Christmas finally comes Saturday at noon for Buckeye fans. You get to take the wraps off another season of presents as the Penguins come to Ohio Stadium. The season opener is always special for the players and the fans. The expectation level is so high……and so is the excitement. Everyone on campus is supercharged……..the fans, players, band and hundreds of volunteers who work behind the scenes to help make Ohio State football such a unique experience.

While you will all be watching the progress of starting quarterback Todd Boeckman and watching your favorite players like James Laurinaitis and Beanie Wells, don’t forget to watch the “trenches”. Look closely at Ohio State’s offensive and defensive lines. Offensively, watch how they run and pass block. Defensively, watch for their aggressiveness and see how they attack at the snap. This football team has plenty of talent, even with some major positions to be filled from last season. But, it will always come down to the play at the line of scrimmage. Can they open the holes on offense…….and close them on defense? Admittedly, we probably won’t learn a great deal with Youngstown State as the opponent, but, you will still be able to get a good measure of the progress of the trenches and that should give you an idea of whether this team is headed in the right direction.

The coaches and players say they are excited and eager. You know the fans will be! And, the weather sounds like it will picture perfect. Let the game begin — enjoy Christmas 2007 Buckeye fans. I hope you enjoy all your gifts!!!

Popularity: 38% [?]

Any more questions about Ohio State being ready for postseason tournament play? Last night’s dismantling of their first round foe was certainly expected……but, everyone was curious to see if the Buckeyes would waltz their way through it…..or play with the intensity required in NCAA play.

No more questions from here. As long as coach Thad Matta is a walking, breathing coach, his teams will play with intensity and fire. Sure, you might not his on all cylinders every night, but, with the talent that Ohio State has, that intensity and fire showed last night will take them a long way. I continue to be impressed by what I think is the most underestimated strength of the Buckeye team — it’s tenacious defense. Even the normally stoic Thad Matta had to admit after last night’s game that his team did alot of things right.

As for Xavier — it’ll be a tough game for all the obvious reasons. Should Ohio State win it? Yes. Should they win big? Probably. But, let’s see how hungry Xavier is tomorrow. And, let’s see if last night’s grueling win over BYU might take a fatigue toll somewhat on the Musketeers. We all know the extremely close relationship between Thad Matta and Xavier coach Sean Miller and the entire Xavier family. The other major factor to ponder in this second round matchup: Drew Lavender. The Brookhaven Flash will really want this one. His coach talked about the game about Lavender’s background…..coming from Brookhaven, a tough school….a school known for his athletic successes. Drew Lavender loves being a difference maker. He loves having the ball in his hands down the stretch. Clearly, Ohio State’s game plan will be to take him out of those situations.

As I write this, I’m working at Nationwide Arena for the NCAA tournament games. I’m serving as the NCAA news conference moderator. You should know that while Columbus didn’t draw a #1 seed, or a #2 seed, or a #3 seed, Columbus drew a field full of great teams that want to be here, are excited about advancing in the game they love and coached by wonderful, dedicated men.

We know about Bruce Peal at Tennessee and Bruce Weber from Illinois. We’ve all heard alot about them through the years, but, yesterday, I loved listening to the comments of the coaches from Albany, Holy Cross, Long Beach State, Southern Illinois, Virginia Tech and Virginia yesterday. They have such a tremendous passion for their student-athletes. It’s great to see!

We’re near the first tipoff of the day and — unfortunately — four of these teams will be leaving us after today. It’ll be sad for the coaches and players, but they have all demonstrated great attitudes and understand the life lessons these games teach.

Enjoy the NCAA — keep you eyes on the Buckeyes!!! They looked like the real-deal in game #1.

Popularity: 38% [?]

George Lehner served for over twenty years as sports director at WTVN Radio in Columbus, Ohio; responsible for all sports programming on WTVN and two others of the six affiliated Clear Channel stations in the Columbus market.

George anchored a dozen sports broadcasts every day during drive time in the morning and afternoon. In addition, he was responsible for all phases ofo WTVN’s award winning pregame and postgame broadcast coverage of Ohio State University football, including anchoring ninety minute programs before and after each game, and, a weekly two hour listener call in program. Also, for several years, he cohosted a daily sports talk radio program. George has covered Ohio State football from virtually every major college stadium in the nation, along with bowl games in Florida, Arizona, Texas and California.

He directed the stations coverage of high school football and hosted a one-hour high school football scoreboard show each Friday night during the high school football season. He has also anchored live coverage from the Super Bowl, the NFL draft, the World Series, the baseball All-Star game, major league baseball spring training, The Masters Tournament in Augusta, and The Memorial Tournament.

During his tenure, WTVN was named the Best Sports Operation in the state of Ohio; he was named Broadcaster of the Year in the state of Ohio multiple times and was honored with UPI’s Regional Broadcast Award for Best Sports Reporting. George voted in the prestigious Associated Press College Football and Basketball polls for over ten years, the only broadcast journalist in the nation asked to vote in both polls. He also voted for the Heisman Trophy. George was inducted in the Radio and Television Broadcaster’s Hall of Fame in Ohio in 2006.

George lives in Columbus and has three children.

Popularity: 17% [?]