First time should be memorable for Longhorns, Buckeyes

“Coach Brown came back five minutes later and said a snowstorm came in and it shut their whole school down,” Young said, smiling. “I said to myself, ‘That’s way too cold, I’m not going there.'”

You can bet it will be plenty hot Saturday night when Young — now a star for the Longhorns — and No. 2 Texas take on No. 4 Ohio State under the lights at Ohio Stadium.

The schools that gave college football coaches such as Darrell Royal (who’ll be at the game) and Woody Hayes (who will be memorialized at halftime), traditions like Hook ’em Horns and Script Ohio and Heisman Trophy-winning running backs Earl Campbell and Archie Griffin finally get to make acquaintances. It’s the first time they’ve met.

“The whole country will be watching,” Texas offensive lineman Will Allen said.

Both teams aspire to be No. 1 at the end of the season, but for one that wish could be vaporized in just the second game of the season.

“You don’t want to say that a national championship is at stake so early in the season but, yeah,” said linebacker Anthony Schlegel, a Texan by birth but a Buckeye these days. “And it definitely means a lot to both teams so far as where they go for the rest of the season.”

Texas has its annual Red River Shootout with Oklahoma, and Ohio State its yearly clash with Michigan. Compared to those, players from both sides say this is a typical Saturday.

“We see it as just any other game,” Longhorns defensive end Tim Crowder said. “They are just another team trying to get in our way of getting to the Promised Land.”

The sea of fans, the bright lights and what’s at stake all seem to go against this as just a typical Saturday.

Brown said his team will savor the moment.

“Our guys like going into those kinds of arenas,” he said. “How many kids get to play in front of 100,000 people that all want you to get beat? It is kind of a fun thing to compete in that environment. It sends a message about your toughness, your confidence and your togetherness.”

Whether he believes it, or if it’s just gamesmanship, Brown also said that most of the pressure is on Ohio State (1-0).

“Sometimes when you are playing at home, it puts more pressure on the kids,” Brown said. “When they lose on the road it’s huge, but when they lose at home it’s bigger. When you’ve got that many people cheering for you, there is a certain amount of pressure not to let them down.”

Texas, chasing its first national championship in 35 years, is led by quarterback Vince Young. Considered one of the top challengers to reigning Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart of Southern California, Young rushed for 1,079 yards and passed for 1,849 yards a year ago as the Longhorns went 11-1 and ended up No. 5 in the nation.

The Longhorns (1-0) welcome back most of their skill-position players on offense and nine starters on defense from a team that beat Michigan in last year’s Rose Bowl. That win definitely got the Buckeyes’ attention.

“That’s what a top-5 team should look like,” Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said.

Vince Young is good friends with his Ohio State counterpart, Troy Smith. Smith called Young after Texas’ 60-3 rout of Louisiana-Lafayette last Saturday.

“Congratulations, first and foremost,” Smith said he told Young. “And just be ready when you come up this way.”

Ohio State will try to shut down the Texas running game so the Longhorns sink or swim on Young’s passing.

“The thing with Texas is they have so many weapons, but I really think the speed of our defense will help us,” Schlegel said.

Smith, coming off an NCAA-mandated two-game suspension, will share time with Justin Zwick at quarterback. The Buckeyes also have nine holdovers on defense and most of their key players back on offense.

A lot of the Longhorns’ attention will be drawn to Ohio State kick returner and wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. The sophomore sprinter caught a 42-yard touchdown pass in last week’s 34-14 win over Miami (Ohio) and is featured on the cover of this week’s Sports Illustrated.

“This is a player’s dream to be in a big-time game like this,” Ginn said. “To go out at night at 8 o’clock, the only game on TV, and it goes all over the world — sure, it’s a dream.”