Moments after the USC Trojans had their BCS National Championship hopes effectively ruined in a shocking 16-13 loss to Washington I got to thinking, could the Bucks and Trojans possibly meet again on New Year's Day in Pasadena?
The Rose Bowl, which traditionally pits the conference champions of the Big 10 and Pac 10 against one another, often serves as a sort of consolation prize for programs like USC and Ohio State who perennially have their sights set on a much bigger prize.
Barring some incredible upsets, however, it is unlikely that Ohio State or USC can overcome early season losses to reach the championship game this year.
The Buckeyes, who have been the punchline for a lot of jokes by members of the national media will unlikely get the benefit of the doubt from voters after falling short in another nationally televised game against a top-five opponent earlier this month.
USC, too, will need a ton of help if it is to reach the championship game after losing to a team that did not win a single game last season.
Therefore, the two teams are on something of a collision course to meet again on January 1 if each is able to run the table the rest of the season.
It should be noted that neither the Buckeyes nor Trojans can coast through conference play.
After their bye week, the Trojans will head to South Bend for a match-up against a much-improved Notre Dame squad that has scored no fewer than 30 points in any of its game thus far, and in its second-to-last game of the season, USC will play crosstown rival UCLA.
The Trojans should be favored in the rest of their games.
Ohio State has a similarly difficult schedule the rest of its season.
The Buckeyes look to remain unblemished in conference play Saturday afternoon at home against a somewhat underrated Wisconsin squad that has played well in spurts this season.
The month of November serves the Bucks an absolute gauntlet to close the season.
Road games against Penn State and Michigan will undoubtedly be nail-biters.
Like USC, the Buckeyes will probably be favored in all their games except the match-up with Penn State on November 7.
That said, my question to fellow Buckeye fans, do we even want anything to do with USC in the Rose Bowl?
This Trojan team has already ripped our hearts out once this season, do we really want to return to the site of last year's massacre and run the risk of getting humiliated again, this time in the Rose Bowl in what would be a de facto home game for USC?
The alternative would be to root like hell for Oregon later this month and take our chances with the Ducks.
I, of course, have my own opinions on the matter, but I'd much rather hear from you.
As a Buckeye fan, do you want to play USC again this season in the Rose Bowl?
You can let us know in a variety of ways, check out the discussion board on Facebook, post on our wall, or just leave a comment here. Regardless, we'd really like to hear from you.
No comments:
Post a Comment