Coach Jim Tressel yesterday said fifth-year senior Roy Hall is expected to play for the first time this season Saturday against Cincinnati after sitting out two games because of a high ankle sprain.
"Roy really looked good this week, I was really pleased with the way he played today especially," Tressel said. "And with another 48 hours, I'd like to think that Roy can give us some time."
"I don't know that Roy can go that much," he said. "He could be in there in the (four- and five-wide formations). I don't know that it would be fair to him to have him play 40 plays, but maybe if he could get a dozen or 15 plays, that would be great."
Quarterbacks coach Joe Daniels, already fighting kidney cancer, suffered another blow when his mother, Carmella, died Wednesday morning in Pittsburgh.
"He's doing fine and he hasn't missed anything for physical reasons," Tressel said, "but when you lose your mom, sometimes that's even more difficult. I'm sure it's going to be a very difficult weekend, because the services are Sunday (and) Monday."
In the coaches' weekly evaluation report on officials that is sent to the Big Ten office, Tressel said Ohio State sought a clarification of the roughingthe-passer penalty on Jay Richardson that kept alive Texas' only touchdown drive in OSU's 24-7 win. But Tressel said "really, there is no clarification" needed.
Referee Bill LeMonnier, a Big Ten official, made a judgment call because "he thought he was protecting the quarterback," Tressel said. "I didn't think so at the time; I don't think any differently now. But I'd rather have guys err on the side of safe than I would the opposite happen and all of a sudden there's an injury."
Quarterback Troy Smith has not thrown an interception since the first quarter of the Northwestern game on Nov. 12, 2005, a streak of 121 passes and more than four games.
This is cache, read story here