After drive to fame, he's still average Joe

Despite leading the Buckeyes to a Rose Bowl victory, quarterback Joe Germaine is prepared to battle for the starting job.

Joe Germaine says one of the weird things about sudden stardom is the way strangers stare, sometimes even point.

It has happened to him a few times since he led Ohio State to its first Rose Bowl victory in 23 years. As he walks across campus or through a store, he often finds himself the object of stares. It's unsettling, he said.

"It makes me wonder, `Is my fly down? Is there something on my face?' "

He laughed. The smile of the quarterback with boyish features, freckles and a crew cut was prominently displayed in newspapers and on television upon being named the most outstanding player at OSU. So his days of being just a face in the crowd may be over.

Joe's appearance has changed a little, courtesy of the high-low hit laid on him by ASU midway through the fourth quarter. He suffered a cut under his chin that took 12 stitches, a wound that no doubt left a scar.

But there is no truth to the rumor that his mug has shown up on "most wanted" posters throughout his home state of Arizona.

"No, people back there have been pretty nice about it," Germaine said.