Rose Bowl Skull Session: Get Dumped Then, Oregon

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

It's Rose Bowl time.

Ohio State brought some HEAT with the Rose Bowl Game Trailer pic.twitter.com/HEBCVpkY6s

— Eleven Warriors (@11W) December 30, 2024

Have a good GAMEDAY.

 THE GRANDDADDY OF THEM ALL. Fanaticism: Obsessive enthusiasm, uncritical zeal, total devotion. It reminds me of that one Jameis Winston interview from before a Cleveland Browns game this season: Unwavering faith, ultimate belief, dependence on the Lord. 

With 12 hours until Ohio State and Oregon face off in Pasadena, I have become a complete fanatic. Zero part of me believes the Buckeyes will lose to the Ducks. 

Zero.

I expect Will Howard to continue leading a postseason resurgence for the Ohio State offense, delivering accurate passes to Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate. I expect TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins to continue running hard on their carries, smashing through holes Offensive Line Version 4 (OLV4) creates for them. And I expect the Ohio State defense – the Silver Bullets – to continue being dominant as the front seven pressures Dillon Gabriel and BIA members Denzel Burke, Davison Igbinosun, Caleb Downs and Lathan Ransom zoom around the field like heat-seeking missiles.

Will the score be close?

Yeah, it will be close.

But Ohio State wins 28-24.

Let’s kick 2025 off with a W!

 THE MENU. New Year’s Day is a day for college football. I love college football. It’s the best. Here’s what is on the schedule for Jan. 1, 2025:

 MY PICKS. I don’t know what my record was this year. I don’t much care. But I do care about these ones!

• The Peach Bowl, Arizona State (+12.5) vs. Texas: Come on, Vegas. What’s this spread about? Arizona State was one of the hottest teams in college football entering the postseason. Running back Cam Skattebo has been incredible in 2024, collecting 1,568 rushing yards and 19 total touchdowns, and quarterback Sam Leavitt has three or more touchdown passes in five of their past six games. The Sun Devils have firepower. It might not be enough to beat the Longhorns, but it’s enough to keep it closer than 13 points.
• The Sugar Bowl, Notre Dame (+1.5) vs. Georgia: No Carson Beck and Georgia is still the favorite? Hm. I understand Georgia has championship pedigree – the recent kind, not the nostalgic kind that Notre Dame has – but it’s hard for me to pick the Bulldogs with Gunner Stockton as the team’s signal caller. That’s not even my main concern, either. Georgia’s defense has issues defending mobile quarterbacks (see Alabama’s Jalen Milroe and Georgia Tech’s Haynes King). Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard can move. He becomes even more of a threat when considering what his teammates Jeremiyah Love (7.4 YPC), Jadarian Price (6.8 YPC) and Aneyas Williams (6.6 YPC)  can do at running back. I like Notre Dame to cover and beat Georgia, giving Marcus Freeman the best win of his tenure in South Bend.

 BACK TO THE BUCKEYES. How about a section of Remember When?

REMEMBER WHEN… Ohio State defeated Oregon, 26-17, in the 2010 Rose Bowl?

The Buckeyes controlled the game with a balanced offensive attack and stout defensive performance. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor shined as a passer and runner, completing 23 of 37 passes for two touchdowns and adding another 72 yards on the ground. The Rose Bowl MVP tossed his touchdowns to DeVier Posey and Dane Sanzenbacher, who combined for 11 catches, 160 yards and a pair of scores in the contest.

On defense, Ohio State made life hell for quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who finished 9 of 20 passing for 81 yards and two interceptions. The Ducks had some success on the ground – running backs LaMichael James, Kenjon Barner and LeGarrette Blount combined for 170 yards and two touchdowns – but that success was limited as the Buckeyes controlled possession for almost 42 of 60 minutes.

Ohio State’s win snapped a three-game BCS bowl losing streak for the program. It also marked Tressel’s fourth BCS bowl victory with the Buckeyes, following the 2002 BCS National Championship Game, the 2003 Fiesta Bowl and the 2005 Fiesta Bowl.

REMEMBER WHEN... Ohio State defeated Washington, 28-23, in the 2019 Rose Bowl?

Coaching in the final game with the Buckeyes, Urban Meyer rode off into the sunset with a narrow win over the Huskies thanks to a standout performance from quarterback Dwayne Haskins, who completed his record-breaking season with 251 passing yards and three touchdowns in Pasadena.

Ohio State’s defense held Washington to one field goal in three quarters. However, Huskies quarterback Jake Browning and running back Myles Gaskin – who had 24 carries for 121 yards and two scores and also threw a 2-yard touchdown pass – fueled a fourth-quarter surge that required the Buckeyes to recover an onside kick to secure their win.

REMEMBER WHEN... Ohio State defeated Utah, 48-45, in the 2022 Rose Bowl?

Like Haskins in 2018, Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud capped off his record-breaking season with an incredible performance in Pasadena, completing 37 of 46 passes for 573 yards and six touchdowns. Somehow, Stroud didn’t have the most Herculean effort among the Buckeyes on New Year’s Day 2022. No, that honor belonged to wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who hauled in 15 passes for a Rose Bowl-record 347 yards and three scores.

Ohio State’s defense, which couldn’t defend a parked car for most of the season, once again let its opponent run wild. Utah quarterback Cam Rising passed for 214 yards and two touchdowns and collected another 92 yards with one score on the ground, while Utes running back Tavion Thomas added 67 yards and one touchdown, and wide receiver Britain Covey took a kick return 97 yards to the house.

Thankfully, the defense locked in at the end of the game, allowing Ohio State to outscore Utah 27-10 in the second half. The Buckeyes’ final three points came via a Noah Ruggles 19-yard field goal in the final seconds, giving the game its final score of 48-45.

FUTURE REMEMBER WHEN… Jeremiah Smith followed in JSN’s footsteps, delivering a massive performance as Ohio State defeated Oregon in the 2025 Rose Bowl?

One can hope.

This week, Chris Low of ESPN wrote an article that featured several quotes from Smith, including this one: “I’m just letting everybody know right now that if (Oregon plays) man Wednesday, we’re taking a shot.”

I love him.

Here are some more quotes:

"They're going to see a completely different player than the last time," said Smith, who caught nine passes for 100 yards and a touchdown in the first game against Oregon. "Even [receivers] Coach [Brian] Hartline told me the other day that I'm a whole different player from the first time we played Oregon until now. It started with understanding the game plan and knowing what the defense is trying to do."

Smith said the entire Ohio State team was "pissed off" about the 13-10 home loss to Michigan to end the regular season and played that way against Tennessee. He said the same goes for the Buckeyes' first loss, earlier in the season to Oregon.

"We were ready to get that bad taste out of our mouth, let it all loose and dominate Tennessee," Smith said. "Here's a chance to do it again."

Do it again! Do it again!

 SONG OF THE DAY. "Gonna Fly Now" - Bill Conti

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