I think Ohio is SO very important, not only becaase of its EVs, of course, but also because its polls close at 7:30PM local time (8:30 PM here in the East) IF Kerry can win it, and it's called at 8:30, or 9:00 (or even 10:00), remember that it is still 2-3 hours earlier in the Rocky Mountain & Western times zones, and I think this COULD have a hugely important spillover effect on those other states' late voting patterns (Nevada, AZ, NM). A sort of a "My God, Kerry is winning this thing, I'm getting on the bandwagaon and voting for him" effect.
Crazy? I don't think so...psychology IS important in things like this. Also, rember that there is no "interstate" embargo on reporting returns state returns. The media have agreed to the "intra-state" concession of not reporting/calling a state until all the polls in that particular state have closed. BUT this is "intra-state" issue is not the same as an "inter-state" one. So, if polls close in Ohio, they WILL project it even if other states on the west coast/southwest are still open and voting. So, Ohio is SOOOOOOO important!!