Three years as a starter, one major ankle surgery and an All-American senior year ... It was all sealed with one kiss of a national championship. So there stood Wilhelm after Ohio State's 31-24 double overtime win over Miami, kissing and courting one side of the trophy while Kenny Peterson was smooching the other.

In a season filled with everlasting moments, that celebration heads to the top of the list.

Wilhelm's ride is now complete at Ohio State. He entered as an outside linebacker from Elyria Catholic and the 1998 winner of Lorain County's Golden Helmet award. He leaves an All-American and a national champion.

''The reason you come to Ohio State, in my mind, is to win the national championship and compete for the Big Ten championship every year,'' Wilhelm said. ''It just happened to be my senior year for everything to fall into place.''

He reestablished the middle linebacker as the team leader in tackles this year. Despite a career-high 107 tackles for safety Mike Doss, the team leader each of the past two years, Wilhelm won the tackle race this year with 121. It's the highest single-season total at Ohio State since Lorenzo Styles had 132 in 1994.

Following reconstructive ankle surgery last year, Wilhelm dedicated himself to the film room, since the field wasn't really an option. He studied opposing players and his own defense. He learned where players would go based on certain formations, then beat them to the spot this year.

Now he finishes the sentences of linebacker coach Mark Snyder and defensive coordinator Mark Dantonio. By the end of the year, he could call the plays before they were signaled in from the coaches.

''A few times we didn't get the calls in from the sidelines,'' defensive tackle Tim Anderson said. ''So Matt called the plays himself. And we had full confidence in whatever he called, that he would make the right call. I could definitely see him as a great high school or college defensive coordinator someday.''

And that's what has separated Wilhelm from all others this year. It's what vaulted him onto the national scene as an All-American, despite no one outside Ohio knowing of him this time last year. It's not just his physical skills that made him great, it was the knowledge of the game.

''He's got a lot of experience and he takes great pride in that fact,'' Dantonio said. ''He knows what's going on out there at all times.''

Backup Mike D'Andrea, who at one time was considered a threat to Wilhelm's starting job this year, took the opportunity to study Wilhelm -- both in person and on film.

''I'll ask him a million questions a day and he'll answer every one of them. In detail,'' D'Andrea said. ''He watches more film than anyone and now he knows as much as the coaches do.''

No captaincy

If there is one thing missing from this portfolio, it's the fact he wasn't made a captain for his senior year. Ohio State coach Jim Tressel named Doss and Donnie Nickey defensive co-captains, eliminating Wilhelm from the title he wanted three years ago.

Even as a sophomore, Wilhelm said he wanted to someday be a captain at Ohio State. He wanted the ability to return each year for the captain's breakfast and he wanted his name next to the other greats who came through Ohio State. But even when it didn't happen, Wilhelm handled it gracefully.

''We've got 13 seniors, we're all going to be captains and leaders at one point,'' he said at the beginning of the season. ''It would've been a great honor, but I'm still a leader of the defense and a guy the younger people look up to.''

Wilhelm has learned the right way to handle adversity. Three years ago he publicly bashed captain Ken-Yon Rambo, saying Rambo didn't always lead like a captain should, didn't always dress for team meals like a captain should, showed up late for practice and in short, was only named a captain because he was the team's star, not because he had the right characteristics.

Former players like Kirk Herbstreit later called and said it was about time someone spoke the truth about Rambo. But the upperclassmen weren't as thrilled, since Wilhelm's remarks came six days before the first Outback Bowl against South Carolina. While he's always been considered one of the best interviews on the team, Wilhelm has never again publicly criticized a teammate.

''I think it was from all the veteran players telling me it shouldn't have been said or it wasn't the right thing to do,'' Wilhelm said. ''And it's just a maturity factor that I even realized myself that maybe it wasn't necessary at the time.

''It's a long time ago, it's in the past. I don't regret it because I don't regret anything I do. But it's in the past.''

What lies ahead for Wilhelm is a bright future in the NFL. Following last year's injury-plagued junior season, that seemed like a long shot at best. But his NFL stock continued to rise throughout his senior year. Now he'll play in the Hula Bowl next month, then head for the NFL draft in April.

''I'm excited for the success we had this year so I can go out this way,'' he said. ''It's something you can only dream about.''

This year, all those dreams came true.

jlloyd@morningjournal.com