It's almost here. In just three more days Ohio State will take on the Oregon Ducks for a chance to claim the school's eighth national championship and first since the magical 2002 season.
Urban Meyer's third season in Columbus has seen the Buckeyes rack up a national-best 12 consecutive wins as part of a 13-1 slate featuring a 59-0 spanking of Wisconsin for the B1G championship before dispatching of the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Sugar Bowl bringing them to Monday night's date with destiny.
A key factor in both of those wins was the unstoppable force known as Ezekiel Elliott. Against the Badgers, EZE set a career high with 220 rushing yards to go along with two touchdowns. The career mark lasted all of 25 days before he went out and rolled the Tide with 230 rushing yards and two more scores to capture offensive MVP honors.
Monday night, Elliott and the Buckeye offensive line take on an Oregon defense yielding 156.1 rush yards per game, good for just 49th in the land, though that stat may not be as bad as it looks. Either way, Elliott will likely need to have another huge performance if the Buckeyes wish to hoist the trophy when the clock expires.
As such, this week's contest winner will be the entrant who nails EZE's total rushing yardage, or at least comes closest without going over.
The most skilled prognosticator will earn an Ohio's Moon t-shirt and a pair of whiskey glasses from 11W Dry Goods.
As always, leave your prediction in the comments below to enter and be mindful of the small print:
- Must be 18-years-old or older.
- One entry/comment per person.
- Duplicate predictions are ineligible – first come, first serve.
- Deadline for entries is kickoff.
- Any comment edited after kickoff will be disqualified, regardless of the edit.
- Ohio State must emerge victorious because #pride.
