But what about the people who cover the team in a different way?  What about the people who make sure you read a quote from Tommy Freeman in tomorrow’s edition of The Post or ensure ESPN’s play-by-play talent know the correct pronunciation of Adetunji Adedipe?

The life of a sports information director is a tad bit different than Joe Sunshine’s 40-hour work week.  But it’s a job Ohio Assistant Athletics Director for Media Relations Jason Corriher enjoys.

“Our hours are a little bit different,” understated the 31-year-old China Grove, North Carolina native.  “I love traveling, I really do.  Growing up, I never really got to travel that much.  This job has given me a chance to see places and meet people and see venues I would not have gotten had I not had this job.”

Corriher spent more than 8,000 miles alone hitting the pavement with the football team, fueled by a pair of long-distance non-conference games and a few additional post-season trips.  While the Athletic Department looked to hire a third full-time SID this winter, Corriher added eight extra team trips on his schedule as the men’s basketball contact.  Tack on nine cities with the Bobcat Caravan this spring and there you have it.  From Ohio football’s rain-soaked trip to Denton, Texas in mid-September to Bobcat baseball’s upcoming short trek to Chillicothe for the Mid-American Conference tournament, Corriher will travel 15,289 round trip miles covering the ‘Cats during the 09-10 school year.

That’s a lot of hotel room keys.

Take this March, for example.  Odds are while you were busy wearing your green and white T-shirt before or after Ohio’s upset of Georgetown, Corriher was inside something with wheels.  Corriher’s wife, Kim, convinced him to make the trip to Providence for the game, even with Ohio baseball set to host a weekend series with Purdue the next day.  After that first round shocker, you better believe Corriher was up all night.  Not game-planning like John Groce and his staff, but traveling.

“I got a cab shortly after the USA Today‘s were delivered to the hotel (the next morning),” he said.  Following the upset, an early flight put Corriher back in Athens to cover the Ohio-Purdue baseball series later that Friday afternoon at 4 p.m.  Then, Saturday was spent scoring two Ohio losses at Bob Wren Stadium while keeping one eye on the Ohio-Tennessee hoops contest on his computer.  A long four days, but well worth it.

“To wake up and see Kenneth van Kempen on the front of the USA Today, that’s why we do this job,” Corriher said.  ” To be able to work and see the benefits of all your hard work–that win over Georgetown helped us realize that.”

Corriher also spent a month in Detroit.  At least it probably seemed like it.  One trip to the Motor City for the MAC title game against Central Michigan.  A return drive up a week later with wide out Taylor Price for the Ohio-Marshall Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl Press Conference on Dec. 12.  Then, Christmas with the ‘Cats as Ohio fell to the Thundering Herd at Ford Field Dec. 26.  That’s four weekends of December–three of them spent in Detroit.

“That was pretty unique, I don’t think I’ve ever experienced that,” said Corriher, who argues the city gets more grief than deserved.

With a lingering southern twang and passion for N.C. State, the Carolina Panthers, Hurricanes and poker, Corriher is used to the tolls of being on the road.

“My staff and I talk about this all the time.  This job is very challenging in the sense that, depending on what games you have and your travel schedule, you may be able to go to sleep at a normal hour some nights, but you may have other nights if it’s a home football or home basketball game, you may not get to sleep until after 1 a.m.

“I have mastered the art of sleeping on buses,” he joked.  “I do utilize that time on the bus to, in a lot of cases, make up some sleep time.  Take the jacket and ball it up and try to knock out a couple hours there.”

The media relations work won’t get any lighter any time soon for the youngest head SID in the MAC.  Budget cuts mean his department will have just three staffers beginning next fall, down from the six he had when he arrived in Athens July 2007.  Corriher is proud of the work he and his staff have done professionally.  Personally, his goal is to get into better shape during his July-timed New Year’s resolution (“our lives are almost by the school year, not the calendar year”).

He enjoys his interactions with the media, coaches, administrators and student-athletes.  For Corriher, the travel is a bonus.

“It is a new area of the country for me, and this job has afforded me a chance to get around and see these new places and meet all the great people.”

-  I chatted with Ohio hoops coach John Groce Monday night as the ‘Cats are in the midst of week one of team practices.

- This ought to be an interesting 09-10 season, and I get the sense even the coaching staff is curious as to how this young team will progress. For the first time in a long time there are a ton of unknowns with Ohio basketball. In years past, at the very least you knew who the main men on offense (Leon Williams, Bubba Walther, Jerome Tillman, Mike Allen, Justin Orr) were going to be. There isn’t “that guy” this year for Bobcat roundball. Case in point: as we sit here on Oct. 21, you cannot say with complete certainty who will lead the team in scoring this winter. Steven Coleman? Armon Bassett? DeVaughn Washington?

- With so many new faces, you can coach and watch film and game plan all you want, but sometimes it’s just about whether teams playing together for the first time just get it and mesh well. That’s the situation right now for Ohio basketball.

- As for a starting lineup, Groce is not closing any doors right now, and why would he with all the fresh talent arriving at the market? Similar to Ohio football’s offensive line, you know who a few of those faces will be (David White=Steven Coleman, for example) but beyond that, who is your #1 and #2 in the backcourt (aka who are your starting left and right guards)? See the similarity?

- Groce said the defense is ahead of the offense at this point in practices, something I don’t think could be said at any juncture last year. Year one under JG and company was anything but consistent defensively.

- On to a few of the young players being noticed:

- Freshman point guard D.J. Cooper has stood out early on and has shown an ability to make teammates better. He’s the only true scholarship PG on the roster. If you pinned me down right now I’d say Cooper has the best chance of leading Ohio freshman in minutes played this season.

- Marquis Horne has excelled in practice as a rebounder thus far, Groce said. This is not too surprising. We knew the athletic Horne could do that, and his ability to bang the glass stood out in high school film. But he was raw in high school—can he develop into a basketball player at the next level?

- Swing forward freshman Ivo Baltic was recruited as a high-motor guy out of the Kansas City area, and thus far he has lived up to that. Baltic just does not get out-worked, though I’m sure Tungi is right there with him.

- Groce is amazed by freshman forward Reggie Keely’s hands. Keely catches everything that comes his way, and that helps his rebounding as well. As for his often debated height—recruiting websites last year had him listed anywhere from 6-6 to 6-8—Groce said Keely is just over 6-7, which will fit just fine in the MAC.

- Combo guard Jay Kinney has shown an ability in practice to be a real strong finisher with both hands and in a variety of ways—floaters, jump shots, drives—Kinney just knows how to put ball through hole.

- Nothing but high praise for walk-on David McKinley from Groce. McKinley played four years at point guard for a Dublin Scioto program that lost a total of six games over those seasons.

- Bobcat fans have heard throughout the off-season about how the ‘Cats are getting in much better shape—and from what I hear it is noticeable. KVK has trimmed down, and Washington is even more cut, for example. But fans should temper the excitement a bit. Will this help defensively? Oh absolutely. But Washington’s problem has never been attributed to a lack of physical attributes. However many pounds of muscle he added won’t make him all of the sudden stay out of early foul trouble. And Bobcat fans should know better by now when it comes to KVK—you know what you are going to get: minutes and an occasional double-digit output here or there. He is what he is, though it is definitely not a negative to see him in better shape.

- Bottom line: this is a unit that will be static early on as it tries to find an identity—let alone a player rotation. The issue right now surrounds the abundance of new players meshing with the returners for this group. If there was one thing noticeable from Groce last winter from a coaching standpoint non-X’s and O’s it would be that he showed a lot of impatience. This year will really be a test for him as a mentor given the newness across the board. But as it stands in late October, the mindset from the top of this program is right where it should be. Deep down many Bobcat fans know 2010-2011 could be—to steal a line from Terrence McRae—the year of the ‘Cat. But it will be a ton of fun to watch a completely different style of Green and White basketball this season, and we all know the MAC East is anything but set in stone.

-  Opponents have scored first against Ohio in five of seven games thus far.  Not good, but the ‘Cats have bounced back more often than not (See: Redhawks, Miami).

-  Kent State has won three of the last four games at Peden Stadium.

-  The two common opponents for the ‘Cats and Golden Flashes are Miami and Bowling Green.  The ‘Cats are +21 and +7, respectively, while KSU is +17 and -1 against the Redhawks and Falcons (both home games).

-  Injury Report: DT Carl Jones (ankle), LB Errik Ejike (knee) are doubtful.  CB Billy Santos-Gonzales is out for the year and will have knee surgery in the near future.  RB Chris Garrett (ankle) should be available, coach Solich said today, while RB Vince Davidson (uknown) is questionable.  RG Eric Herman’s status on an ankle injury is unknown.

-  Re: Steven Jackson.  The rule, according to Solich and media relations director Jason Corriher, is that a player cannot participate in more than four of the first six contests of a season to qualify for a medical redshirt.  So FS Steven Jackson (hip) is eligible to receive another year.  Jackson did not play versus Cal Poly and Tennessee.  Solich says the surgery will take a while to heal and Jackson will even miss spring ball.

-  DE Brandon Weaver (foot) and DB Travis Carrie will redshirt this season.  Weaver played last season with the nagging injury and did not tell coaches at the time, Solich said.

-  There are 12 Bobcats who have started all seven games on offense or defense this season.  Can you name them?  The answer is at the bottom of this blog entry.

-  For the third time this year (Matt Weller, Melvin Payne) the Bobcats have the MAC East Special Teams Player of the Week after Chad Clemens earned the honors today with a blocked punt Saturday versus Miami.

-  Punter Matt Schulte will be eligible to play this week, but Coach Solich said both Schulte and Paul Hershey will probably see time booting it away versus Kent State.  Furthermore, with that ever-so-popular grin on his face, Solich did not rule out seeing even three punters (Matt Weller) against KSU.  Who knows…

-  Solich also did not rule out returning to a dual-punt return set this week or at any time in the near future, though he was pleased with LaVon Brazill’s ability to field punts against Miami.  The problem with going back to two men back deep at this point is merely personnel.  WR Riley Dunlop—who I’m convinced has never dropped a football in his life—was the only serviceable returner back there with Brazill.  Santos-Gonzalez would have gotten a look, but now he is done for the year as previously mentioned.  Ryan Clark is another option, Solich said.

-  Solich thinks Kent State poses the biggest special teams challenge of the year for the ‘Cats on Saturday.  KSU’s leads the MAC in net punting and is second in punt returns.

-  Bobcats center David White (who may be playing at a 1st team All-MAC level this year) will be going up against former Chardon H.S. teammate and current KSU defensive lineman Kevin Hogan this Saturday.

-  The Bobcats lead the nation with 23 forced turnovers.

-  The Bobcats have not lost the turnover battle in eight straight games dating back to last year.

-  Kent State’s red zone offense is dead last in the nation, and at 22% on third downs, that figure is second worst in all of college football.

-  The opposition has rushed for at least one touchdown in six of seven games.  Only Cal Poly, ironically enough, did not score on the ground against the Green and White.

-  The ‘Cats have not lost a game when leading at half (4-0) or after three quarters (4-0) this season.

-  Ohio’s combined point totals in all four quarters have been higher than its opponent.  More simply, the ‘Cats are +3 in the first quarter,  +11 in quarter number two, +8 in the third frame, and +18 in the last period.

-  For the first time all season, the ‘Cats played in a game in which neither team made a field goal.

-  Solich was asked during his weekly press conference today about a few interesting topics that are worth watching on OhioBobcats.com or reading about throughout the week I’m sure through various media outlets.  For example, I asked coach about the difficulties of preparing for some many first-year starting quarterbacks this season, and he noted it is tough to game plan since there is little film, a la KSU QB Spencer Keith this week.

-  Near the end of today’s press conference I asked Frank about his thoughts on the tragedy at UConn with the stabbing death of Jasper Howard.  He went on to talk about how he tells his players after games and practices to be smart when out on campus and to make sure to steer clear of any potentially harmful situations.

-  Don’t forget to stop by “The Frank Solich Show” tonight at 7 p.m. at Donato’s on East State Street.  You can listen live on Power 105.5-FM WXTQ in Southeast Ohio.

-  Speaking of radio shows, “The Sears Sports Fan” has been busy the last few weeks.  Brian Boesch and new co-host Bryan Levin, who calls Ohio University hockey games as well, have been chock full of Bobcat football and high school football coverage.  Boesch interviews the play-by-play voice for each of Ohio’s opponents on Fridays.

-  What a downer week around the area on the prep gridiron scene.  Alexander loses to Evan Shaw’s Meigs Marauders, all but ending playoff hopes for the Spartans.  Athens still cannot claim the Doc Kroner trophy with a 14-13 loss to Nelsonville-York.  The Bulldogs needed to go 10-0 to have a shot at the Division II playoffs.  N-Y has a chance to get to the post-season, but Dave Boston Jr.’s club (7-1) may need to win out, and a trip to Ironton this Friday won’t be easy.  Ironton coach Bob Lutz is one win away from the Ohio state record.

-  I’m told Solich was in attendance for the Athens-Nelsonville-York game last Friday night.   Bobcat WRs coach Dwayne Dixon and D-line coach Pete Germano both have sons who contribute to the varsity team.

-  12 Bobcats who have started all seven games: WR Taylor Price, LT Chris Rodgers, C David White, TE Jordan Thompson, DE Dak Notestine, DT Ernie Hodge, NG Marcellis Williamson, LBs Lee Renfro and Noah Keller, CBs Thad Turner and Idris Lawrence and SS Patrick Tafua.

-  More to come, including some Bobcat basketball pre-season news and notes.

-  Some quick hits after Ohio’s 28-7 win over Miami (Ohio):

-  Several former Bobcats took in the game from the sidelines Saturday, including Andrew Mooney, Josh Abrams, and Kalvin McRae.

-  Remember these pre-season predictions about the MAC from ESPN.com?  Numbers 10, 9, 7, 4, and 1 are not too off base right now.

-  How good has Terrence McRae been this season?  The 6-4, 200-pound wide out is just a mismatch waiting to happen on every play.  He has three touchdowns his last two games, including two great catches in the end zone Saturday versus Miami.

-  On the injury front (and we’ll know more come Monday afternoon), it sounds like RB Chris Garrett (ankle sprain) will be able to play next week.  We’ll learn about RB Vince Davidson’s health tomorrow, too.

-  WR Riley Dunlop (shoulder) and DE Kris Luchsinger (knee) are done for the year.  Dunlop will have surgery a week from Tuesday to repair pretty much the same injury as QB Boo Jackson—Dunlop’s roommate.

-  Free safety Steven Jackson is done for the season and Ohio will try to earn a redshirt for him.

-  Right guard Eric Herman sprained an ankle during the Miami game and did not play most of the second half.  It does not appear to be serious—we’ll see about the Kent State game.  Both John Flowers and Kadre Pinder subbed in when Herman went down.

-    One concern is the cornerbacks depth.  CB Kenny Jackson still has not played with an ankle and foot injury, and CB Billy Santos-Gonzalez (unknown) was on crutches Saturday.

-  Ohio University is 5-2.  Ohio State University is 5-2.

-  Punter Matt Schulte was ruled ineligible Sunday.  We’ll learn more about his status for the future Monday afternoon.  If he is not allowed to play versus KSU, Paul Hershey would punt again.  I liken Hershey to baseball’s Adam Dunn—it’s either a home run or a strike out.  Hershey can boot the heck out of it, but he can also shank it—he did both Saturday.

-  Speaking of Hershey, very cool fake punt for a first down versus the Redhawks.  Don’t know if we need to see a back up punter leaping over would-be tacklers any more, though.

-  Miami was 0-9 on third down conversions over the last three quarters.

-  The Athens Messenger reporter Jason Arkley summed up Ohio’s 5-2 record pretty well in this article today.

-  Nose guard Marcellis Williamson has 20 tackles in seven games, 10 of which have come the last two weeks.  He has been so solid for the ‘Cats, primarily on first and second downs.

-  The four best teams in the MAC thus far have been Central Michigan, Northern Illinois, Temple and Ohio.  They rank 1-4 respectively in scoring defense.

-  Kent State leads the MAC with 17 sacks on defense.

- The Golden Flashes and Bobcats both rank in the league’s bottom third in penalty yards per game.

-  KSU has been just terrible scoring points inside the red zone (11-19, last in MAC).

-  For the third week in a row the ‘Cats will face a freshman quarterback.  After Akron’s Patrick Nicely stepped in for most of the game and Miami redshirt-freshman Zac Dysert threw two picks versus the ‘Cats, it will be the mobile Spencer Keith under center for KSU.  The Green and White travels to Ball State on Halloween where, you guessed it, freshman gunslinger Kelly Page will probably start for the Cardinals.

-  It has rained before and/or during four of Ohio’s seven games this season.

-  The two loudest ovations inside Peden Stadium Saturday?  The announcement of Ohio State’s loss to Purdue and the Marching 110 performance during halftime.

-  Thoughts and prayers go out to the UConn football family, who is morning the loss of CB Jasper Howard.

-  Four total tackles, including one for a loss, for Lions DT and former Bobcat Landon Cohen in a 26-0 loss to Green Bay today.

-  More to come.