Thursday, September 16, 1999
Rambo, Germany catching on
UCLA game breakthrough for receivers
BY SCOTT MacGREGOR
The Cincinnati Enquirer
COLUMBUS — Ken-Yon Rambo may not be a Madonna fan. But his favorite way to explain the breakout performance of Ohio State's wide receivers against UCLA is straight out of the material girl's songbook: “Express Yourself.”
Rambo, a junior criticized heavily after the first game, caught eight balls for 61 yards and two touchdowns in the first big game of his career as Ohio State beat UCLA 42-20 last Saturday. Junior Reggie Germany caught seven passes for 115 yards, including a jump ball that set up OSU's first touchdown under Steve Bellisari.
“We expressed ourselves, showed what we can do. I wanted to give them a little taste of what I can do,” said Rambo, who started his second career game for 13th-ranked Ohio State. “We can reload. Dee (Miller) and David (Boston) left, and we need to pick up the slack.”
Boston, the school's all-time leader in receptions and yards, and Miller are now in the NFL, and after two years of hearing of their speed and potential, Rambo and Germany were eager to step in as starters. The expectations were high despite the two having only 27 combined catches entering the season.
Then came their performance against Miami in a season-opening loss, in which they combined for just five catches — just one for one yard by Rambo, one of the Big Ten's fastest receivers.
Part of it was having two new quarterbacks and part a porous offensive line, but coach John Cooper said the receivers could have run better routes, and their doubters only grew more vocal.
“I really wasn't able to express myself (in the first game),” Rambo said.
But last Saturday, both Rambo and Germany busted out to make big plays, catching both the important long strikes and mid-range routes that were crucial to Bellisari's emergence at quarterback. A pattern held true through the night, with Germany acting as Bellisari's favorite deep threat and Rambo adept at catching sideline routes. “We gained some confidence,” Rambo said.
The most impressive catch was probably Germany's 39-yard jump ball. That might have been the key play of the game, because it established Bellisari's confidence — and the long-ball threat — before he went on to direct five scoring drives. Germany had to outjump the defender to haul it in.
“They gave us the opportunity to make plays,” Germany said. “You always hear, "The great receivers here have to make plays.' We just wanted the opportunity to display our talents.”
Expect a similar pattern this week against Ohio University (0-2) as the Buckeyes (1-1) try to blow the game open early against a weaker foe.
Cooper wasn't surprised, either by his team's performance or that of his receivers against UCLA.
“It reinforced our thinking about some of these players,” Cooper said. “We thought Reggie and Ken-Yon would do that. Looking back, I'm disappointed we didn't get them more balls in that first ballgame.”
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