As you'll recall, during what has become almost an annual beat down of Michigan, the 2002 national championship team was honored in the end zone, setting off a wild celebration as the players hoisted Jim Tressel on their shoulders.
The display was in honor of the 10th anniversary of that magical national championship season and as such, it's my distinct pleasure to remind you that today is the anniversary of the championship-clinching upset victory over the supremely confident, and supremely talented, Miami Hurricanes.
Since so much of the talk after the Michigan game was about the latest Buckeye victory, one that capped an undefeated season, I thought today's anniversary made for the perfect chance to encourage everyone to take a trip down memory lane and relive the greatest college football game ever played.
Personally, I was nervous I had jinxed the Buckeyes before the game even started because I was not in my typical environment, which called for watching the game alongside my brother in the friendly confines of my Columbus living room. Instead, we were over 400 miles away, in a hotel no less, in Hampton, Virginia.
Admittedly, like most honest people, I wasn't expecting a national championship run that season so when I was able to score tickets in the fall to all three nights of Phish's grand return to the Hampton Coliseum (1/2–1/4) one show removed from a hiatus lasting over two years, we were forced to improvise (how fitting).
Seizing the opportunity for three insane nights of joy, we packed up the 16x20 of Woody that would normally be propped in front of the coffee table so he could watch the game with us and headed to Hampton with a game plan of selling the highly coveted concert tickets for the night of the game and catching the two concerts on the nights before and after.
Things worked out perfectly as we sold our middle night tickets for enough money to almost pay for the entire trip so we could catch the game in the hotel room. We must have rubbed Woody's picture for luck 200 times and ultimately things worked out as the Buckeyes provided us with the greatest sports night of our lives in the form of the only OSU football title (so far) since we've been alive and kicking.
I remember going to the final show the next night decked out in Buckeye garb and sporting a smile so big that my cheeks hurt. I'll never forget where I was and how I felt watching the game and ultimately once victory was secured. So what's your story? How did the national championship game unfold in your world?
DELUSIONAL MUCH? Fresh off a 45-31 loss to Georgia in the Capital One Bowl, Taylor Martinez and Ameer Abdullah apparently thought the time was right to show the B1G even sucks at talking smack. Somehow, playing one defense provided Martinez with enough insight to speak on the caliber of defense being played in the entire SEC:
"I think the Big Ten, talent-wise, is a lot better, and the defenses in the Big Ten are better than SEC defenses. This was supposed to be one of the top defenses in the SEC, and we pretty much did anything we wanted against them."
Interestingly, what was actually the SEC's sixth-ranked defense, was somehow stilll able to slow down Martinez and the Huskers, holding them to zero points over the final quarter-and-a-half.
Not to be outdone in the coming-off-like-an-idiot department, Abdullah decided to ignore the fact football games are 60 minutes long:
“I don't care if it's 'Bama, I don't care if it's Notre Dame. Georgia was nothing special. We came out, we had 'em tied. We just didn't finish. I feel like we're a better ballclub than those guys. You saw that early. We just didn't finish. We knew they were gonna come out lively and talking. But if you hit 'em in the mouth a couple good times, they were gonna lay down. And that's what we did. We just didn't finish.”
Unreal. I mean, I'm dying to get behind any negative talk about the SEC, but these two need to pipe down unless they want to internally take some shots at their own defense.
STUMPING FOR TIMMAY. It's no secret that Urban Meyer is fiercely loyal to Tim Tebow and rightfully so considering what Meyer's Gators were able to accomplish with Tebow at the controls. Beyond the on-field success, Meyer loves to trumpet Tebow's work ethic and leadership, using him as the benchmark when evaluating just how special a player might be. This year, Urban put John Simon in that same stratosphere and yesterday on Mike and Mike, Urbz took the chance to trumpet Tebow's skills while saying he can be a force in the NFL is allowed to perform in the right system:
“We watched RGIII at the Washington Redskins, Wilson at the Seahawks, the new quarterback at the 49ers, and Carolina, and they are actually running a spread offense in the NFL. So my hope is, and I’m sure Tim feels the same way, is to go play in one of those systems where they let him play.”
Meyer noted he's positive Tebow could thrive if put in one of those systems and playing for a coach that is a believer. I'm not so sure but there's no question variations of the spread are proving successful in the NFL and at least a handful of owners are interested in installing a similar offensive look. Either way, you have to like the latest example of how Urban forms a lasting bond with his quarterbacks and how that translates not only into game day success but hopefully in the recruiting process, as well.
Tank is averaging 19.9 pts and 7.0 rebs in 13 gamesTHE REAL POY RACE. If you follow college hoops with any legit degree of passion, then you know Ken Pom is a boss. His Four Factors and statistical breakdowns can truly take your hoops knowledge to a different level. Plus, using his brand of sabermetrics, analysis and team info is an incredibly great idea when you're in Vegas dropping cash on the opening weekend of the Madness.
The last couple years, he's developed his own algorithm for determing the Most Valuable Player in college basketball. The B1G has owned the award so far with Draymond Green and Jared Sullinger taking home the fictitious hardware in 2012 and 2011, respectively.
This year, another Buckeye is in the race with Deshaun Thomas holding down the 7th spot through January 1st games. It will be tough for Deshaun to claim the ultimate prize but he'll at least have a shot to go head-to-head with no less than five of the top 10 players.
Currently, Mason Plumlee leads the pack while Cody Zeller (3rd), Trey Burke (5th), Jeff Withey (8th) and Ben McLemore (10th) all made the cut. Thomas already had his chance to shine against Plumlee, Withey and McLemore with decidedly so-so results but if he can turn it up a notch in conference play, outshining Burke and Zeller in the process, he could have an outside shot of being the second Buckeye in three years to earn the honor. He certainly looked good last night with 18 points in the 1st half and 22 for the game against Nebraska.
In other news, Ken Pom has the Buckeyes finishing 2nd in the B1G race behind Indiana. He has Minnesota as his darkhorse, placing 3rd ahead of Michigan.
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