Wisconsin Badgers Game Day: Ohio State

Game Day Vitals:

• Ohio State Buckeyes (10-0, 6-0 Big Ten/Leaders) vs. Wisconsin Badgers (7-3, 4-2 Big Ten/Leaders)
• Camp Randall Stadium (80,321); Sat, Nov. 17, 2:30 p.m. CT
• TV: ABC
• Wisconsin Badgers Tickets

Opponent Vitals:

• Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. OhioStateBuckeyes.com
• SB Nation Blog: Land-Grant Holy Land
• Returning Starters: 15 (7 offense, 8 defense)

Coaches:

• Head Coach: Urban Meyer
• Assistant Head Coach/Co-Defensive Coordinator: Everett Withers
• Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks: Tom Herman
• Defensive Coordinator: Luke Fickell

Key Players:

2012 Schedule/Results:

• Last week: (bye), W 52-22 vs. Illinois on Nov. 3. Heading into their bye week, the Buckeyes racked up 567 yards of offense against an entirely overmatched Illini squad. Miller finished 12-of-20 for 226 yards and two touchdowns and also added 73 yards and a touchdown on 18 rushing attempts. Hyde also received 18 carries, gaining 137 yards (7.6 per carry) and three touchdowns. Illinois trailed by just a point entering the second quarter, though Ohio State added another 24 points before halftime while the Illini managed only 16 more points for the duration of the game.
• Biggest win: Week 5 at Michigan State, 17-16. This one -- Meyer's first Big Ten conference game -- was a classic that had all the postgame "war" and "sledgehammer" rhetoric you could imagine. Miller was shaken up twice, but managed to finish 16-of-23 for 179 yards, one touchdown and one interception. More importantly, he gained 136 rushing yards on 23 carries (5.9 yards per). OSU nursed a 7-3 lead after the first quarter and neither team scored in the second, making the third quarter the pivotal one. Both teams scored 10 points, though a 63-yard pass from Miller to Smith at the 3:05 mark put the Buckeyes ahead for good.
• Biggest scare: Week 8 vs. Purdue, W 29-22 OT. With Miller knocked out of the game and to the hospital on the second-to-last play of the third quarter, the Buckeyes received their closest call of the season. But junior quarterback Kenny Guiton proved a capable replacement, finishing 6-of-11 for 77 yards, one touchdown and one interception. The score came with three seconds remaining in the game, on a two-yard pass to Chris Fields that capped a drive that began at OSU's 39-yard line. Guiton then tied the game on the two-point conversion with a quick pass to Jeff Heuerman. In overtime, Hyde's one-yard touchdown run gave Ohio State all the points it needed to escape.
• Outlook: After the win over Illinois two weeks ago, Meyer welcomed the time Ohio State would have to prepare for "the two big ones left" -- this weekend's trip to Madison and then the regular-season finale vs. Michigan. Given their postseason ineligibility, the Buckeyes' greatest prize lies in the pride elicited by an undefeated season and however far Miller's Heisman Trophy campaign goes. Those will be the principal objectives for the last two games, and you can expect Meyer to push his team as hard as he can to achieve them.