Fickell wary of taking young team into Miami

Ohio State's Chris Fields and coach Luke Fickell hug after beating Toledo 27-22 last weekend.

COLUMBUS – No. 17 ranked Ohio State faces its first road trip of the season this week, and head coach Luke Fickell is concerned about how his very young team will handle all of the distractions involved with the nationally televised game at Miami on Saturday night.

Speaking at his weekly news conference here on Tuesday, the first-year Buckeyes’ boss said he won’t change the travel format much from what his predecessor Jim Tressel used, but the inexperience on the team remains an issue.

“When we go on the road, we talk to them about having great focus,” Fickell said. “There’s a lot that’s different about playing on the road and a number of these guys haven’t done this before, but we have to stay focused on the job we are there to do. It’s critical that we do that.”

Due to graduation losses, multiple suspensions and injuries, Ohio State has played a dozen true freshmen in its first two games this season, and had 11 players make the first starts of their career in the season-opener against Akron. Among FBS programs, only Texas and Auburn have played more true freshmen.