Eastern faces huge challenge in OSU

Ron English is trying to slowly rebuild Eastern Michigan's program.

Maybe doing it in front of 105,000 screaming fans while playing the No. 2 team in the country isn't exactly the best place.

English is 0-15 as the Eagles' coach coming into Saturday's game at Ohio State. But he refuses to buckle under to the pressure and negativity, and he continues to seek out even the smallest of baby steps from his team.

''I can't get frustrated with this. You know, I like to win, too,'' he said this week during preparations for a game in which his team is a 44 1/2-point underdog. ''I don't like losing, and it's been a long time since I've been associated with a program that's been losing. But I have to understand that this is a big-picture deal that we're working on here.''

The stakes and the resources are dramatically different for both programs. But both coaches are working to make their teams better for future tests.

''I think they're doing all the right things, but unfortunately in this game things don't happen overnight,'' Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said of the task facing English, a former Michigan assistant coach. ''But I think they are making incremental improvement. And the beauty of it is, as we talk to our guys, the only way we're going to become as good as we want to become is if we make incremental improvement. And we'll find out Saturday if we do.''

It's hard to believe both teams have even that in common. Eastern Michigan (0-3) is giving up 37 points and 414 yards per game, although it had a distinct chance of winning its first two games (a 31-27 loss to Army and a 28-21 setback to Miami of Ohio).

Ohio State, winning by an average score of 41-13 and with Heisman candidate Terrelle Pryor at the controls, provides an almost insurmountable challenge for a struggling team.

''What we have to do as a staff and as a program is to understand that we can't waste time,'' English said. ''See, if we go out there and we just totally lose our minds and we don't do what we're coached to do, and we don't give great effort, then it'll be a waste of a day. That's not what we want to do. What we want to do is continue to build our program and we want to play as hard as we can, but moreso we want to do things the right way. And improve. That to me is the most important thing.''

While the Eagles are reconstructing a team from the ground up, the Buckeyes (3-0) are fine-tuning things before opening Big Ten play next week at Illinois.

''We want to get better,'' defensive back Tyler Moeller said. ''We want to come out with the fire and play our best.''

The Buckeyes plan on concentrating on themselves.

''I'm pretty sure we were a big favorite last week,'' tight end Jake Stoneburner said of the 43-7 victory over 30-point underdog Ohio University on Saturday. ''We just have to take one team at a time, study just as hard, practice just as hard, work just as hard and go out on the field and play like you're playing a Miami of Florida. Just play how you know how to play.''

Between 1986 and 1990, when the Eagles were Division I-A and Tressel was coaching at I-AA Youngstown State, Eastern Michigan won four of five meetings.

Tressel, who usually pleads ignorance when it comes to memories of past games, gave a vivid description of two of the losses. It's clear that he remembers those defeats - along with the 1990 victory when ''we spanked them,'' he said with a laugh.

When Saturday's game is over, Eastern will head back to Ypsilanti, Mich., with an $850,000 check which will help the bottom line of its athletic department.

English will be left with the task of looking for positives.

''It's an opportunity for us to improve; that's how we have to look at it,'' English said. ''And the one thing you'll see our coaches do, we'll be coaching every snap on that sideline. We won't be taking plays off. And hopefully the players receive that coaching and continue to get better.''