Starting defensive tackle Doug Worthington faces a drunken-driving charge after he was arrested early Saturday morning on campus. Worthington, 20, was pulled over by OSU police at 3:13 a.m. near the intersection of Woody Hayes Drive and Cannon Drive -- practically right in front of Ohio Stadium.

He was going 41 mph in a 25 mph zone, police reports show. His exact blood-alcohol level wasn't listed, but by definition of the charge, it must have been between 0.08 and 0.17.

Coach Jim Tressel did not return a message. The Buckeyes held an unrelated team meeting Sunday night, but it is not known whether Tressel and Worthington spoke about the arrest.

The incident follows closely on the heels of reserve defensive back Eugene Clifford being charged with misdemeanor assault after being involved in a July 4 fight at a Cincinnati sports bar.

Clifford recently was released from his OSU  scholarship and is expected to transfer to Tennessee State.

In May 2005, the Buckeyes had three players arrested or charged with crimes in a 10-day span. That prompted a summit of sorts, at which it was announced the athletic department was beefing up its drug and alcohol testing.

Between then and July 4, two OSU players were arrested.

Last week at the Big Ten preseason meetings, Tressel spoke of the need to keep talking to players about past transgressions.

"We talk all the time about reminders and history lessons, and we can't assume that these guys now know about an off-the-field problem a guy had five years ago," Tressel said. "So we have to bring up history lessons about tough lessons we've learned."

Worthington's charge is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

He has no known previous offenses. Under athletic department policy, a first drug- or alcohol-related offense results in increased testing and mandatory counseling. A second offense carries a two-game suspension.

Any loss of playing time for Worthington would be significant. A fourth-year junior, he played in all 13 games last season, starting 12, and had 24 tackles, a sack and an interception.

By spring ball, he had added about 10 pounds to his 6-foot-7 frame and hoped to play at 285 or 290 this fall.

The Buckeyes are looking for more production out of their defensive tackles this season. Last year, the four players who shared most of the playing time at tackle combined for five sacks.

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Worthington, 20, did not stand before the judge, but was ordered to be fingerprinted and released after his case was called by Franklin County Municipal Judge Carrie Glaeden.

His defense attorney declined to comment after the hearing.

OSU defensive tackle Nader Abdallah said he has talked with Worthington several times since the arrest.

"He's trying to stay in good spirits," Abdallah said. "He's working out hard; he's trying to get his mind back to normal. I know he's depressed about the situation, but I told him, 'You can't think about that right now. The main thing you have to think about is getting back. Getting back 100 percent mentally is huge.'

"Right now, he's just fighting (the charge), and we'll see what happens with that."

According to OSU police, Worthington, a junior from Buffalo, N.Y., was pulled over in his 2004 Cadillac sport-utility vehicle for speeding at Woody Hayes and Cannon drives at 3:13 a.m. Police said he failed sobriety tests and was charged with drunken driving, a license-tag violation and speeding for traveling 41 mph in a 25 mph zone near Ohio Stadium.

Worthington's blood-alcohol content was 0.095 percent, according to a complaint filed in court. In Ohio, a driver younger than 21 can be charged with DUI at 0.02 percent.

A trial date has not been set.

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