Buckeye fans could not have asked for anything more on Saturday. Scarlet and Gray Nation first got to see the basketball Buckeyes put on a defensive show, defeating Samford 59-22, and later capped off their day by watching Oregon defeat Oregon State 65-38 in the Civil War, to keep OSU’s BCS dreams alive. It was a great day to be a Buckeye and here are some notes from each part of the day.

Basketball

When you give up 6 points in a half of basketball you know you are doing something right. The Buckeyes put forth another solid defensive effort, and once again spread the wealth across the board on the offensive side of the ball to defeat the Samford Bulldogs 59-22 in front of 13,000+ fans at Value City Arena. Evan Turner lead the Buckeyes with 16 points, 4 assists, and a career high 13 rebounds, as Dallas Lauderdale added 10 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 blocks in the victory.Heralded freshman BJ Mullens came off the bench once agai, tallying 8 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals in 18 minutes of play. Mullens is clearly being eased into the college game, but the Bucks are going to need him against a very tough Miami (FL) squad on Tuesday night in Coral Gables. The game against the Hurricanes is the first of a tough three game stretch that also includes Notre Dame (Dec. 6, 4 p.m., Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis) and Butler (Dec. 13, 12 p.m., Value City Arena).

Football

The Oregon State Beavers gave the Buckeyes BCS hope, as the Oregon Rushing attack was too much for Mike Riley’s squad. Jeremiah Johnson (17-219-1) and LeGarrette Blount (17-112-1) lead the ground attack, and QB Jeremiah Masoli (11/17-274-3 TD passing; 12-53-1 rushing) lead the Ducks through the air, en route to a 65-38 rout of their in-state rivals. The Oregon win puts USC atop the Pac-10 standings, and a win against UCLA next week will lock the league title up for the Trojans, sending them to Pasadena to face-off against Penn State on New Year’s Day. The Trojans advance to the Rose Bowl, also opens up the last at-large spot in the BCS for Ohio State (10-2, 7-1) or Boise State (12-0, 8-0 WAC). Boise State was ranked #9 in the nation coming into their Friday night game against Fresno State, which saw a close first half turn into a 61-10 Broncos rout. Boise State would normally recieve an automatic bid for being in the top 12 of the BCS standings, but Utah Stands ahead of the Broncos, ranked at #6 in the BCS polls. The Broncos certainly have a good case to get in, marking the first time two non-BCS teams would play in BCS games, but the Buckeyes will plead a case of their own. Ohio State is 10-2 overall, with their only losses coming to the Rose Bowl participants in USC and Penn State. The Buckeyes are co-Big Ten champions, and are 8-1 since Terrelle Pryor has become the starting quarter back. More importantly, the Buckeyes are one of the best traveling teams in the country, and with money being a big target, become a likely candidate for the last at-large spot. While both the Broncos and the Buckeyes will try to state their case for playing in either (most likely) the Sugar Bowl or Fiesta Bowl, all either team can do is wait till next Sunday, when the BCS selections will be made. Could there be any more reasons to have a playoff in College Football?