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The Buckeyes closed out the 2005 season playing some of the best ball in the country. They rattled off seven straight victories in impressive fashion, and capped it off with a trouncing of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the Fiesta Bowl. HC Jim Tressel is quickly turning into a legend in Columbus with his mastery of both Michigan and Bowl games (8-2 SU combined). The Buckeyes have a much different look to them in 2006. Gone is the tenacious defense and in is the high wired act offense that can score points in bunches. The offense returns seven starters from a year ago steered by QB Troy Smith whose coming off a fantastic season that saw him throw for 3,178 yards with a 24-7 TD/INT ratio and rush for 1123. The backfield is loaded with talent as RB Antonio Pittman’s back after rushing for 1500+ a year ago, but the Buckeyes are set to unveil Chris Wells who was the #1 RB prospect in the country. The WR corps is happy to have Ted Ginn Jr. after he decided to drop out of the NFL draft, and WR Gonzalez is back to terrorize Michigan HC Carr once again. The defense as a whole loses a tremendous amount of talent, but the Buckeyes know how to recruit so there’s plenty of talent on hand waiting to step in. Special Teams should be a dominant aspect of the Buckeyes attack once again in ’06.
The Buckeyes are poised for a championship run in 2006, but all that will depend on how they fare in their revenge bout with the Longhorns when they pay a visit to Austin the second week of the season. A win there will have them set up for a solid season with only two tough roadies in Big 10 play (Iowa, Michigan State). The offense will be one of the most potent in the country, and the stop unit will only get better with every passing week.
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