Huston makes all his kicks in first game as undisputed No. 1

His replacement, Josh Huston, enjoyed a solid day in his first outing as the undisputed kicker. He had several kickoffs into the end zone, was perfect on two field goals (from 20 and 27 yards) and converted four PATs in the 34-14 win over Miami.

That kind of ef- fort might make chants of "Huuu" a new tradition, replacing "Nuuuge."

"It was a lot of fun today. It was an all-around good day," said the sixth-year senior, who was just 3-of-10 on field goals in 2001. "But it sounded like may- be they missed their buddy Mike out there a little bit."

TRAVELING MAN: Lancaster grad Bobby Carpenter play- ed three positions for the Buckeyes on Saturday. He started at linebacker, took a few snaps at defensive end, and moved over to the offensive side of the ball as a tight end, where he was used as a blocker.

The extra duty was no problem, he said.

"Any time an offense marches up and down the field like ours did it saves your legs," Carpenter said. "We didn't play nearly as many plays on defense as we expected, so I feel pretty good."

TB TO TG: Todd Boeckman's first career TD pass came late in the third quarter on a post route to Ted Ginn Jr. The 42-yard strike was the only score OSU had under Boeckman.

"They were going to call that play earlier for Justin (Zwick)," Boeckman said. "The safety bit and I just threw it out there."

LOOKING AHEAD: A number of Ohio State fans are confident about next week's showdown with No. 2 Texas. The reason for such bravado? OSU is 27-3-1 against teams in the Big 12 and has won 14 in a row against Big 12 foes dating to a 29-27 loss to Oklahoma in 1977. The Buckeyes also have never lost a home night game.

But they've never beaten a top-five nonconference team in Ohio Stadium. The Buckeyes tied No. 4 UCLA 10-10 in 1976, lost to No. 3 Oklahoma 29-27 in 1977, and fell to No. 5 Penn State 19-0 in 1978.

Originally published Sunday, September 4, 2005