COLUMBUS - Tony Pittman arrived early this spring - and then stayed late at the spring game.

Pittman, who graduated from Akron Buchtel early to enroll in the spring quarter, took over for Lydell Ross in the second quarter to rush for 105 yards in the Scarlet's 13-0 win over the Gray on Saturday in Ohio State's annual intrasquad scrimmage.

''It was just a great day,'' Pittman said with a wide grin. ''I was feeling it and the line was opening up holes and it turned out good for my team.''

Pittman was barely mentioned on the depth chart before spring practice started and is considered a longshot to get playing time behind holdovers Lydell Ross and Maurice Hall. But for one day, he felt he proved a lot to a crowd of 45,074 at Ohio Stadium.

''Just because I weigh only 198 pounds, that doesn't mean I can't run,'' said Pittman, limited by injuries his senior year in high school. ''I can still run. I'm not scared of anything. I've got heart and that goes a long way.''

Coach Jim Tressel said Pittman played himself into the mix at tailback.

''I thought he had a good spring for a guy with no winter conditioning,'' Tressel said. ''He can catch it and he can run it. I felt good about the way he played. Any time you're running the ball well, you want to use multiple running backs - and we're running the ball well.''

Pittman was the most impressive runner on a day when the offenses sputtered, the defenses dominated and the special teams weren't all that special.

Ross, the Buckeyes' top returning rusher, scored the only touchdown of the game on a 1-yard run late in the first quarter and didn't play from the second quarter on. Josh Huston added 20- and 43-yard field goals for the Scarlet, which limited the Gray to minus-33 yards rushing on 18 attempts.

Neither Justin Zwick nor Troy Smith settled matters in their ongoing battle for the starting quarterback job.

''We've got 29 practices ahead of us,'' Tressel said. ''If we had a game today, Justin would start it and Troy would play significantly. They both got a lot of experience this spring.''

Zwick and Smith had good and bad moments. Zwick completed 16 of 26 passes for 165 yards but overthrew two potential touchdown passes. Smith completed 7 of 15 passes for 53 yards while splitting time on the Gray with third-stringer Todd Boeckman.

''I thought it went well,'' Zwick said. ''I thought we jelled pretty well as a team with just one day together. Once we got going, we moved the ball and didn't make any mistakes.''

He said he didn't think the competition had changed at all through the 15 spring practices.

''I don't think they are going to sway one way or the other,'' Zwick said of the coaches.

Smith was hamstrung because Ohio State's coaching staff did not permit the quarterbacks to run the ball. That rule was loosened in the final minutes, but by then the Scarlet was firmly in command and Smith could not turn the tide.

Asked his reaction to Tressel saying Zwick still had the inside edge for the job, Smith said, ''My reaction is when I get in, I'll make the best of it. You can't go moping when things don't go your way. Once I get in, I'll make the most of it.''

Scarlet linebacker John Kerr, a transfer from Indiana, was disappointed that the quarterbacks couldn't run more.

''They're sacrificial lambs when they get to run out there,'' Kerr said.

The Scarlet defense forced two turnovers - an interception thrown by Boeckman and a fumble by running back Matt Johnson. Antonio Smith had the interception and Ashton Youboty picked off Johnson's fumble in mid-air.

The kicking game for both sides was dismal. Gray punters averaged just 23 yards on six kicks and the Scarlet had three for a 29-yard average. In addition, Huston had a 24-yard field goal attempt blocked and he missed kicks from 23 and 52 yards.

In addition to recovering a fumble, Youboty had a tackle for a loss and blocked a punt while Thomas Matthews and Marcel Frost each had two tackles for negative yardage.

The Scarlet scored on its first possession, going 66 yards on 12 plays. Zwick completed two third-down passes to John Hollins for first downs to keep the drive alive.

Ross' 1-yard TD run was set up by Zwick's 8-yard completion to Holmes on a crossing pattern. Holmes was rocked by cornerback E.J. Underwood on the play.

''I don't know exactly where we are offensively,'' Tressel said. ''We'll have to line up and play somebody to find that out. We moved it around out there. We had a limited offensive package, so I don't know if I'm concerned that we only scored one touchdown.''

He said he saw a lot of positives out of the defense.

''One thing I like about our defense - they got tougher as the other team got closer to the goal line,'' he said.