Brotherly love turns into sibling rivalry

On Saturday, YSU’s Ben Lane will face his brother, OSU’s Shaun Lane.

By PETE MOLLICA

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

YOUNGSTOWN — When Shaun Lane was growing up all he ever wanted to do was follow in his father’s footsteps and play football at Ohio State.

Ben Lane, Shaun’s younger brother, wasn’t looking for the big stage and wanted to stay closer to his Hubbard family and friends.

The brothers, two years apart in age, had never played in any sports against each other. But Saturday afternoon Shaun’s Buckeyes will play host to Ben’s Youngstown State Penguins at noon in Ohio Stadium.

The two brothers have always been close.

“We talk almost every day,” said Ben, who is a junior fullback with the Penguins and will be in the starting lineup Saturday.

Shaun, a redshirt junior, is a backup cornerback for the Buckeyes, but expects to see plenty of action.

“We’ve always been on the same team in whatever sport we’ve played,” Ben added. “Shaun was a tailback in high school and I played defense, so we did go against each other in scrimmages, but never in a game.”

Family matters

Shaun (5-foot-10, 185 pounds) had always wanted to go to Ohio State and committed to the Buckeyes right after his junior season at Hubbard.

Their father is Garcia Lane, who was a a three-year starter for the Buckeyes from 1981-83 and was a captain his senior season. He graduated from South High in Youngstown.

Garcia earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in 1983 as a cornerback and still ranks among the school’s leader in punt returns including three for touchdowns, two in his senior season.

“It’s going to be an exciting time for both Ben and me on Saturday,” Shaun said. “It’s going to give him an opportunity to perform on the national scene and show what he can do.”

Ben (5-10, 260) says that his brother is the better all-around athlete.

“But then I could never play cornerback and he probably couldn’t play fullback,” he added.

“It’s going to be fun to play against him in a real game,” Ben added, “and there won’t be any holding back on either part.”

“I told him that if I get the ball and he’s in my way he’d better look out,” Ben said.

The fullback doesn’t carry the ball that often in the YSU offense, as Lane, who started almost every game a year ago, had only three carries for 30 yards and a touchdown.

“Ohio State is a great university and I know that my going to school here involves a lot more than just football,” Shaun said.

Shaun said he and Ben like to talk a lot during the year and not just during football season.

Familiar fan

One person who will be up in the stands at Ohio Stadium Saturday will be rooting for both teams.

Denella Stanford, the boys’ mother, said this is going to be exciting for the entire family.

“It is just great to be able to see both of them playing on the same field,” Stanford said.

Who will she be rooting for?

“I’ll be rooting for both of them,” she said. “I’ll be the crazy lady in the stands screaming for both teams at the same time.

“Shaun is fulfilling his life-long dream to play at Ohio State, while Ben is my baby and he just wanted to stay close to home and the family,” she added.

mollica@vindy.com