Each week, we post a new excerpt from the latest edition of Bucknuts The Magazine.
BTM has evolved from humble beginnings as a 32-page magazine into its current
format as a 64-page magazine. It is published 10 times a year (monthly from
September through April, then once in the Spring and Summer).
The magazine retails for $4.95 on newsstands. We also sell annual
subscriptions to the magazine on the Internet for $39.95.
But the best deal going is our annual subscription bundle. For $99.95, you
get a full year of BTM as well as access to all of the premium content and
message boards on Bucknuts.com. Subscriptions to the web site, itself, are
priced at $9.95 per month. So, for roughly $100 you receive the value of almost
$160 between the web site and magazine.
In each issue of Bucknuts The Magazine, we have in-depth features on Ohio State football players, coaches and prospects. We also have analysis pieces on
the Buckeyes as well as their opponents, the Big Ten and college football world
in general. Plus, we have features on OSU athletes in a variety of sports,
including men's and women's basketball, hockey, wrestling, baseball and other
sports.
Order now! Click here for more on Bucknuts the Magazine.
Headline: A Play-Making Machine
By Dave Biddle
(From April 2006 issue)
With the departure of star wide receiver Santonio Holmes to the NFL, rising
junior Anthony Gonzalez could step up as Ohio State’s No. 1 target in 2006.
In 2005, the 6-0, 195-pound Gonzalez had 28 receptions, 373 yards (13.3 per
reception) and three touchdowns. He usually worked out of the slot in
three-receiver sets.
With the majority of opposing defenses trying to contain Holmes and Ted Ginn
Jr., Gonzalez usually faced single coverage. His precise route-running, sure
hands and deceptively fast speed (sub-4.4 seconds in the 40) made him one of the
best-kept secrets in the Big Ten for much of the season.
Gonzalez had two touchdown receptions in OSU’s 31-6 win over Iowa, and made
several clutch receptions throughout the season.
However, his 2005 campaign will forever be known for “The Catch.”
No, we’re not talking about Joe Montana-to-Dwight Clark in the 1981 NFC
Championship game. We’re talking about Gonzalez’s 26-yard leaping reception of a
Troy Smith which all but sealed the deal in Ohio State’s 25-21 comeback victory
at Michigan.
The play gave OSU a first-and-goal at UM’s 4-yard-line with 37 seconds left in
the fourth quarter. Two plays later, Antonio Pittman scored on a 3-yard
touchdown run.
The Buckeye defense held on and OSU claimed just its third win in Ann Arbor
since 1987.
On Gonzalez’s clutch play, he saw Smith roll out of the pocket, so he decided to
break off his route and run towards the end zone. Smith lofted the ball up and
Gonzalez went high over Michigan defensive back Grant Mason to haul in the pass.
“It was a big play. I’m not going to say it wasn’t,” Gonzalez said. “It was on
first down and I have no doubts in my mind that if that ball hits the ground
that we would still march down because of the way Troy was playing. He was
unbelievable on those last two drives. That was impressive.”
Gonzalez actually ran out of bounds on the play, but it was ruled he was forced
out by Mason. (A receiver cannot be the first one to touch the ball if he runs
out of bounds on his own.)
“It was a little deceptive what coverage they may have been running,” Gonzalez
said. “It looked like they were about to back off. I had an out route. If he
backs off, that’s where the ball should go. But he stayed there and blocked me
out of bounds, so I turned it up.”
Gonzalez does his best to downplay the catch, but admits it was a boost for his
self-assurance.
“It does help your confidence,” he said. “For me, that’s always been a big part
of my game. Whenever I have struggled at anything in my entire life, it’s been
because of a lack of confidence. Anything that happens that increases my
confidence is good for me.
“Not that I was unconfident – I feel that I’ve played confident the whole year –
but something like that certainly boosts the confidence a little bit.”
Smith, who has made a habit out of producing big games against Michigan,
explained what Gonzalez did well on the play.
“I think (it showed) tremendous progress on Tony’s part,” Smith said. “Not a lot
of people know him as a high point guy, one with the ability to go up and get
the ball like he did. I wouldn’t take the play back and throw the ball anywhere
else. I believe in Tony the whole way around. If anything, I would have thrown
it a little harder so he could have had a chance to get into the end zone
instead of jumping over the guy.”
Smith also gets a lot of credit for the play. It looked like he was going to
run, but instead he juked a Michigan defender, rolled right and let it fly.
“I was just trying to keep the play alive as long as I could,” Smith said.
“Gonzalez made a great play. The line held everybody off as long as they could.”
But where did Gonzalez get the hops? How was he able to get up so high?
“I don’t know,” Gonzalez said. “I can’t go up that high. It wasn’t that I got up
that high; it was that I got turned in an awkward way and made it look like I
was up real high. I don’t jump very high.”
Gonzalez says he has made better catches in his lifetime. Not necessarily
bigger, just more difficult.
“It’s one of those things where the more focus there is on the game, the bigger
it seems to outsiders and the better it seems, I guess,” he said.
When Gonzalez says he has made better catches, he means in high school, or in
the backyard. The play at Michigan was definitely his best catch in an OSU
uniform. But he has seen better catches from other OSU receivers.
“I’ve seen Santonio make better catches, and Mike Jenkins as well,” he said. “He
caught a pass at Penn State his senior year (in 2003) and he kind of grabbed it
over the top of the DB and got hit in the mouth pretty hard too. It was a
fade-stop for a touchdown (and sealed a late win for OSU). So, I’ve seen lots
better catches than mine since I’ve been here.”
Gonzalez was asked how he would feel if “The Catch” is still being talked about
20 years from now.
“I don’t think it will be,” he said. “But how would I feel? I don’t know. Ask me
in 20 years, I guess.”
Gonzalez’s humble approach is not an act. He’s intelligent, laid-back and
doesn’t spend time reading his press clippings.
But surely he’s watched several replays of “The Catch,” right?
“Honestly, people are making such a big deal out of it, but I’ve seen it maybe
three or four times,” he said. “Like I said, I’ve seen much better catches. It
happened to be at a big time in the game. But I maintain if that ball hits the
ground, we still drive down and score. No doubt in my mind.”
Bigger Role For Gonzo?
And while Gonzalez was able to somewhat sneak up on defenses last season, that
won’t be the case in 2006. He is a known commodity and defenses are now aware of
just how dangerous he can be.
The flashy Ginn is a candidate to be Ohio State’s No. 1 receiver in 2006. But
OSU’s coaches might be content to leave him in the No. 2 role. That would mean
Gonzalez would have a much bigger part in the offense.
“Honestly, I haven’t even thought about that,” Gonzalez said. “I have yet to get
that far in my thinking.”
One person who has given it some thought is OSU receivers coach Darrell Hazell.
He has witnessed the maturation of Gonzalez as a football player and believes
that his best is yet to come.
“I love the kid,” Hazell said. “He’s a student of the game. He’s a play-making
machine. Last year, when ‘Tone (Holmes) would get the double team, or Teddy
would get the double team, Tony always showed up. He’s a kid that works
tremendously hard and he has really good skills.
“I need to get more leadership out of him this year with Santonio gone, but I
think he will step up and do a good job there. I think he’ll have a great year.”
As for Ginn, he finished the 2005 season with 51 receptions, 803 yards (15.7)
and four touchdowns. He entered the season as a Heisman Trophy candidate, but
had trouble living up to expectations. However, don’t dare tell Gonzalez that
Ginn had a “down” year.
“I think he did a very good job,” Gonzalez said. “People set these ridiculous
expectations for everyone. If Ted doesn’t have six catches for 180 yards and
three touchdowns and a punt return for a touchdown, somehow everyone thinks he
had a bad game. But I think he’s done a really good job. He’s been solid. His
route running – which for some reason people harped on that – but his route
running is great. He’s developed as a blocker, I think. He’s young and we’re all
doing what we can. I think he had a great season.”
A few young receivers will need to produce for the Buckeyes in 2006. Gonzalez
thinks there are several players that are capable of getting the job done.
“It’s tough, because I think everybody on our team is good,” he said. “Somebody
will step up, but I don’t know who it will be. I can’t pick out one in
particular. Everybody has done a solid job. All the young guys are coming on.
“(Brian) Hartline, you’ll see Hartline make some good catches. You’ll see
(Brian) Robiskie make some good catches. You’ll see (Albert) Dukes make some
good catches. Roy Hall, of course he’s a little older. But all the young guys
came on and they had a great guy to learn from in Santonio.”
Even without Holmes, Gonzalez thinks that OSU will be in good shape next year at
the receiver position.
“I would hope so. I really do,” he said. “I refuse to believe that we won’t have
the talent. Now whether or not we’re going to step up and make the plays that we
need to, obviously that has yet to be determined, but I feel that we will have a
good group of receivers next year.”
Ohio State finished the regular season ranked 32nd in the country in total
offense, averaging 422.3 yards per game. It was the highest ranking for an OSU
offense thus far in the Jim Tressel era.
But the offense didn’t come on until mid-way through the season. Early in the
year, the Buckeyes sputtered at times. The second-half turnaround was nothing
short of impressive.
“It seems like in the beginning of the season, we were real close to making big
plays, but for some reason we just weren’t making them,” Gonzalez said. “Whereas
the last month and a half of the season, it does seem like we started to turn
the corner a little bit.”
Ohio State finished 10-2, claimed a share of the Big Ten championship, won a BCS
bowl game, and finished ranked No. 4 in the nation. But for many OSU fans, it
was a “what if” season. What if the Buckeyes would have received the breaks in
the Texas and Penn State games?
“If you think about it, what’s the difference between an undefeated season and
what we have? It’s two plays,” Gonzalez said. “If we make a big play against
Penn State, that turns that game around. If we make a big play against Texas and
turn that game around, we win that one, too.
“All of a sudden, we’re not talking about where we were the first few weeks.
We’re talking about how exciting it will be to play in the title game.”
The good news for Gonzalez is he still has two years to try and claim a national
championship at Ohio State.
And beyond the playing field, he is an excellent student with a 3.42 GPA in
philosophy. In fact, he could become the first OSU football player to become a
Rhodes Scholar since wide receiver Mike Lanese in 1985.
“It is definitely something I am thinking about and would like to pursue,”
Gonzalez said. “But it is a very competitive process, so there are no
guarantees. Still, I would like to try.”
Somehow, nothing seems out of reach for him.