A running notebook for the Fiesta Bowl between Ohio State and Texas:

8 p.m. - Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer add nothing to FOX's pregame show. Former Ohio State tailback Eddie George looks like a rocket scientist compared to Switzer.

8:10 - The Texas marching band is warming up the crowd for Ohio State's marching band. That's like the Jonas Brothers opening for The Who.

8:18 - Jim Tressel wasn't just blowing smoke. First play from scrimmage and Todd Boeckman is at quarterback and Terrelle Pryor is split wide.

8:30 - Alex Boone is getting abused by Texas defensive end Brian Orakpo.

8:35 - Aaron Pettrey hits from 51 yards. Ohio State 3, Texas 0. The Buckeyes also led against Florida two years ago and LSU last season. Just thought I'd point that out.

8:49 - Chris "Beanie" Wells is looking good, with two runs of 20-plus yards thus far. He looks like a top-15 NFL draft pick. I don't care about his injury history. He'd look good in a Cleveland Browns uniform. The Minnesota Vikings drafted a guy named Adrian Peterson who had a history of injuries, and that seems to have worked out well for them.

8:51 - Why is Pryor running out of bounds with another five or 10 yards of running room available? I like the call of a QB draw on third-and-9, but Pryor ducked out of bounds with nobody near him.

8:54 - Another field-goal attempt. Maybe the punt has some competition as the most important play in Tressel's football world.

8:59 - FOX's announcing team is stunned at the 3-0 score after one quarter. And why shouldn't they be? Tressel Ball hasn't really been a factor in big games the last couple of years.

9:03 - Wow. Did Tressel call that play for Texas? Colt McCoy throws underneath to his tight end on third-and-goal to set up a field-goal attempt. This is the explosive Texas offense?

9:04 - It's tied at 3. This isn't what FOX needed. It's also not what the Longhorns needed to make the case they should be in Miami this week to play the Florida Gators.

9:06 - Texas has one rushing yard. I think this is playing into Ohio State's hands. If the Buckeyes' defenders don't have to worry about the run, they can just come after McCoy.

9:10 - Pryor to Wells for 20 yards on a screen. I didn't like the look of that pass, but nobody from Texas was there to get it.

9:14 - First sighting of Daniel "Boom" Herron.

9:15 - Pryor avoids a sack, escapes to the outside and nearly gets a first down inside the 10. That's why Boeckman lost the starting job a month into the season.

9:18 - Bryant Browning gets a false-start flag. Look for a field-goal attempt. Field goals aren't going to win the game.

9:20 - Ryan Pretorius makes a short field goal. Should have been a touchdown. The Buckeyes could end up regretting that.

9:23 - Great, another set of commercials. If I see that DirecTV spot with Hellboy sitting in on an office meeting, I'm throwing the first thing I can grab through the screen.

9:24 - Hubbard High School graduate Shaun Lane drills the Texas kickoff return man, but is down on the field and hurt.

9:27 - Medics are putting Lane on a stretcher and moving him to a cart. This doesn't look good. Let's hope it's just a precautionary move.

9:30 - After several minutes down on the field, Lane gives a thumbs-up as he is carted off. That's a good sign.

9:32 - Back-to-back completions by McCoy, under zero pressure. Ohio State better bring some soon.

9:37 - Thaddeus Gibson throws down McCoy for a sack on fourth-and-seven. That's the pressure defensive coordinator Jim Heacock needs to get on the Longhorns to keep their passing game out of sync.

9:40 - What in the world ever happened to Brandon Saine?

9:41 - Third-and-10 and Pryor misses Brandon Smith with 1:03 to play in the first half. Punt coming. The Buckeyes didn't want to give the ball back to the Longhorns with just under a minute to play in the half.

9:43 - Personal foul on Gibson. Now that's the kind of Ohio State penalty we've become accustomed to in big games.

9:47 - Gibson pressures McCoy from the right side and the Texas quarterback throws an awful interception to Anderson Russell. Not sure McCoy even saw Gibson coming. It looked like he just short-armed the throw. Bad decision, and Ohio State takes a 6-3 lead into halftime.

9:49 - Nobody saw that first half coming, but why not? Ohio State hasn't done anything it doesn't usually do, with the exception of putting Pryor and Boeckman on the field at the same time. Lots of Wells running and a physical defense that is at its best it can bring pressure. The game plan has worked. Texas uses the short pass as a substitute for a consistent running game, and if the Longhorns can't protect McCoy, it's difficult to sustain drives.

9:53 - Switzer was as surprised as I was at McCoy's interception. He's right. After seeing it several times, that might be the worst pass I've seen all season.

10:10 - FOX's Laura Okmin provides some good news about Lane.

10:11 - Okmin, working the Ohio State sideline, wears almost as much makeup as Zac Efron.

10:14 - Looks like Texas is trying to establish the run more than it did in the second half.

10:15 - FOX seems to like Pryor's running ability, but McCoy just showed he can tuck it and run, too.

10:16 - Ohio State is suddenly thin at cornerback. Lane is in the hospital and now Donald Washington has been shaken up and is off the field. Time to quickly clone Malcolm Jenkins.

10:23 - Another personal foul on Gibson for using his helmet on McCoy. Replays show the call was a mistake, but it sets up Texas inside Ohio State's 20, and the Longhorns quarterback runs for a touchdown on the next play. Texas leads, 10-6.

10:25 - Let's see what the Buckeyes' offense can do when it has to play from behind.

10:31 - Three-and-out, Ohio State was not very imaginitive in doing so. If the Buckeyes thought they were going to beat Texas without a passing game, they were sadly mistaken.

10:36 - Hey, the officials got one right, flagging McCoy for intentional grounding as he was being dragged down by Rob Rose and Nathan Williams.

10:37 - Back-to-back big plays by Williams, a freshman defensive end, and Ohio State forces a punt.

10:38 - A Ray Small sighting, finally. It wouldn't be a bad idea to use the speedy Small as a receiver at some point tonight.

10:41 - A Dane Sanzenbacher sighting, and Pryor overthrows him. Wow. Pryor's passing actually seems to have regressed since the end of the regular season. Another three-and-out, despite starting at midfield. The Buckeyes look like they're running the Cleveland Browns' offense. Ohio State hasn't established Wells at all this half.

10:45 - Defensive breakdown. Jordan Shipley is wide open for a long gain. Texas is driving again.

10:47 - First-and-goal for the Longhorns. The Buckeyes' defense is tired, between Texas' hurry-up offense and Ohio State's anemic offense being unable to sustain a drive.

10:48 - Touchdown Texas. It's 17-7 and the way the Buckeyes are (not) moving the ball, that might be more than enough.

10:50 - Forget "The Real McCoy." The Longhorns are winning because of the "The Cosby Show." Quan Cosby has 10 receptions, including Texas' last touchdown.

10:51 - Anyone else notice that none of Pryor's teammates on the sideline moved to catch him as he he was shoved out of bounds on a keeper? Just another thing that makes you say, "Hmmmmmm."

10:55 - Boeckman escapes the rush and throws a rocket to Brian Robiskie, who made a diving catch in Texas territory. Is that the Buckeyes' first first down of the second half?

10:57 - Pryor throws back-to-back incompletions (including a near-interception) and the Buckeyes have to settle for another Pettrey field goal, cutting the deficit to eight, 17-9.

11:05 - Jenkins just crushed McCoy. That will leave a mark. That's one reason Jenkins will be a top-10 NFL pick.

11:09 - Buckeyes dodge a bullet when McCoy throws deep and misses a wide-open Malcolm Williams inside the 5.

11:10 - Ohio State forces a punt. What is with the Texas punter? It's like watching Australian Rules Football.

11:13 - Strange-looking completion from Pryor to Robiskie, but after review, the catch is confirmed. Nice play by Robiskie.

11:15 - Wells is out after taking a shot to head. Not good.

11:17 - A couple of nice keepers by Pryor, followed by Maurice Wells doing what he does best ... getting dropped for a loss.

11:19 - Pass interference on Texas, followed by an unsportsmanlike conduct on the Longhorns. First-and-goal Ohio State, and Mack Brown's head just exploded.

11:20 - Fade route, Boeckman to Pryor. Touchdown. Nice call, especially by FOX's Ryan, who actually called for the fade to Pryor as the Buckeyes lined up. Two-point conversion, however, fails. Texas leads, 17-15, with 7:26 to play.

11:26 - Three-and-out for Texas, and less than a minute ticks off the clock. That's why you have to have a running game. It didn't even look like the Longhorns were trying to get a first down.

11:29 - Nice "down-hill" run by Herron for a first down. I like the way Herron hits the holes.

11:29 - Pryor bobbles a snap and Herron recovers the fumble.

11:30 - Boeckman to tight end Greg Ballard for 21 yards and a first down in Texas territory.

11:31 - Boeckman drilled, but hits Robiskie for a big gain to the Longhorns' 23.

11:32 - Earl Thomas tackles Herron by a shoestring to prevent a touchdown. Not for long. Herron finds a hole on the next play and bursts through for the go-ahead touchdown with 2:05 to play. Ohio State fans are going to see a lot of that over the next few years.

11:33 - Did the Buckeyes score too quickly?

11:34 - Offsetting pass-interference calls on the two-point conversion negates Pryor's catch. Rory Nicol then drops a two-point conversion pass from Pryor.

11:37 - Let's see if McCoy has a little Vince Young in him, or if Ohio State's defense can make one last stop.

11:41 - Rose just dropped a game-clinching interception. Ugh.

11:42 - A completion on fourth-and-4 and a measurement. The Buckeyes' sideline is hot about the spot. ... First down, Texas.

11:43 - A challenge of the spot, but the call is confirmed and Ohio State loses a timeout with 38 seconds to play.

11:46 - Slant to Cosby, missed tackle by Russell and nobody is home deep. Touchdown, Longhorns, with 16 seconds to play. Texas, 24-21. Not sure the celebration penalty will matter.

11:50 - Eleven seconds to play. Boeckman sacked. Timeout. Time for one last heave or maybe some laterals before the Longhorns win it.

11:52 - Boeckman throws deep, and his final college pass falls incomplete. Game over.

11:52 - It won't be any consolation to the Buckeyes, but at least it was a good game this time.

epuskas@tribtoday.com