OHIO STATE

OHIO STATE
Buckeye fanspeaks out
Fanfare:
I have been a loyal "Buckeye Fan" all of my life.
I received my under-graduate degree from OSU and I am a devoted fan and season ticket holder.
Last year, my dream came true and I was there to witness the Buckeyes win a National Title. To me, this was the pinnacle of Ohio State football.
This year, the Buckeyes are cruising along at 5-0 and all I hear is negative comments from our press and fans. They say our offense stinks, we can't run the football, and our defense gives up too many yards.
All of these statements may be true, but as he did at Youngstown State, Jim Tressel finds ways to win. He is a master at utilizing the clock, he teaches team unity and at the end of the game, we have more points than the opposing team.
I believe our defense is every bit as good as last years' and I believe we will, again, win the Big Ten Title and play for the National Title, and if we don't, so what!
I'll still continue to cheer for my favorite team. Go Bucks!!
Attorney Lou Schiavoni
Boardman
YSU
Penguin fanlauds Heacock
Fanfare:
I had to respond to Mr. Barrett's letter of 9/28.
Let's deal with current events first. Jon Heacock is 18-9 at YSU. He runs a clean program, and it is obviously a WINNING program. Has he won a National Championship ... no ... but neither did Jim Tressel in his first three years.
YSU is now a member of the Gateway Conference in football, and was not during those championship runs. Conference membership makes it harder to schedule games both overall, and from the standpoint of some of those 7-home game schedules of those championship runs. Just ask athletic director Ron Strollo how much fun scheduling can be.
That said, the Gateway Conference now has four teams ranked in the top 25 in Division I-AA, and produces some tremendous matchups every year.
Let's also deal with your contention, in your words ..."The good old days doesn't pertain to YSU football ... "
Did you ever hear of Ron Jaworski, Cliff Stoudt, Marshall Brumfield, Paris Wicks, Paul McFadden, and on and on? Do their contributions mean nothing?
What about the game in the Dike Beede era when YSU led by Denny Klembara at QB, matched up against Roger Staubach (yes, that Roger Staubach), and the two passed for an astronomical amount of yards? It was Dike Beede who brought us not only football as the school's first coach, but Ron Jaworski, its finest player.
What about the team led by coach Ray Dempsey, that pioneered YSU's many post-season appearances?
What about the Bill Narduzzi era, that saw YSU become a national power in Division II, play for their first shot at a National Championship? Then "Duzzer" led the team out of Division II and into the Ohio Valley Conference, and Division I-AA. Some of those OVC games were classics.
Are you telling me that the game in late 1979 between YSU and Delaware out at Fitch Stadium meant nothing? That is still the finest college football game I have ever seen.
Are you telling me that I imagined being at the Zia Bowl in Albuquerque, N.M., in 1979, when we played for the Division II National Championship?
The efforts of all of those named above, and many, many more, have made YSU football rich with history.
Ron Anderson
Youngstown