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Boardman’s Linsley is center of attention
By ED PUSKAS
ANN ARBOR, Mich.
Corey Linsley is Ohio State’s starting center and he’s naturally expected to be at the center of everything.
On Saturday, the Boardman High graduate played two pivotal roles — one good and one he says he regrets.
Linsley, a 6-foot-3, 297-pound senior, helped the unbeaten Buckeyes outlast Michigan, 42-41, thanks mostly to Ohio State’s 393 rushing yards.
Linsley and his fellow linemen paved the way for running back Carlos Hyde (27 carries, 226 yards, one touchdown) and quarterback Braxton Miller (16 attempts, 153 yards, three TDs). They helped the Buckeyes overcome a defense that wasn’t simply leaking, but resembled a human sieve.
“We won because we were the more physical team up front,” Linsley said.
The Buckeyes also were physical in a second-quarter melee that highlighted the bitterness of the Big Ten Conference’s most intense rivalry.
Ohio State’s Dontre Wilson was tackled on a kickoff return and some routine pushing and shoving escalated quickly. Maybe not as quickly or violently as the fight scene in “Anchorman,” but Wilson and Marcus Hall, the Buckeyes’ starting right guard, were flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct and ejected. Both were observed apparently throwing punches.
Michigan’s Royce Jenkins-Stone, a backup linebacker, also was flagged and ejected after ripping off Hall’s helmet and tossing it.
Linsley admitted he played a central role in the fracas. He said he left the sideline to try to pull Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller away from the fracas and Hall followed him onto the field.
“I saw Braxton run out there and thought, ‘Man, I’ve got to go get that guy,’ ” Linsley said. “That’s what actually started the whole pull — me running out there.
“I feel a little bit of responsibility for Marcus getting ejected. He saw me run out there and I shouldn’t have done that, no matter what.”
Linsley maintained he was trying to keep the peace.
“I was just trying to break it up,” he said. “Honest to God ... I swear to God I wasn’t trying to throw any punches. I get chastised enough for the things I’ve done. I’ve had personal foul calls in the Cal game the last two years. I’ve had a lot of personal foul calls.
“I was literally just trying to break it up, but it doesn’t matter. You never leave the bench.”
Linsley admitted the brawl affected his play for much of the day.
“Honest to God, it took me a quarter-and-a-half to get back,” Linsley said. “Finally, when the fourth quarter was starting that I was finally over it and the pit in my heart was finally erased. I came in and saw Marc crying and I hugged him up and said, ‘We did it for you.’”
Freshman Pat Elflein replace Hall and Linsley — who played alongside him the first-year player the rest of the afternoon — was impressed.
“Un-freaking-believable,” Linsley said. “Let me tell you something — Pat Elflein, that’s a guy right there who is going to be a heck of a player.”
The Buckeyes already had clinched a their first berth in the Big Ten title game. Ohio State (12-0, 8-0) will meet Michigan State (11-1, 8-0) on Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium. in Indianapolis.
The Buckeyes will take a 24-game winning streak into their game. Linsley has played a central role in Ohio State’s run of success to start the Urban Meyer era.
“I feel so blessed and I feel so thankful that I’m doing it with guys that I love,” Linsley said. “It’s one thing if you’re doing it with just a bunch of guys that are individuals and good players, but we’re all a team and I love my teammates. It just makes it all that much more special.”
Redshirt junior J.T. Moore (Boardman), a special teams ace, and fifth-year senior George Makridis (Warren G. Harding) also played for the Buckeyes.
Freshman offensive lineman Billy Price (Fitch) did not play. He has been redshirted and will enter 2014 with four years of eligibility.