Tressel succeeds in close games

Jim Tressel hasn't been on the losing side in so long he may have forgotten what it feels like.
After Saturday's 44-38 triple overtime win over North Carolina State, Tressel looked as cool and relaxed as a guy who had just come off the 18th green after making a birdie putt.
At 17 games and counting, the Ohio State football team has the nation's longest Division I winning streak.
And even though the Buckeyes' rushing attack has vanished, the streak appears to be in no danger of ending any time soon.
Who's going to beat them?
Not Bowling Green of the Mid-American Conference. (Graduates of MAC schools are allowed to freely criticize our conference.)
And most assuredly not Northwestern on Sept. 27.
The Buckeyes' next test should be in their first road trip of the season. That comes on Oct. 11 when Ohio State plays at Wisconsin, shocking losers at home last Saturday to the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.
The Wisconsin game comes after an open week. Think Tressel's troops will be ready with an extra seven days of preparation?
Ohio State's other October games are at home against Iowa and on the road at Indiana.
Even if Craig Krenzel remains the Buckeyes' only rushing threat, this streak should remain intact until November arrives.
Solid record
Vindicator correspondent Paul Trgovac had some free time over the weekend and discovered that in the 223 games Tressel has been a head coach, 93 have been decided by seven points or less. Tressel's record is 60-31-2 (.656) in those games.
Trgovac said Tressel's teams at Youngstown State and Ohio State have a 25-7 record (.781) in those games the last five years, and have won the last nine.
As head coach, Tressel lost the first six close games he coached at YSU in his first year before a 40-39 win over Akron.
The Penguins then went 48-21-2 (.690) in close ones during the rest of his tenure at YSU.
The 1999 season had the most thrills when the Penguins were 9-1 in games decided by seven points or less.
On the flip side, the 1995 season was the only time the Penguins failed to win a close game, going 0-3.
In Tressel's first season in Columbus, the Buckeyes were 2-4 in close games.
No wonder he looked so cool, calm and relaxed even after four-and-a-half hours of tense football after his team blew a 17-point lead in the final quarter at home.
Noteworthy notes
Do you know the name of the song the Ohio State marching band plays when they execute "Script Ohio?" I didn't either until I looked at the media guide "The Best Damn Band in the Land" publishes and distributes to the media at home games.
The song is called "Le Regiment."
The composer credited in the media guide is Planquette, which was news even to the expert musician at our house.
Did your insides feel warm and gooey last week when Cavs rookie LeBron James offered to be there "24/7" for the Buckeyes' suspended tailback Maurice Clarett?
James' attorneys pummeled the Ohio High School Athletic Association last winter, successfully delaying having their client officially ruled ineligible by a Summit County judge until long after basketball season ended.
James offering Clarett advice would have been like O.J. Simpson offering to help Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis beat his double-murder accusation.
Instead of fighting the NFL, Clarett needs to hear someone tell him to stay in school for free, study hard, apply for reinstatement after this season ends, work hard, keep his hands in his pockets and toys in the attic, then run the ball for the Buckeyes in his junior and senior seasons before becoming a top NFL draft pick in 2006.
Most likely, I'll be asked to dot the i when "Le Regiment" is played before the Clarett family develops that kind of patience.
XTom Williams is a sportswriter for The Vindicator. Write him at williams@vindy.com.