The glow you see emanating from the entire state of Ohio today is the glow of state pride that has not yet begun to wane following OSU's convincing win over Texas last Saturday. The euphoria over the win rivals that of the Fiesta Bowl win following the 2002 season. There's a reason for that. Great wins are defined by the opponent, and a win over a great opponent like Texas deserves that kind of euphoria.

The Buckeye faithful who traveled to Austin for the game had a great time there whether they actually got into the stadium or not. The fact that their team won the game certainly made the trip more pleasant for them, but credit has to be given to the University of Texas and their fans as well for making the trip memorable. Texas fans, it seems, are just as great as the Texas football team and Texas tradition of sports excellence in all sports. A poster on the-Ozone Fan Forum posted the following about his experience.

"Nicest, most hospitable, and most well-educated football fans I've ever met. The orange clad faithful cheered to the bitter end, most of them stayed 'till their band played the last song. They commented on how great our punting was, and mentioned more than once how badly Tress outcoached Mack. Oh, and I don't know what they're putting in the water...no contest, TX girls the purtiest I've ever seen! Go Bucks!!"

"Feel free to share with your readers that the UT fans were exceptional hosts the entire time I was there -- before the game, during the game and after the game. We hosted a number of their fans at our tailgate last year, and they had a great time -- returning the hospitality in big Texas fashion this year. I was disappointed to hear complaints of mistreatment of UT fans in Columbus last year, although I didn't personally observe any. For my part, Austin is a great football town, with classy, courteous and friendly fans all around. Instead of any derogatory comments for wearing my OSU shirts, people on Sunday game, would give an unbidden handshake, congratulations and "good luck."

Mark Hagans

Still another Fan Forum poster said the following.

"Funniest thing that happened to me Sat. night in Austin. I was sitting in the upper deck, about the 40 yd. line, surrounded by Horn fans (to a person, all nice folks).

There was somebody about two rows behind me who kept me laughing to myself all night long. Don't know who it was because I never turned around to look or comment.

From the first play that Teddy touched the ball, the big play on the crossing pattern, this guy would sound would suddenly launch into a prayer, "Oh God! Oh God! Oh God!"

Punt to Teddy: "Oh God! Oh God! Oh God!"
Kickoff to Teddy: "Oh God! Oh God! Oh God!"
Pass to Teddy: "Oh God! Oh God! Oh God!"

Aside from the win, it was the best entertainment I had all night. Fair to say his many and fervent prayers were NOT answered. I think Woody was manning the comm center Saturday night :-)"

The-Ozone has never before publicly recognized a fan base for their hospitality, but in this case, the need seems to do so is totally overwhelming.

Our observation is that the Texas fans were tremendous even while swallowing the bitter pill of defeat. We wish the Texas vs. Ohio State series could continue, not just for the great football it has produced, but for the opportunity of two great fan bases to interact and share great games and great rivalry.

The only negative thing we could say about the entire Texas experience is the attitude of the University of Texas toward Web Publishers. Their media credential criteria are nearly medieval and frankly prejudiced.

The University of Texas refuses to credential any Web Publication simply on the basis that it is a Web Publication. They do not take into account the quality of reporting, circulation, longevity of publication, or anything else. If you are a Web Publication, you are persona non grata at the University of Texas. It is a policy which denies the 21st century reality that 1) people do get their sports information now on the Web and 2) not everyone publishing on the web is an amateur.

While the-Ozone.net was able to cover the game, we were forced to do so as the representatives of our friends at The Akron Beacon Journal, The Ohio State Lantern, The Other Paper, and Columbus Monthly. In case you wondered why photographer Jim Davidson missed Ted Ginn's first-half ending touchdown, it was because he was sending photos to the ABJ just before the end of the half to meet their publishing deadline as we had agreed to do. We have absolutely no ax to grind with the ABJ. We understand their publishing deadlines and agreed to meet them, but the fact that we were not credentialed under our own name cost you, our readers, the opportunity to see photos of that play.

The fact that a daily publication that reaches 160,000 unique individuals every month with all-original content should be denied its own media access, a publication that is routinely credentialed by every Big Ten institution, by Bowl games, and by every other school on any OSU sports schedule, is a black eye for the University of Texas sports community. It is discrimination based simply of where we publish, and no other reason. Not once did they ask how many people we reach, what we publish, or how long we have been in business. They simply discriminated against us because of where we publish. While their official denial cited "space considerations", their printed policy specifically excludes Web Publishers access. The fact is that many Ohio publications that did not meet their printed criteria were granted access simply because they are "mainstream". They may as well have simply asked our religion, ethnicity or skin color and then barred us. The attitude is that prejudiced and backward.

UT, you have great football team, great fans, great tradition, and the-Ozone.net would love to see the University of Texas on any OSU sports schedule. Now you need to get your sports information policies up to that level of excellence as well. It's time.