Fiesta? Who Needs It!
By Tom Orr
The month off between the Michigan game and the Fiesta Bowl has been a productive and rewarding time for the Ohio State football team.
Matt Wilhelm, Michael Doss and Andy Groom were named All-Americans. The defense was honored by having 11 players named to the all-conference team, either as first or second-team or honorable mention. Six offensive players received similar accolades.
A total of 27 OSU footballers were named to the academic all-conference team.
Jim Tressel was named Coach of the Year by CNN/SI.
And now the greatest honor of all, one that comes as a total shock, at least to me. The Ohio State Buckeyes should clear some space in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center lobby, because OSU is the national champion in football!
It's not for this year, of course. That trophy has been on display in Coral Gables since early September, when the Hurricanes were branded "the best team in college football."
No, this celebrates the triumph of the 1998 Buckeyes who, according to the new criteria for selecting college football's national champions, were crowned earlier this week.
One NCAA representative said, "I can't believe it's taken this long to right this wrong. It was absolutely one of the greatest injustices in the long history of this sport."
In case you missed the press conference to announce the new changes to the rules (I'm guessing that you did-I was certainly unaware of the policy shift) the national title will be played in a contest matching the "prettiest" team and the "hottest" team in the land. The rotating bowl sites will remain the same.
In the event that the hottest team in the country has also accrued the most "style points," and would therefore fill both slots, the national championship game will not be played at all.
Instead, the crowd of roughly 75,000 fans will be treated to a video retrospective about that year's team, set to the theme from "Chariots of Fire" and a spirited panel discussion, featuring the top media figures from around the nation, about where the team ranks among the great squads in college football history.
There will be a game this season, as the prettiest team in the land ("The On-Paper" Champion) Miami, will do battle with the hottest team ("The Ignore Those Unsightly, But Early Losses, Please" Champion) Southern California. Pundits and experts everywhere expect this one to become an instant classic.
This policy is being implemented retroactively as well, stripping titles from such undeserving squads as the 2000 Oklahoma Sooners, the 1998 Tennessee Volunteers and the 1997 Michigan Wolverines.
I'm sure some Buckeye fans are disappointed that OSU won't be playing in this year's Fiesta Bowl, but rules are rules.
Besides, we're gaining a guaranteed national championship, while giving up only the annihilation which the Bucks were sure to face had they been foolish enough to even show up in Tempe.
Before the implementation of the policy, Ohio State had almost unbelievably felt that they had earned the right to play for the crown, simply by winning all 13 of the games on their schedule.
And while that, at least theoretically, would have been enough to merit a Fiesta Bowl berth using the pre-season criteria, it certainly doesn't work now. So here's hoping the Bucks can get their Capital One (nee Citrus) Bowl game over with in time to see how a real college football champion plays.
Not just winning, but doing so the right way, with style, grace and most importantly, an explosive and entertaining offense.
Just like the 1998 Buckeyes. Sure they lost a game, but that doesn't really matter. When they won, they won big, and that's what champions are made of. Just ask the St. Louis Rams.
On to the game that almost was, OSU-Miami...
Am I the only one who's having a tough time picturing Ohio State losing this Fiesta Bowl?
Sure, the Hurricanes are imposing, but this year's Buckeye team seems to have an intangible quality to it that makes a loss very tough to picture.
If Miami comes out and takes a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, the Buckeyes are in trouble, but if the game stays close throughout, Ohio State has a lot of experience pulling out tight games in the fourth quarter. Miami doesn't.
I'm not guaranteeing victory, nor am I saying that Ohio State somehow matches up unbelievably well on paper (much more on that later this month). I'm not even picking the Buckeyes to win (yet).
It's just that the Canes seem to rely quite a bit on psychologically demoralizing their opponent. More than half their games were already in the win column during pre-game warm-ups.
I just don't think Miami will rattle this bunch.
As long as the Bucks survive the opening flurry from the Hurricanes, the pressure is going to mount on the Miami sideline, while Ohio State has absolutely nothing to lose.
And only then will everyone will forget about all the other teams that "should have" been playing for the national title.
By Tom Orr
The month off between the Michigan game and the Fiesta Bowl has been a productive and rewarding time for the Ohio State football team.
Matt Wilhelm, Michael Doss and Andy Groom were named All-Americans. The defense was honored by having 11 players named to the all-conference team, either as first or second-team or honorable mention. Six offensive players received similar accolades.
A total of 27 OSU footballers were named to the academic all-conference team.
Jim Tressel was named Coach of the Year by CNN/SI.
And now the greatest honor of all, one that comes as a total shock, at least to me. The Ohio State Buckeyes should clear some space in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center lobby, because OSU is the national champion in football!
It's not for this year, of course. That trophy has been on display in Coral Gables since early September, when the Hurricanes were branded "the best team in college football."
No, this celebrates the triumph of the 1998 Buckeyes who, according to the new criteria for selecting college football's national champions, were crowned earlier this week.
One NCAA representative said, "I can't believe it's taken this long to right this wrong. It was absolutely one of the greatest injustices in the long history of this sport."
In case you missed the press conference to announce the new changes to the rules (I'm guessing that you did-I was certainly unaware of the policy shift) the national title will be played in a contest matching the "prettiest" team and the "hottest" team in the land. The rotating bowl sites will remain the same.
In the event that the hottest team in the country has also accrued the most "style points," and would therefore fill both slots, the national championship game will not be played at all.
Instead, the crowd of roughly 75,000 fans will be treated to a video retrospective about that year's team, set to the theme from "Chariots of Fire" and a spirited panel discussion, featuring the top media figures from around the nation, about where the team ranks among the great squads in college football history.
There will be a game this season, as the prettiest team in the land ("The On-Paper" Champion) Miami, will do battle with the hottest team ("The Ignore Those Unsightly, But Early Losses, Please" Champion) Southern California. Pundits and experts everywhere expect this one to become an instant classic.
This policy is being implemented retroactively as well, stripping titles from such undeserving squads as the 2000 Oklahoma Sooners, the 1998 Tennessee Volunteers and the 1997 Michigan Wolverines.
I'm sure some Buckeye fans are disappointed that OSU won't be playing in this year's Fiesta Bowl, but rules are rules.
Besides, we're gaining a guaranteed national championship, while giving up only the annihilation which the Bucks were sure to face had they been foolish enough to even show up in Tempe.
Before the implementation of the policy, Ohio State had almost unbelievably felt that they had earned the right to play for the crown, simply by winning all 13 of the games on their schedule.
And while that, at least theoretically, would have been enough to merit a Fiesta Bowl berth using the pre-season criteria, it certainly doesn't work now. So here's hoping the Bucks can get their Capital One (nee Citrus) Bowl game over with in time to see how a real college football champion plays.
Not just winning, but doing so the right way, with style, grace and most importantly, an explosive and entertaining offense.
Just like the 1998 Buckeyes. Sure they lost a game, but that doesn't really matter. When they won, they won big, and that's what champions are made of. Just ask the St. Louis Rams.
On to the game that almost was, OSU-Miami...
Am I the only one who's having a tough time picturing Ohio State losing this Fiesta Bowl?
Sure, the Hurricanes are imposing, but this year's Buckeye team seems to have an intangible quality to it that makes a loss very tough to picture.
If Miami comes out and takes a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, the Buckeyes are in trouble, but if the game stays close throughout, Ohio State has a lot of experience pulling out tight games in the fourth quarter. Miami doesn't.
I'm not guaranteeing victory, nor am I saying that Ohio State somehow matches up unbelievably well on paper (much more on that later this month). I'm not even picking the Buckeyes to win (yet).
It's just that the Canes seem to rely quite a bit on psychologically demoralizing their opponent. More than half their games were already in the win column during pre-game warm-ups.
I just don't think Miami will rattle this bunch.
As long as the Bucks survive the opening flurry from the Hurricanes, the pressure is going to mount on the Miami sideline, while Ohio State has absolutely nothing to lose.
And only then will everyone will forget about all the other teams that "should have" been playing for the national title.
