Can Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel Recover the Magic?

How does Ohio State Buckeyes football coach Jim Tressel recover the magic touch he enjoyed during his first years at the school?

It wasn't that long ago that Tressel was taking over for the hated John Cooper, who seemed to recruit the best athletes in the country but didn't seem to have a clue as to how to coach. He especially broke the hearts of the Buckeye faithful by losing to the rival Michigan Wolverines several times, which is considered verboten in the Buckeye State.

When Tressel took over, it was like a breath of fresh air. He spoke to the fans at an Ohio State men's basketball game and all but assured victory over the rivals up north. Then, his team went to Ann Arbor and did just that, which the Buckeyes hadn't done for some time, but is something they've done several times since, both at home and on the road.

He has even won a national championship with the Buckeyes, beating the Miami Hurricanes just seven years ago. Throughout that magical year - in fact, throughout his tenure at Ohio State - Tressel has seemed to do no wrong. His offense was more conservative than Rush Limbaugh during the title run in 2002, and fans were constantly concerned that his luck would run out. It never did, though it did need several overtimes that year to beat the Hurricanes.

The Buckeyes have been one of the most successful college football teams in the country under Tressel, but in the last couple of years things have begun to sour somewhat. Blow out losses in back to back national title games were bad, but recently Ohio State has lost high profile games it had a real shot at winning, including last year's Fiesta Bowl against the Texas Longhorns. No one is really calling for Tressel's job, but fans are nervous. Suddenly, winning the Big Ten title, or at least a share of it, four years straight and counting is somewhat forgotten. Now, Ohio State is the team that can't win the big one. Even beating Michigan consistently isn't enough.

Saturday's loss to the University of Southern California Trojans will certainly not help matters. That game was one the Buckeyes had in hand since they tied the score at 7 in the first quarter. When OSU quarterback Terrel Pryor threw an interception that lead to 7 points for USC early in the first quarter, fans had to think, "Here we go again." It was during a blowout at USC last year that an interception basically ended the Buckeyes' hopes of a big victory.

However, after the interception this year, Pryor came back and lead the team on an impressive drive down the field to tie the game. The momentum, and the game, seemed firmly in the Buckeyes' hands, though there were not many points put on the board.

Here, then, is the most cause for concern for Buckeye fans. During a win the week before against Navy, Ohio State went for it on fourth down, rather than kick a field goal late in the game. The play was stuffed, and Navy took over. The Cadets promptly scored, sending the game into doubt. Only an interception of a two-point conversion saved the day.

Against USC Saturday, near the end of the first half, Tressel abandoned his conservative slant and threw the ball on a third down. The incompletion stopped the clock, and USC had just enough time to march down the field and hit a tying field goal. A passing play late in the game also was costly, as Pryor took a sack that removed the Buckeyes from field goal range. The Tressel of old may have run the ball there and taken a chance on the foot of his kicker.

Instead, Ohio State punted and the defense, no doubt gassed by then, was unable to hang on and the Trojans scored with little time left. Similarly, the Buckeye defense failed to hold the Longhorns late in the Fiesta Bowl last year. Neither loss should be considered an embarrassment by the team or its fans - USC is ranked third and has title hopes every year, while many last year thought the Longhorns really should have been in the championship game - but neither were they victories.

Ordinarily, this could just be seen as a string of bad luck. However, to Buckeye fans, this could be seen as the magic beginning to fade, and even Tressel's unshakable confidence waning. In past years, he would have kicked the field goal or run the ball and depended on his defense to win the game.

Now, it seems, he may be as unsure as to what's going to happen as the average fan.

That should be the biggest fear for a Buckeye backer.