College
Fildhilh OSU's RoB MuRPHY
The Cincinnati Engwrer/ronyJones
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The Murphys are a football family. Rob Murphy, left, is a junior lineman at Ohio State. Bob Murphy, second from left, was a fullback for the San Diego Chargers. Ryan Murphy, second from right, a red-shirt freshman linebacker at UK. Mack Murphy is a freshman linebacker at Moeller.
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Football runs for OSU's Murphy in
BY JOHN ERARDI 1'he Cincinnati Enquirer
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Maybe Rob Murphy is a player the Bengals should draft. Maybe the franchise famous for its poor picks should pay less attention to 40-yard dash times and more attention to guys who can play. Maybe Murphy, a first-team Associated Press All-America out of Ohio State by way of Moeller High, could help the Bengals: He's tough, has a great work ethic, non-stop motor and killer mental approach. Murphy hasn't said whether he'll leave school early, but the path of OSU juniors to the NFL is well-worn. ■
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IT'S THE ALL-AMERICAN WAY
In two days, No. 3 Ohio State will play Texas A&M in the Sugar Bowl In New Orleans. "Our goal is to win as impressively as we can and hope Florida State beats Tennessee (in the Fiesta Bowl) — but not by a lot — so we can give the sportswrit-
On Murphy
Bowl glance
What one NFL-draft guru says about Rob Murphy:' lo- Jerry Jones, The Drugstore List "He's big and tough and agile and has excellent technique. He really finishes off his blocks. His quickness is OK, average. If he announces (he's coming out fcr the draft), he's a possible secondround pick, probably not a firstrounder. I don't think there are any first-round guards. His competition (at guard) is Doug Brzezinski (Boston College), Tony Coats (Washington), Anthony Cesario (Colorado State) and Cameron Spikes(Texas A& M)."
Tuesday ► Music City Bowl: Virginia Tech 38, Alabama 7. Story, D2 ► MCRON PC Bowl: Miami 46, North Carolina State 23. Story, D2 No,Alamo Bowl: Kansas State vs. Purdue, late Today ►Hemanitarian Bowl: Idaho (8-3) vs. Southern Miss (7-4),3 p.m. (ESPN2) so- Holiday Bowl: Nebraska (9-3) vs. Arizona (11-1), 8 p.m.(ESPN) Thursday No, Liberty Bowl: Brigham Young (9-4) vs. Tulane (11-0), 1:30 p.m.(ESPN) 0- Sun Bowl: USC(8-4) vs. Texas Christian (6-5), 2 p.m.(CBS) ► Peach Bowl: Virginia (9-2)vs. Georgia (8-3), 5 p.m.(ESPN) ► Independence Bowl: Mississippi (6-5) vs. Texas Tech (7-4), 8:30 p.m.(ESPN)
The Cincinnati Enquirer/Emest Coleman
ers (AP poll) something to think about," Murphy said. , On.a team full of stars, Murphy was at times overlooked. "When they called me from Ohio State with the news that I'd been named to the AP first team," Murphy said, "they admitted it was a special because they hadn't done as much to hype. me as they had some of the other guys." So how did the 6-foot-5, 300pounder make AP's first team? He turned OSU's weekly appearances on national and region-
OSU lineman Rob Murphy (56) blocks for quarterback Joe Germaine during the Michigan State game. Murphy eamed first-team All-America honors from the Associa-ed Press. al TV into his personal stage. He never had a bad game, often had spectacular ones and performed at his best in the. games that got the most hype: West Virginia to open the season, Penn State and Michigan. Murphy credits.hig family for his accomplishments: his father, Bob, a former fullback at Miami (Fla.) who played briefly for the San Diego Chargers: his mother,
Sue, one of his first "coaches," and his brothers, Ryan, a University of Kentucky linebacker, and Mack, a Moeller freshman, who both help keep him "grounded." ""That guy right there," said Murphy, pointing across the room of his Montgomery home to Ryan, a 6-foot-2, 232-pound redshirt freshman at UK, "has it all (Please see MURPHY, Page D3)