NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Terrelle Pryor hobbled to the podium with the
help of two teammates, picked up his second straight bowl MVP award,
and used his time on the microphone to address the Ohio State faithful.
"I apologize and I’m sorry," he screamed toward the scarlet-clad side of the Superdome.
"Go Bucks!"
No worries. All is forgiven, especially if Pryor follows through on his vow to return next season.
Shaking
off a brush with the NCAA, Pryor passed for 221 yards and two
touchdowns, ran for a team-leading 115 yards and guided the No. 6
Buckeyes to their first postseason win ever against a Southeastern
Conference team, beating Arkansas 31-26 Tuesday night in a Sugar Bowl
thriller.
Pryor got plenty of help from four teammates who also
ran afoul of the NCAA by selling memorabilia and getting discounts on
tattoos. They’ll have to serve five-game suspensions, but not until next
season. Ohio State might want to send a thank-you note to the governing
body for delaying the penalties.
Dan Herron and DeVier Posey each
scored a touchdown. Mike Adams held down his usual spot at left tackle.
And the biggest play of all was turned in by the only backup in the
group of suspended players.
After No. 8 Arkansas was poised to
complete the comeback with a blocked punt, second-string defensive end
Solomon Thomas surprisingly dropped into coverage and picked off Ryan
Mallett’s final pass with 58 seconds remaining.
"You always hear
stories about adversity and how, if you push through, lessons lie at the
end," Thomas said. "This has really taught me how to deal with
adversity next season."
Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said all five
players pledged to return for their senior seasons to serve their
suspensions. He was sure glad to have them on the field at the Sugar
Bowl.
"Their contributions were important," Tressel acknowledged.
"They’re great kids. And I’m looking forward. … We’ve got a plan. And
if we’ll stick with our plan, we’ll be fine."
Pryor reiterated
that he plans to return next season, even though some of his major
goals, such as contending for the Heisman Trophy, are now out of reach.
"I
don’t think I’m ready for the NFL," the quarterback said. "I got a lot
of learning to do and better decision-making to make, on and off the
field."
Pryor sustained a sprained right ankle late in the game,
making it difficult for him to even climb the steps of the podium
afterward to receive his MVP award, following up a stellar performance
in last year’s Rose Bowl win over Oregon.
The Buckeyes (12-1) had
lost their previous nine postseason meetings against the SEC. They
finally ended the slide and earned some respect for the Big Ten after a
dismal performance on New Year’s Day, when the league went 0-5 —
including three losses to SEC schools.
Rallying from a 31-13
deficit late in the third quarter, Arkansas (10-3) had a chance to stun
the Buckeyes when Colton Miles-Nash leaped over two linemen to block a
punt, putting the Razorbacks at the Ohio State 18 with 1:09 remaining.
It
looked as though Julian Horton could’ve scooped up the ball and run for
the go-ahead score, but he wound up just falling on it. That turned out
to be costly.
"He just wanted to make sure he got on the ball,"
said coach Bobby Petrino, who guided the Razorbacks to their first BCS
bowl. "Unfortunately, we weren’t able to scoop and score."
Mallett
was 24 of 47 for 277 yards, including a pair of touchdowns. But he’d
sure like to have that last pass back, throwing it right to Thomas. The
255-pounder held on like a receiver to seal Ohio State’s win.
"I
didn’t see the guy," said Mallett, who now must decide whether to enter
the NFL draft or return for another year at Arkansas. "I tried to get
rid of it quick. They had pressure coming. I didn’t see him. He made a
great play."
Ohio State raced to a 28-7 lead in the first half.
Dane Sanzenbacher scored the first of his two TDs by recovering a fumble
by Pryor at the end of a 34-yard run. Two Arkansas players knocked each
other off the loose ball, and the Ohio State senior fell on it.
Herron
scored on a 9-yard run, then Pryor hooked up with Sanzenbacher on a
15-yard touchdown pass and Posey on a 43-yarder that had it looking like
a Buckeyes rout. Arkansas stopped the onslaught, but Ohio State was
still comfortably ahead, 31-13 with just over 4 minutes left in the
third quarter, after Devin Barclay booted a 46-yard field goal.
From there, it was all Arkansas — until the final minute.
Mallett
started the comeback by floating a pass with perfect touch to the
corner of the end zone. Jarius Wright ran under it for a 22-yard
touchdown.
The Razorbacks might have been more inspired by the
2-point conversion. D.J. Williams caught a pass, was wrapped up short of
the end zone, but managed to get his right arm loose and stick the ball
across the line, cutting the Buckeyes’ lead to 31-21.
Then, after
backing up Ohio State at its own 4 with a punt, Arkansas benefited from
a highly questionable call by the officials to pick up two more points.
Herron was stacked up at around the 2 and shoved the running back into
the end zone. The officials didn’t immediately blow the whistle, Herron
broke away briefly and was swarmed over by Jake Bequette and Rudell
Crim.
After briefly huddling, the officials ruled it a safety, despite Tressel’s protests about forward
progress.
With
the Arkansas side of the Superdome roaring and momentum clearly on
their side, the Razorbacks took the ensuing kick and drove into range
for Zach Hocker’s third field goal of the game, a 47-yarder that made it
31-26.
Clearly desperate to swing the tide, Tressel gambled on
fourth-and-1 from his own 38. He sent Herron diving over the line, and
he came down beyond the first-down marker. Only one problem: he didn’t
bring along the ball. Tramain Thomas stripped it away in mid-air, the
Buckeyes recovered short of the first down and Arkansas took over.
On
the very next play, however, the Razorbacks were called for holding.
Then, on third-and-16, Mallett found Lance Ray breaking open across the
middle, but Arkansas was doomed by a familiar problem: yet another
dropped pass, one of at least a half-dozen in the game.
Joe Adams
was the main culprit, botching a throw on the very first play that
might’ve gone for a TD, and letting another one slip from his grasp in
the back of the end zone.
Throw in Mallett’s big mistake at the end, and it was enough for Ohio State to escape with its first bowl
win against the SEC.
"They have a great conference. No one would refute that," Tressel said. "To beat a team
like that is special."
