by five of his fellow freshmen — receivers Lamaar Thomas and Devier Posey, along with offensive linemen Michael Brewster, Mike Adams and J.B. Shugarts.

Defensively, a Buckeyes stop-unit led by middle linebacker James Laurinaitis recorded their first season-opening shutout since 1977 — when the Scarlet and Gray defense blanked Miami (Fla.), 10–0 — and the third shutout of the Tressel Era — joining a 44–0 blowout of Minnesota in 2006 and a 20–0 win over Northwestern in 2003.

Unfortunately, the headlines won’t be about Pryor’s debut or the stingy defense. For better or worse, the news out of Columbus will be all about Beanie, baby.

Beamer Ball

Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer has made a career out of his team's big plays on special teams, especially blocked kicks and punts. So, it’s fitting that the biggest play in the Hokies’ season opener took place on the often-overlooked third side of the football.

Leading 22–20 with roughly two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Va. Tech punter Ben Ryan had his kick blocked by ECU senior T.J. Lee, who recovered his own tipped ball and raced into the end zone for a touchdown to give the Pirates a 27–22 lead they would not relinquish.

Although it was an uncharacteristic mistake on special teams that ultimately cost the Hokies the game, it was an all-too familiar performance by VT senior quarterback Sean Glennon that put Virginia Tech in a position to lose.

In the first game since Coach Beamer announced his plans to redshirt playmaking sophomore quarterback Tyrod Taylor this season, Glennon completed 14-of-23 passes for 139 yards, zero touchdowns and two poorly thrown interceptions, along with numerous other tipped off-target passes.

“We just made too many mistakes,” said Glennon. “You’re not going to beat a good team when you make the mistakes we made.”

Already without triple-threat cornerback-receiver-returner Macho Harris, the absence of Taylor was highlighted by Glennon’s sluggish performance. As a result, Beamer’s club lost its first opening game since 2004 (vs. USC) and just its second 0–1 start in 13 years.

Keystone State Coaches

The two high profile college coaches in Pennsylvania — Penn State legend Joe Paterno and Pittsburgh’s Dave Wannstedt — opened the season with decidedly different results.

It was all smiles in Happy Valley, as the Nittany Lions roared to a 66–10 victory over Coastal Carolina. The win was the 373rd of Paterno’s career, which ties Joe Pa with Florida State peer Bobby Bowden. But the always-ornery 81-year-old Paterno downplayed the milestone as well as the competition with Bowden.

“I haven’t even thought about (the record), and I’m not going to. I can only say it so many times. It’s not a big deal to me. I just can’t seem to get that across,” said Paterno.

Meanwhile, Panthers fans suffered through a 27–17 upset at the hands of Bowling Green at Heinz Field in the Steel City. Wannstedt’s team jumped out to a 14–0 lead, but committed four turnovers and had star sophomore running back LeSean McCoy held to just 71 yards on 23 carries by the Falcons defense.

“They gave us some unusual formations,” said Wannstedt, after the game. “And we had a tough time adjusting to it.”

While Paterno enters his 43rd season as the head coach at Penn State, embarrassing losses like this could make it difficult for Wannstedt to make it past his fourth season at Pitt.