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Game Thread BCS Championship Game, tOSU vs. Florida - Jan 8th

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DDN

OSU's opponent shuffle is over


Wednesday, December 06, 2006
I know, you've heard about a million opinions on the Bowl Championship Series over the last several weeks. Enough is enough. Let's move on to more important, more interesting, more fun things. There are bowling pins just itching to be knocked over.
But first, let's make it a million and one.
Those involved in the final decision that Florida is to be Ohio State's opponent in the national championship game really blew it.
Although Michigan gave OSU a heckuva game, there never was any doubt in my mind that Ohio State was destined for the title game. Which left the one obvious question.
The opponent.
All season, it seemed, there was a stampede among the nation's top programs to get away from that No. 2 slot, to have someone else play Ohio State. This was supposed to be THE year for Notre Dame, but the Fighting Irish fell by the wayside early, and so did Texas. Other teams yanked their hats out of the ring with unexpected losses. Auburn. Southern Cal. Then, when everyone started looking east, Louisville, Rutgers and West Virginia decided to kill each other off.
Only two teams really played as if they wanted it. One was Michigan, undefeated except for the close loss at Columbus. The other was Boise State, undefeated period.
OK, so the Wolverines had their shot. What about Boise State?
Think about it. Ohio State vs. Boise State. Experts would have laughed, but the Broncos would have been breathing fire and Jim Tressell, a smart man, would have been very nervous.
The one opponent he wouldn't have wanted was Rocky.
 
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DDN

Bruce heaps praise on Florida's Meyer

Former OSU coach calls Meyer a 'complete coach.'


By Doug Harris
Staff Writer

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

COLUMBUS ? Ohio State coach Jim Tressel has shown how adept he is at bowl preparation with four straight postseason victories, but his former boss doesn't think Florida coach Urban Meyer will be easy to out-fox.
Meyer, an Ashtabula, Ohio, native, was a grad assistant under Earle Bruce at Ohio State from 1986-87. When Bruce later resurfaced at Colorado State, he hired Meyer as his receivers coach.
"He's the most complete coach in America," Bruce said. "He knows the game of football. He loves his players. And he's great with alumni ? because he wins."
Of Tressel, Bruce added, "He's the whole package, too."
Meyer guided Utah to an unlikely 12-0 record and a Fiesta Bowl victory over Pittsburgh in 2004, and he parlayed that success into a prime coaching job, turning down Notre Dame (yes, Charlie Weis wasn't ND's first choice) to toil in talent-rich Florida.
He's gone 21-4 in two seasons there, pulling the program out of the mire left by previous coach Ron Zook.
Meyer also worked wonders at Bowling Green, going 8-3 in his first season in 2001 after the team had finished 2-9 the year before.
"You're always proud of the guys who come from your home (state)," said Tressel, who was on Bruce's staff at OSU from 1983-85. "We always brag about the guys who have gone on to do great things and have either passed through here or coached here or grew up here. And Urban is certainly one of the guys we tout."
 
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Link

Is Florida up to the challenge?

By Cox News Service
Tuesday, December 05, 2006 ATLANTA ? The Florida Gators won the SEC and earned a spot in the national championship game. ... But can they hang with the Buckeyes?
YES
1. They haven't played No. 1, but Chris Leak & Co. have taken on Nos. 4 (LSU), 9 (Auburn), 12 (Arkansas) and 17 (Tennessee) in the BCS standings. Give Ohio State the Gators' top-ranked schedule and see if the Buckeyes could do better than 12-1. "Ohio State is one of the weakest No. 1 teams in 25 years," said former Washington State and Iowa State coach Jim Walden, the only Harris voter to pick Florida No. 1. "They played one of the softest schedules of any No. 1 team in memory. They had all summer to get ready for Texas. Then they had 11 weeks to get ready for Michigan."
2. Finals will be a breeze for the Buckeyes compared to cramming for the Gators, who play two quarterbacks and line up receivers at tailback to compensate for their lack of a running game. "They find just enough offense to squeeze out a win each week," former Georgia coach Vince Dooley said. "Florida doesn't have a conventional running game, so they have to be very innovative."
3. Ohio State has the fleet Ted Ginn Jr. at receiver. Florida has a defense full of guys who can run with him. Playing in the plodding Big Ten, the Buckeyes aren't used to seeing athletes like Reggie Nelson and Brandon Siler, the anchors of a Gators defense that held Arkansas' Darren McFadden in check Saturday. "When it gets down to the end of the season and bowl games, defense wins for you," said Danny Wuerffel, the Gators' former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback. "And Florida has a more than solid defense."
NO
1. Florida's Urban Meyer won an SEC championship and a Fiesta Bowl, but he's never coached in a game quite like this one. Meanwhile, Jan. 8 will be nothing out of the ordinary for Jim Tressel, who steered the Buckeyes to the 2002 national title, has won five of six meetings with Michigan and won four Division I-AA crowns at Youngstown State, two of them vs. Jim Donnan's Marshall Thundering Herd. "I learned to appreciate how thoroughly coached his teams are," Donnan said. "They were very fundamentally sound. He'll have a few surprises for Florida, but will be so prepared."
2. Saturday night in New York, Troy Smith likely will become the first Ohio State quarterback in six decades to strike the Heisman pose. "He is matched only by [former Texas great] Vince Young in my experience of college quarterbacks," former Georgia Tech, Alabama and Kentucky coach Bill Curry said of the senior, who has completed 67 percent of his passes and thrown a Buckeyes record 30 touchdowns this season.
3. If the title game comes down to a big kick, Florida's in big trouble. Chris Hetland is automatic from 20 to 29 yards (3-for-3) but awful beyond that, missing 9 of 10 attempts of 30 yards or longer. "That's terrible," former Buckeyes coach John Cooper said. "Ohio State is very sound in the kicking game." Proof: Aaron Pettrey is 8-for-10 from 30-plus yards, including makes from 50 and 51.
 
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Link

Leak: Wins should decide title teams

December 6, 2006
By Ralph D. Russo AP Sports Writer
NEW YORK -- Chris Leak isn't much for polls and computer ratings.
"I really believe that if you're winning games then you deserve to have a chance to play in a major bowl," the Florida quarterback said Tuesday. "That's what it should really come down to."
Leak and the Southeastern Conference champion Gators (12-1) won enough to earn a spot in the BCS national championship game against top-ranked Ohio State. It didn't come without controversy.


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Florida passed Michigan in the final Bowl Championship Series standings on Sunday, leaving many to wonder how many poll voters picked the Gators simply to avoid a Michigan-Ohio State rematch in Glendale, Ariz., on Jan. 8. Leak said Florida earned it on the field.
"To be able to win the SEC title (with) our schedule the way it was, that's a tremendous thing to do," he said. "We feel not many teams could have done that."
Leak was in New York to attend the National Football Foundation awards banquet Tuesday night. He was one of 17 finalists for the Draddy Trophy, given to the nation's top scholar athlete.
The senior is on target to complete his sociology degree in three and a half years.
On the field, Leak threw for 2,729 yards and 22 touchdowns this season while leading the Gators to their first SEC championship since 2000.
 
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ABJ

Gators' QB happy the wait is over

Leak was restless waiting for BCS title game to be set, gets to face Buckeyes

From Beacon Journal wire services

Chris Leak isn't much for polls and computer ratings.
``I really believe that if you're winning games then you deserve to have a chance to play in a major bowl,'' the University of Florida quarterback said Tuesday. ``That's what it should really come down to.''
Leak and the Southeastern Conference champion Gators (12-1) won enough to earn a spot in the BCS National Championship Game against top-ranked Ohio State. It didn't come without controversy.
Florida passed Michigan in the final Bowl Championship Series standings on Sunday, leaving many to wonder how many poll voters picked the Gators simply to avoid a Michigan-Ohio State rematch in Glendale, Ariz., on Jan. 8.
Leak said Florida earned it on the field.
``To be able to win the SEC title (with) our schedule the way it was, that's a tremendous thing to do,'' he said. ``We feel not many teams could have done that.''
Leak was in New York to attend the National Football Foundation awards banquet Tuesday night. He was one of 17 finalists for the Draddy Trophy, given to the nation's top scholar athlete.
The senior is on target to complete his sociology degree in three and a half years.
On the field, Leak threw for 2,729 yards and 22 touchdowns this season while leading the Gators to their first SEC championship since 2000.
They completed their regular season with a 38-28 victory over Arkansas in the conference title game Saturday night, then had to wait until Sunday evening to find out whether the BCS standings had them ahead of Michigan.
It was enough to even make a cool customer like Leak antsy.
``Everybody was real anxious just to find out,'' he said. ``It was kind of a nerve-racking thing. To just sit there and wait to know if you're going to have the opportunity to play for what you dream about as a kid.
``It was a big relief to us. All of our hard work, all the dedication that went into this season paid off. We have a great opportunity to play for a title, and that's all you can ask.''
 
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"Ohio State is one of the weakest No. 1 teams in 25 years," said former Washington State and Iowa State coach Jim Walden, the only Harris voter to pick Florida No. 1. "They played one of the softest schedules of any No. 1 team in memory. They had all summer to get ready for Texas. Then they had 11 weeks to get ready for Michigan."
Click to expand...

Jim Walden's (moron) coaching record:

Washington St. 44-52-4 brilliant .44 winning pct.

Iowa St. 28-57-3 even more impressive .33 winning pct.
 
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25 years is a very long time in college football. But to just illustrate how hyperbolic Walden's claim truly is, here is the first candidate for "weakest No. 1 team" in that span.

1984 - BYU.
None of the teams it played ended up ranked at the end of the season.
(And arguably it's Holiday Bowl opponent suffered from the "We're not in the Rose Bowl" disenchantment that plagued Big 10 teams in the earlier days of access to Bowls other than the Rose).

Any advance (or addition) to 1984 - BYU as weakest No. 1 in the 25 year span?
 
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osugrad21;680047; said:
Link

Is Florida up to the challenge?

By Cox News Service
Tuesday, December 05, 2006 ATLANTA ? The Florida Gators won the SEC and earned a spot in the national championship game. ... But can they hang with the Buckeyes?
YES
1. They haven't played No. 1, but Chris Leak & Co. have taken on Nos. 4 (LSU), 9 (Auburn), 12 (Arkansas) and 17 (Tennessee) in the BCS standings. Give Ohio State the Gators' top-ranked schedule and see if the Buckeyes could do better than 12-1. "Ohio State is one of the weakest No. 1 teams in 25 years," said former Washington State and Iowa State coach Jim Walden, the only Harris voter to pick Florida No. 1. "They played one of the softest schedules of any No. 1 team in memory. They had all summer to get ready for Texas. Then they had 11 weeks to get ready for Michigan."
2. Finals will be a breeze for the Buckeyes compared to cramming for the Gators, who play two quarterbacks and line up receivers at tailback to compensate for their lack of a running game. "They find just enough offense to squeeze out a win each week," former Georgia coach Vince Dooley said. "Florida doesn't have a conventional running game, so they have to be very innovative."
3. Ohio State has the fleet Ted Ginn Jr. at receiver. Florida has a defense full of guys who can run with him. Playing in the plodding Big Ten, the Buckeyes aren't used to seeing athletes like Reggie Nelson and Brandon Siler, the anchors of a Gators defense that held Arkansas' Darren McFadden in check Saturday. "When it gets down to the end of the season and bowl games, defense wins for you," said Danny Wuerffel, the Gators' former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback. "And Florida has a more than solid defense."
NO
1. Florida's Urban Meyer won an SEC championship and a Fiesta Bowl, but he's never coached in a game quite like this one. Meanwhile, Jan. 8 will be nothing out of the ordinary for Jim Tressel, who steered the Buckeyes to the 2002 national title, has won five of six meetings with Michigan and won four Division I-AA crowns at Youngstown State, two of them vs. Jim Donnan's Marshall Thundering Herd. "I learned to appreciate how thoroughly coached his teams are," Donnan said. "They were very fundamentally sound. He'll have a few surprises for Florida, but will be so prepared."
2. Saturday night in New York, Troy Smith likely will become the first Ohio State quarterback in six decades to strike the Heisman pose. "He is matched only by [former Texas great] Vince Young in my experience of college quarterbacks," former Georgia Tech, Alabama and Kentucky coach Bill Curry said of the senior, who has completed 67 percent of his passes and thrown a Buckeyes record 30 touchdowns this season.
3. If the title game comes down to a big kick, Florida's in big trouble. Chris Hetland is automatic from 20 to 29 yards (3-for-3) but awful beyond that, missing 9 of 10 attempts of 30 yards or longer. "That's terrible," former Buckeyes coach John Cooper said. "Ohio State is very sound in the kicking game." Proof: Aaron Pettrey is 8-for-10 from 30-plus yards, including makes from 50 and 51.
Click to expand...

Wow - this guy really did some research, didn't he?

"plodding Big 10" - can you get more cliche'd than that?
"Fl has a defense full of guys that can run with TG II" - how many times will we hear this even though it has been proven wrong every time?
FL's lack of a running game is proposed as a reason they will beat us?
He doesn't even mention the advantages we have on both lines of scrimmage, and in the running back positions, and in our diversity on O.
 
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NightmaresDad;680157; said:
Wow - this guy really did some research, didn't he?

"plodding Big 10" - can you get more cliche'd than that?
"Fl has a defense full of guys that can run with TG II" - how many times will we hear this even though it has been proven wrong every time?
FL's lack of a running game is proposed as a reason they will beat us?
He doesn't even mention the advantages we have on both lines of scrimmage, and in the running back positions, and in our diversity on O.
Click to expand...

Please. Everyone keep telling Urban we are from the "plodding" Big Ten. Keep reminding him that we are slow. Please.

Maybe he'll eventually buy it.
 
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scooter1369;680167; said:
Please. Everyone keep telling Urban we are from the "plodding" Big Ten. Keep reminding him that we are slow. Please.

Maybe he'll eventually buy it.
Click to expand...

Everyone knows the only reason we look fast is because the rest of the Big Ten is so slow, so that puts us right about mid range SEC speed, they should make sure to put their back up offensive linemen at linebacker and linebackers at corner and safety to get the simulated defense as accurate as possible.
 
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akronbuck;678219; said:
wasn't the adjustment it was Carr sucking as a coach and I hope he stays at scum for a long time.
Manningham was open all day but, they went with Hart since, they couldn't stop him either.

He hasn't been using Harvin NOTHING AT ALL compared to that last game. He could be a game breaker player.
Click to expand...
Head....hurts.....can't.....understand.

English, akronbuck. akronbuck, English. Please take some time to get to know each other.
 
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