Cleveland, Ohio—one of the most desolate landscapes in the sporting world  is now completely consumed by a torrent of wallow and self-pity. The Cavaliers began the season and are completely irrelevant once more. The Indians and the Browns are just as dismal as ever. So, I guess all I can tell you is that your average Cleveland fan will be beleaguered for what seems to be the long haul. But hey, at least we have Peyton Hillis.

Anyway, I’m not here to depress you with another “hate Cleveland” bulletin. We already hear enough of that in the national media. No, I’m here to spread a much more encouraging message about Ohio’s sports. So, without further ado, I would like to advise all Michigan fans to stop reading this column.

The Ohio State University. Sounds impressive, right? To quote one of my favorite sports analysts, “Ohio State is the flagship of the Big Ten Conference.” In another edition of ‘Pardon the Interruption’ prior to the Sugar Bowl, Tony Kornheiser paid this ultimate compliment to OSU’s Football program. My pride as an Ohio sports fan swelled to unbelievable heights at that exact moment. After the Big Ten laid a New Year’s egg by going 0-5 in its bowl games, it was up to OSU to represent. It was up to OSU to prove that we could compete with the big, bad SEC teams. Kornheiser aptly said the Buckeyes had to obtain a win in order to maintain the Big Ten’s image as a competitive conference.

January 3, 2011: the day of the Sugar Bowl. True, the Buckeyes blew a great opportunity to return to the national championship with a loss to Wisconsin. But what is in the past still remains in the past. The Buckeyes showed up to play in the present. Not in the looming five-game suspensions, but in the gloom and ire of a nine-game losing streak to SEC teams.

So, how would the Buckeyes respond to the pressure? In my opinion, they did quite well. They basically dominated an entire half of play. Seemingly, at halftime, OSU had it in the bag. Obviously, my parents and I knew there was a lot of football game left at this point, but we had no premonitions of the drama that was to come. OSU had its lead reduced five points. And with less than two minutes left in the game, I felt pretty safe with a punt and a run-out-the-clock scenario. But then, disaster struck. The punt was blocked, and Arkansas gained possession practically in the end zone. I thought the game was over. Of course it was too good to be true. How could an Ohio team ever win anything?

Well, it turns out that an Ohio team can win something. A critical interception on the ensuing play ended the game and made OSU the Sugar Bowl champions. After a cynical and depressing year of watching Cleveland lose at not one, not two, but three sports. I had forgotten my pride in Ohio’s sports. But it turns out that I can always hang my head on The Ohio State University. They’re here to represent. And they’re here to stay. The flagship of the Big Ten snapped its nine-game losing streak to SEC teams, and I remembered what had made me so fond of Ohio’s sports programs. Ohio was a champion that night, and not a single national panelist could take that away from me. I was truly proud to be an Ohioan.

And so, Cleveland fans don’t need to look glum about their teams all the time. Just take a quick look to the capitol of our state that lies two hours south of us. Cleveland teams will get better. It may take five years, it may take ten. But one day, we will be relevant again. And this time, perhaps I’ll get to see a Cleveland championship in my lifetime. I guess I’ll just have to remain patient as always.

In the future, we do have the ability to draft stars. Anybody else feel like drafting Marcus Jordan, the son of Michael Jordan, to the Cavs? (He might actually stay! Weird, huh?) And with Colt McCoy at the helm of the Browns, the future may hold something positive for our otherwise beleaguered football team. Additionally, the Browns don’t have to look far to find good football players. OSU has plenty of them, and I hate it when I see them making tackles and great plays for other professional teams. If the Browns were to draft a few, who knows? Bright and shiny days could be on the horizon.

And hey, at least I don’t have to suffer through being a Patriots or Lakers fan and watch my teams win all the time. And maybe, just maybe, I’m a better person for it.