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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Quarterbacks Troy Smith and Brady Quinn
will bring teams with Top 5 rankings and matching 9-2 records into
the Fiesta Bowl, but everybody's focused on Quinn.
Even Smith.
"He makes plays when he has to, when he runs. He's pretty much
the complete package," Smith said Friday of his Fighting Irish
counterpart, who blossomed this year under first-year coach Charlie
Weis.
The influence that Weis - the offensive guru behind the New
England Patriots' recent Super Bowl campaigns - has on Quinn is
lost on no one. What qualities does Buckeyes cornerback Ashton
Youboty see in Quinn?
"I see Charlie Weis calling the plays," the junior said.
"That can't ever hurt you."
Youboty didn't mean to come off harsh. He just thinks, like
everyone else, that Quinn and Weis are a good fit.
"I'm really not surprised that he has progressed into one of
the better quarterbacks in the country," said Ohio State coach Jim
Tressel, who heavily recruited Quinn, a prep player in the Columbus
area.
"He's led his team to nine wins. To me, that's what
quarterbacking is about: winning," he said.
Tressel's players are paying attention as they prepare for the
Jan. 2 meeting in Tempe, Ariz.
"Brady Quinn, he's trying to make a run for the Heisman for
next year," said Donte Whitner, the Buckeyes' other corner.
"That's what he's going to try to do, but we can't really let him
do that. He's going to try to come out like Vince Young did last
year against Michigan."
The Texas signal-caller posted four rushing touchdowns to carry
the Longhorns to a dramatic win over Michigan in last year's Rose
Bowl and set himself up for a Heisman run this year.
Smith, a junior, isn't a Heisman threat just yet. But Tressel
said he's been a standout this season, with a newly honed killer
instinct - just like Quinn. Tressel and others at the Buckeyes'
workout Friday were still buzzing over Smith's long pass to Anthony
Gonzalez in last month's game-winning drive at Michigan, a play set
up when Smith started to run, then pulled up.
"I think it is an example that he's got more confidence, and
perhaps (that) he's in charge out there, and while he's got the
ball, you better defend the run and the pass," Tressel said.
Smith sees at least one key similarity between himself and
Quinn: "He's leading a school with great tradition, and so am I."
Source: WBNS.com
will bring teams with Top 5 rankings and matching 9-2 records into
the Fiesta Bowl, but everybody's focused on Quinn.
Even Smith.
"He makes plays when he has to, when he runs. He's pretty much
the complete package," Smith said Friday of his Fighting Irish
counterpart, who blossomed this year under first-year coach Charlie
Weis.
The influence that Weis - the offensive guru behind the New
England Patriots' recent Super Bowl campaigns - has on Quinn is
lost on no one. What qualities does Buckeyes cornerback Ashton
Youboty see in Quinn?
"I see Charlie Weis calling the plays," the junior said.
"That can't ever hurt you."
Youboty didn't mean to come off harsh. He just thinks, like
everyone else, that Quinn and Weis are a good fit.
"I'm really not surprised that he has progressed into one of
the better quarterbacks in the country," said Ohio State coach Jim
Tressel, who heavily recruited Quinn, a prep player in the Columbus
area.
"He's led his team to nine wins. To me, that's what
quarterbacking is about: winning," he said.
Tressel's players are paying attention as they prepare for the
Jan. 2 meeting in Tempe, Ariz.
"Brady Quinn, he's trying to make a run for the Heisman for
next year," said Donte Whitner, the Buckeyes' other corner.
"That's what he's going to try to do, but we can't really let him
do that. He's going to try to come out like Vince Young did last
year against Michigan."
The Texas signal-caller posted four rushing touchdowns to carry
the Longhorns to a dramatic win over Michigan in last year's Rose
Bowl and set himself up for a Heisman run this year.
Smith, a junior, isn't a Heisman threat just yet. But Tressel
said he's been a standout this season, with a newly honed killer
instinct - just like Quinn. Tressel and others at the Buckeyes'
workout Friday were still buzzing over Smith's long pass to Anthony
Gonzalez in last month's game-winning drive at Michigan, a play set
up when Smith started to run, then pulled up.
"I think it is an example that he's got more confidence, and
perhaps (that) he's in charge out there, and while he's got the
ball, you better defend the run and the pass," Tressel said.
Smith sees at least one key similarity between himself and
Quinn: "He's leading a school with great tradition, and so am I."
Source: WBNS.com
