Fiesta Bowl Preview

As I sit here watching Utah, the same team that Michigan nearly beat in game one this season, dismantle Alabama and earlier today seeing Ole Miss nuke Texas Tech, I have to wonder about the surprises of bowl season. To date, 90% of fans polled on the Internet believe that Texas is going to wipe the floor with our beloved Buckeyes. Given Ohio State’s recent, big game performance against Florida, LSU, USC (ouch!) and PSU, I can understand the sentiment.

One thing really bothers me about this season is how USC could have possibly lost to Oregon State, 3-0 winners over perennial Big East powerhouse Pitt. I’d like to see USC/Florida because the Florida, is going to wipe the floor with the Sooners I’m sorry to say…

But this entry is about the Fiesta Bowl. What should we expect? Well, Texas offense is potent, there is no doubt and McCoy is quite a QB. Texas defense is serviceable, though not great. Texas special teams are average. The Buckeye O is average over the course of the season, but has shown signs of waking up over the last few games. The Buckeye D is very good, perhaps great. The special teams are above average. What does this mean? Nothing.

We’re going to see a veteran team in Texas and we’ll see how they respond to the whole situation with Oklahoma getting the nod over them to play Missouri and head to the MNC game. Will they have something to prove? Will they be despondent? Will they read all the bad press about how they should win easily and not show up?

And what about the fragile psyche of Ohio State? Having been handled like a cheap pinata by USC (Texas offense is every bit as good as USCs) and having no one believe in them. Hearing that they’re slow, weak, and have bad coaching; how will that affect the team? Are they hungry? Do they have something to prove? Will they show up? And if so, for all four quarters?

Empirically, by any measure, Texas should win this game. But the games are played to see how things actually shake out. While my mind is governed by statistics and I believe you don’t mess with a streak, something tells me we’re going to get a nice New Year surprise from this Buckeye team. I won’t name a score or a point differential, I’ll simply say there have been some big bowl surprises and I think OSU will be a member of that club when the final whistle blows late January 5, 2009.

GO BUCKS!

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