COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State is listed among the top 15 teams in the nation in most preseason polls and there's a swagger to the Buckeyes' walk.

        Quarterback Craig Krenzel even says, “We expect nothing less than a 14-win season.”

BUCKS

Ohio St Recruits     Player, position, ht, wt, school, hometown     Bobby Carpenter, lb, 6-3, 238, Lancaster (Ohio) HS     Maurice Clarett, rb, 6-0, 230, Harding HS, Warren, Ohio     R.J. Coleman, te, 6-5, 240, Clarksburg (W.Va.) HS     Mike D'Andrea, lb, 6-3, 240, Avon Lake (Ohio) HS     Doug Datish, ol, 6-5, 285, Howland HS, Warren, Ohio     T.J. Downing, ol, 6-5, 285, GlenOak HS, Canton, Ohio     Tyler Everett, db, 6-1, 185, McKinley HS, Canton, Ohio     Roy Hall, wr, 6-3, 210, Brush HS, Lyndhurst, Ohio     A.J. Hawk, lb, 6-2, 230, Centerville (Ohio) HS     Santonio Holmes, wr, 6-2, 170, Central HS, Belle Glade, Fla.     Mike Kudla, de, 6-4, 235, Highland HS, Medina, Ohio     Nick Mangold, ol, 6-4, 265, Alter HS, Kettering, Ohio     Brandon Mitchell, db, 6-3, 190, Mays HS, Atlanta, Ga.     Derek Morris, ol, 6-6, 350, N. Mecklenburg HS, Huntersville, N.C.     Joel Penton, de, 6-5, 235, Van Wert (Ohio) HS     Quinn Pitcock, dl, 6-4, 285, Piqua (Ohio) HS     Jay Richardson, de, 6-5, 245, Scioto HS, Dublin, Ohio     Michael Roberts, db, 5-11, 175, Scarborough Thunder HS, Toronto, Ont.     Nate Salley, db, 6-3, 180, Aquinas HS, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.     Tim Schafer, de, 6-5, 250, Upper Arlington (Ohio) HS     Rob Sims, ol, 6-4, 290, Nordonia HS, Macedonia, Ohio     Troy Smith, qb, 6-1, 200, Glenville HS, Cleveland, Ohio     E.J. Underwood, db, 6-1, 175, Hamilton (Ohio) HS     Stan White Jr., lb, 6-3, 225, Gilman HS, Baltimore, Md.     Justin Zwick, qb, 6-4, 215, Washington HS, Massillon, Ohio     2002 SCHEDULE     Aug. 24 Texas Tech (Pigskin Classic), 2:30     Sept. 7 Kent St., 12:10     Sept. 14 Washington St., 3:30     Sept. 21 at Cincinnati, 3:30     Sept. 28 Indiana (BT), TBA     Oct. 5 at Northwestern (BT), 7     Oct. 12 San Jose St., 12:10     Oct. 19 at Wisconsin (BT), TBA     Oct. 26 Penn St. (BT), TBA     Nov. 2 Minnesota (BT), TBA     Nov. 9 at Purdue (BT), TBA     Nov. 16 at Illinois (BT), TBA     Nov. 23 Michigan (BT), 12:15

        The sticking point is that Ohio State was just another good but hardly great team a year ago when it went 7-5, finished third in the Big Ten and lost to South Carolina for the second year in a row in the Outback Bowl.

        Almost predicting the runaway expectations, the forecast in the team's media guide is headlined, “More Than Meets The Eye.”

        Make no mistake, the Buckeyes should be good — perhaps substantially better — than they were a year ago. But there remain numerous questions to be answered and numerous holes to fill in Jim Tressel's second year in charge.

        Tressel isn't misled by the lofty rankings.

        “Who knows? A month from now, those are going to be long forgotten and what's going to be important is what's going on at that point in time,” he said. “To be honest with you, I think it's just respect for Ohio State. I don't think it's what any of us have done.”

        The Buckeyes graduated four of their top five rushers including a tailback (Jonathan Wells) who gained more than every other running back combined. They also lost three-year starters at quarterback (Steve Bellisari) and fullback (Jamar Martin), three starters on the offensive line and the defense's emotional leader (linebacker Joe Cooper) along with two cornerbacks.

        Freshmen Lydell Ross (419 yards rushing), Maurice Hall (the team's top kick returner) and redshirt freshman JaJa Riley will split time replacing Wells. Wrecking ball-shaped freshman Maurice Clarett also will be in the mix.

        Krenzel got a shot at starting against Michigan — with Bellisari sidelined by a drunken driving charge — and produced Ohio State's third win in the last 14 years against the archrival Wolverines.

        Krenzel continues to battle with junior classmate Scott McMullen for the starting job, although the Michigan native has taken the majority of plays with the first offensive unit this August.

        There had been speculation that incoming freshman Justin Zwick — the Buckeyes' most acclaimed quarterback recruit since Art Schlichter in 1979 — might step right in as the starter. Then Zwick had two awful all-star games this summer, completing just 17-of-58 passes, and now his head is spinning trying to adjust to the speed, sets and decision-making at the college level.

        The receiving tandem of Michael Jenkins (49 catches, 988 yards) and Chris Vance (34 for 605) should ease the transition at quarterback.

        The line is an ongoing problem, although Ivan Douglas is back after missing all last season with a blood clot in his lung. Several candidates will fill the gap left by Cooper's departure. Dustin Fox had a good year as a freshman safety and moves up to the corner where he will be joined on the front line by Richard McNutt.

        Tressel dismisses questions about who's No. 1 on the depth chart.

        “We don't need a No. 1 guy, we need a number of guys good enough to help us win,” he said. “While I think we have lots of talent, we have very little experience.”

        Ohio State's defense should be solid, with blocks of granite up front such as Darrion Scott, Tim Anderson, Kenny Peterson and Will Smith. Matt Wilhelm is a dependable, hard-nosed linebacker. The secondary might have new cornerbacks, but the safeties are familiar faces: two-time All-American Michael Doss and Donnie Nickey.

        “We just have to go out and make sure our team is ready to play as a unit,” said Doss, who passed up a chance to turn pro to return for his final season. “Hopefully at the end of the season the Buckeyes will earn a ring.”

        If kickers Mike Nugent and Josh Huston are better, the Buckeyes' record could be dramatically improved. They hit just 10-of-24 field goals last season, including 5-of-17 longer than 29 yards.

        Ohio State lost three games in 2001 that it led going into the fourth quarter and dropped two others by a total of 10 points.

        “We were winning those games but we just didn't finish them at the end,” said Smith, a defensive end who had four sacks a year ago.

        This season the Buckeyes are scheduled to play 14 games, beginning with the Pigskin Classic at home against Texas Tech on Aug. 24. They don't get a Saturday off from Sept. 7 through Nov. 23, meaning Tressel and his staff will be juggling players all season to keep them fresh and healthy.

        Eight games are at comfy Ohio Stadium, where more than 100,000 fans will be on hand to back the Buckeyes win or, well, win.

        Krenzel is an honors student in molecular genetics. Against Michigan, he was just as smart, picking his spots and taking no chances as the Buckeyes pulled off a 26-20 shocker in the Big House.

        There might be question marks swirling around the team, but he's absolutely certain those predicting big things for the Buckeyes aren't out of line.

        “Actually, we have quite the opposite attitude,” he said. “I don't think there's anybody in the city, in the state or in the country for that matter who expects more out of us than we do. We know we have a tremendous amount of talent. We know if we put it all together we're going to have a great year.”