BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Expert: Michigan a temporary No. 2
If USC wins out, Trojans are likely opponent for OSU; Florida also has a shot
Monday, November 20, 2006
Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
If Michigan players and coaches were thrilled with the Bowl Championship Series standings released last night, they shouldn?t be. Though the Wolverines stayed at No. 2 after their 42-39 loss to Ohio State on Saturday, BCS analyst Jerry Palm said they need help if they hope to get a rematch in the Jan. 8 title game.
"It says Michigan is No. 2, but don?t be deceived," said Palm, who runs the collegebcs.com Web site. "Michigan?s position is decorative at the moment; they are an honorary No. 2."
Southern California, Palm said, is the real No. 2.
Palm said if USC beats Notre Dame this week and UCLA on Dec. 2, the Trojans will be OSU?s opponent in Glendale, Ariz.
"If (USC) wins out, they will be the highest-rated one-loss team in the computers," Palm said. "And with the poll margins the way they are, Michigan has no chance."
Florida is the third and final team with a realistic chance to meet the Buckeyes, Palm said.
By clinching a Pacific-10 champion- ship with a win over California on Saturday, Southern Cal (9-1) jumped one spot to second in both the USA Today and Harris Interactive polls, leapfrogging the Wolverines (11-1).
Michigan stayed No. 2 in the BCS by claiming second among computer rankings. But the margins are slim.
That news likely will disappoint Mike Hart, the Wolverines tailback who on Saturday guaranteed a different outcome if the two rivals met again.
"I think we?re both the top teams in the country, regardless of what anybody says," Hart said. "On a neutral site, it would be a big game. If I won (Saturday), I?d probably be like, ?No, I don?t want a rematch.? Any time you lose, you want a rematch against that team."
Buckeyes offensive tackle Kirk Barton said he didn?t think a team coming off a loss deserved to play for a national championship.
OSU coach Jim Tressel stayed away from that debate. He said he thought Michigan was a "very deserving team," but he preferred to let the final two weeks play out.
Florida, No. 4 in the BCS, needs a Notre Dame victory over Southern Cal. The Gators would get a big boost by beating No. 6 Arkansas in the Southeastern Conference championship game on Dec. 2.
Palm doesn?t believe Notre Dame (10-1) can climb past Michigan because the Wolverines pounded the Irish 47-21 in September.
OSU is 9-11-1 against Southern Cal, including 3-4 in bowl games, all Rose Bowls. The teams have not met since a 35-26 Trojans victory in the 1990 regular season.
The Buckeyes have never played Florida.
The win Saturday was OSU?s 40 th over Michigan in 103 tries, with 57 losses and six ties.
OSU is 3-0 in BCS games, all played in the Phoenix area. This season will be the first time the Buckeyes will play in the new University of Phoenix Stadium (capacity 72,886) in Glendale, rather than in Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe.
BCS title game president John Junker and other bowl officials clad in yellow blazers followed Tressel into the interview room Saturday night in Ohio Stadium. They can?t officially extend the Buckeyes an invitation until the BCS pairings are announced Dec. 3.
No matter who OSU ends up playing, it will be the third time the Buckeyes will face a No. 2-ranked team this season; OSU already owns wins over Texas on Sept. 9 and Michigan.
No top-ranked team has played three games against No. 2 in a season.
That?s why the Buckeyes think they?re on the brink of something huge, running back Antonio Pittman said, even if they have to wait seven weeks to make it happen.
"If you win them all," he said, "you?d probably have to say you were the best team in college football history."
Dispatch reporter Tim May contributed to this story.
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