Laurinaitis gets loose, then gets psyched before games

The Ohio State linebacker’s routine before a big games includes listening to music.

COLUMBUS (AP) — An hour or two before kickoff Saturday, James Laurinaitis will put on his headphones.

Other Ohio State players will prepare for battle with No. 1 Southern California with heavy metal and screaming vocals, or maybe bluesy bass and a mellow backbeat. But the Buckeyes’ co-captain, the top college linebacker in America according to most experts, goes with something understated, a bit of pop to prepare him for all the collisions and violence.

“I can feel it coming in the air tonight, Oh Lord. I’ve been waiting for this moment, all my life, Oh Lord. Can you feel it coming in the air tonight, Oh Lord, Oh Lord,” Phil Collins sings in the song “In the Air Tonight.”

Then Laurinaitis will go about his business, knocking down opponents until he comes to one carrying a football. It’s a job he enjoys but which belies the larger part of a quiet, introspective life filled with studies and friends and laughter.

“That’s a song that my high school listened to as a tradition before games,” Laurinaitis said.

The music soothes him, helps him focus on what’s ahead, helps him control his pent-up fury until it is time to unleash it.

“I’ll usually be calm until I get out on the field, but when Malcolm [cornerback Jenkins] starts going crazy and Thaddeus [defensive end Gibson] starts talking, it’s just time to get going,” he said. “You have to get after it. It sort of builds as you get toward game time.”

The alternate personality inside belongs to him then, does his bidding. That wasn’t always the case. Like Dr. Jekyll tinkering with the ingredients in his potion, Laurinaitis had to learn to moderate the football player within him.

“I’ve learned to manage it a little better than my sophomore year,” he said, grinning. “I was about gassed out after warmups at Texas. I was so tired I had to get my inhaler out. I’ve learned to calm down a little bit.”

Laurinaitis, like A.J. Hawk before him, has the awards to prove he’s an elite player. A two-time All-American, he won the Butkus Award (top collegiate linebacker) last year and the Nagurski (top college defender) the year before.

He’s indisputably the leader of Ohio State’s defense. His teammates admire him because he’s more than just a battering ram.

“I just think James’ knowledge of the game is what helps him the most,” Jenkins said.

“He’s always watching film, he knows the game a lot. He has a great knack for being around the ball. He makes plays when plays need to be made. That’s what makes him a little unique.”