Buckeyes Must Sit and Wait : Big Ten: After 28-0 loss to Michigan ruins unbeaten season, Ohio State will play in Rose Bowl only if Wisconsin loses to Michigan State on Dec. 4 in Tokyo.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The door to the Ohio State locker room was slightly open, as if it mattered. So quiet were the Buckeyes after Saturday’s 28-0 loss to Michigan that you could have heard a rose petal drop.

“That’s one of the most embarrassing games I think I’ve ever been associated with since I’ve been coaching college football,” Ohio State Coach John Cooper said.

Why quibble? Buckeye followers won’t.

All they will see is another Michigan victory and the first shutout in the heated series since 1976. They will see an undefeated season gone sour and a chance to control their Rose Bowl destiny lost for good.

And as usual, they will see Cooper’s record against Michigan neatly detailed for ridicule. Since coming to Columbus in 1988, he has yet to beat the hated Wolverines. Six tries, zero victories.

“Yeah, I’m shocked,” Cooper said. “If you told me they were going to beat us, 28-0, I’d probably have stayed home.”

About the only thing that could ease the Buckeyes’ pain is a Rose Bowl victory. But after Saturday’s loss to the Wolverines (7-4), Ohio State has been reduced to anxious spectator. Their regular season complete, the Buckeyes (9-1-1) now must become Michigan State cheerleaders.

Somehow--and you can blame the Big Ten Conference athletic directors for approving the schedule change--the matchup for the granddaddy of them all will be determined in that football hotbed, Tokyo. If Wisconsin beats Michigan State there Dec. 4, the Badgers go to the Rose Bowl. If not, Ohio State uses the servants’ entrance to Pasadena.

“If we play like we did (Saturday),” said Ohio State defensive tackle Dan (Big Daddy) Wilkinson, “we don’t deserve to be in the Rose Bowl. I hope Wisconsin wins. Let them go to the Rose Bowl.”

Wilkinson might want to keep that to himself. After all, you don’t want to give anyone any bright ideas, especially the Badgers, who were considered Pasadena longshots after tying the Buckeyes this month.

Ohio State only has itself to blame. It saved its worst game for last and Michigan, which has struggled much of the season, took advantage of every mistake.

Ohio State quarterbacks--the tag team of starter Bob Hoying and replacement Bret Powers--threw four interceptions, two of which later resulted in Michigan touchdowns. They were sacked four times. They were a combined 14 of 30 for a hardly noticeable 154 yards and nothing close to a score.

“We’re still (Big Ten) co-champs,” Powers said weakly.

Maybe so, but hardly anyone will notice if the Buckeyes finish in the Citrus Bowl or the Holiday Bowl. Instead, people will remember the Michigan game and every ugly Buckeye detail.

“They really didn’t do anything we hadn’t seen,” said Bill Young, Ohio State’s defensive coordinator. “That’s the shame of it.”

Michigan, led by Tyrone Wheatley and Ed Davis, rushed for 281 yards. Ohio State had 58. Michigan converted nearly 44% of its third-down attempts. Ohio State couldn’t complete 17% of its tries. Michigan kept the ball for 36 minutes. Ohio State could do no better than 24 minutes of possession, and never ventured deeper than the Wolverines’ 23-yard line.

“We wanted our respect,” said Michigan Coach Gary Moeller, a former Ohio State captain.

By the end of the first quarter, Michigan led, 7-0. The Wolverines added 14 points in the second quarter and seven more in the third. After that, the NCAA-record crowd of 106,867 assembled at Michigan Stadium seemed to lose interest.

Ohio State certainly did.

“It kind of got to the point where I didn’t . . . you know . . . “ Buckeye tackle Korey Stringer said.

Care?

“You have to accept reality sometimes,” he said.

The reality is this: An Ohio State senior class went its entire stay without knowing how it felt to beat Michigan. It is a distinction they could do without.

“I wish we could play it again tomorrow,” Buckeye linebacker Mark Williams said.

So does Michigan. A few more games like this and the Wolverines could have found themselves back in familiar surroundings, such as the top 10. Or as Cooper said: “If (the Wolverines) played all season like they played (Saturday), maybe they’d win the championship again.”

To Michigan, this was the championship. The Wolverines are guaranteed a postseason appearance--probably the Hall of Fame Bowl--but a victory against Ohio State means more. In fact, former Ohio State coach Earle Bruce said last week that Cooper’s legacy in Columbus won’t be defined by his overall record, but by his record against Michigan.

Recruiting wars are won or lost because of this game. Bragging rights are secured, perceptions shaped.

None of this is lost on Cooper, who has heard the inevitable postgame questions each year. This time he almost made it back to the safety of the locker room, which was off-limits to reporters, before someone asked him about the curse of the Wolverines.

“It’s about as frustrating as it can be,” said Cooper, waving his hand in disgust at a crowd of reporters and cameramen.

Then he disappeared behind the door and into the silence.