COLUMBUS, Ohio - No. 11 Ohio State took its first step toward forgetting the end of last season.
Todd Boeckman played well in his first start replacing Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Troy Smith and the Buckeyes made just about all the big plays in beating Youngstown State 38-6 on Saturday.
The Buckeyes welcomed the game as a way to put some distance between themselves and the painful memories of a humiliating 41-14 defeat to Florida in the BCS national championship game Jan. 8.
It was the first time the schools met in football, with Youngstown State now a member of the new Football Championship Subdivision, formerly I-AA.
Boeckman, a tall, rangy junior, directed the first four touchdown drives as the Buckeyes steadily pulled away. He completed 17-of-23 passes for 225 yards and two 1-yard TDs.
Dane Sanzenbacher and Taurian Washington, a pair of prized freshmen wide-outs, each scored on their first career receptions, Sanzenbacher's coming on a 3-yard toss from Boeckman and Washington's covering 37 yards from Antonio Henton.
Another freshman, Brandon Saine, the reigning Mr. Football in Ohio, also was part of the coming-out party with 42 yards rushing on 10 carries including a 1-yard touchdown plunge. He jitterbugged in and out of traffic on a 16-yard TD run late in the third quarter that was called back by a holding call.
Trever Robinson, a seldom used fullback, waited five years to see much playing time on offense. But he caught his first career pass and it also went for a TD in the fourth quarter.
Youngstown State, coming off a final-four appearance in the I-AA playoffs last season, didn't wilt before a crowd of 105,038 at Ohio Stadium - the largest ever to see the Penguins play.
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