NOTEBOOK \ From Ohio Stadium

I-AA is A-OK: Coach Jim Tressel of Ohio State spoke to reporters just minutes after Michigan took its final lead against Appalachian State, and his press conference ended before the Wolverines’ loss. But he wasn’t surprised by Appalachian State, which defeated Youngstown State in last year’s national semifinals. “Appalachian State is good,” Tressel said. “We’ve been watching all week on field [to prepare for YSU]. I think the reality of I-AA in this day and age is all the good I-AA teams have a significant number of transfers that have played at this level previously. So as you go out there, there’s guys that have been on these kinds of fields before and they play hard.”

Buckeye-Valley connection: In addition to starting long snapper Dimitrios Makridis (a junior from Warren Harding) and backup cornerback Shaun Lane (a junior from Hubbard), Ohio State has several other players with area connections. Freshman running back Daniel Herron, who helped lead the Raiders to the regional final last season, is the most notable. Nonscholarship players include junior cornerback Zach Willis (Hubbard), junior safety Michael Dougherty (Boardman) and junior kicker Andrew Good (Boardman). Lane’s younger brother, Ben, is a fullback for Youngstown State.

Injury update: Ohio State’s starting defensive end, junior Lawrence Wilson, suffered a broken right leg midway through the second quarter and was carted off the field. He could miss up to six to eight weeks, Tressel said. “That would be a significant loss,” he said. “Lawrence Wilson is a good player, and he’s an enthusiastic guy. He gets riled up and fired up, and he’s one of those guys who’s played enough to be a leader.”

Shut down the run: The YSU defense did an outstanding job against the Ohio State running game. In addition to holding the Buckeyes to 147 total yards, the Penguins allowed just three runs of 10 yards or more the entire contest. The longest was a 26-yard run by Maurice Wells in the fourth quarter.

Took the ball: For the first time in a long time, the Penguins won the coin toss at the start of the game and elected to receive. Usually when the Penguins win the toss, they defer to the second half.

Rookie punter: Junior college transfer punter Ben Nowicki, who was recruited by YSU to take over the punting duties this season, struggled early with his first three punts averaging just about 25 yards after his third one was partially blocked. He finished with kicks of 43, 46 and 41 to get an average of 34.7 yards on seven kicks.

First starts: Nine Penguins made their first start: Dustin Helle, Matt Kishman Jabari Scott, Brian Mellot and Nhemie Theodore on offense, and Lenny Wicks, De’Angelo Wilson, Maurice Smith and Vince Gliatta on defense. Fourteen other Penguins appeared in their first college game.

Joe Scalzo, Pete Mollica