Football
Buckeyes Hit The Road to Bloomington, Literally
By John Porentas
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The Buckeyes will be on the road at Indiana this week, and to get there, they will literally take to the road. OSU will bus over to Bloomington from Columbus on Friday afternoon.
"We just bus there and fly home. It's a conference policy. It's not really a rule. We don't get a penalty if you don't do it. It's a financial issue. We've got 36 sports here and every dime is important," said OSU Head Coach Jim Tressel.
"Michigan and Michigan State we have to bus both ways. Purdue, Indiana, Illinois I think we bus one way and fly home. The rest we fly both ways," Tressel said.
The bus trip should take between three and four hours, and the Buckeyes will occupy their time in various ways as they watch the white lines go by. Having to kill time is just one of the downsides of riding a bus, especially for offensive linemen.
"I'm not a big fan of sitting on a bus because of my size," said center Nick Mangold.
"It's not the most accommodating position. It's part of being on the road," Mangold said.
Fortunately for big men like Mangold, certain allowances are made for big guys when the Buckeyes take to the bus.
"We split it up enough that we have our own seats, otherwise I would feel real horrible for the person next to me," Mangold said.
"I personally don't like buses because I get motion sick," said sophomore starting wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez. "I bring dramamine," Gonzalez said.
Once the comfort and stomach acid levels are under control, the Buckeyes then concentrate on whiling away the miles.
"I usually study. I'm a nerd, I usually study or read," said Gonzales.
"A lot of guys have music, I'm not a big music guy. I'll watch whatever movie they have on. Sometimes I bring my computer and watch my own movie," said Gonzalez.
Movies are the pastime of choice for most of the Buckeyes.
"Actually it's an opportunity to watch some movies," said Mangold.
"We don't get a lot of time to watch movies, so when you have to sit on a bus, it gives you an opportunity to watch it," Mangold said.
Contrary to popular belief, the movies are not chosen for inspiration, but for entertainment.
"I don't ever really use a movie to get excited. I just watch movies for the excitement value of their own," said Mangold.
Mangold did add that at one point in his football career, movies were a part of his pregame preparation.
"If I had to pick a good pregame move, and I did this in high school, I watched The Program before every game. That was a good" pump-you-up" video," Mangold said.
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