Happiness and optimism abound in for all things Ohio State football, and recently Tim May and Ken Gordon indulged a little bit in that revelry.  Is all the talk about what is to come justified?  Should you expect to be high-fiving your buddies this time in 2011?

Vegas thinks Ohio State’s odds are pretty good (at the moment).  Let’s talk about it.

According to the gurus at Bodog, the Buckeyes’ are a better bet than everyone except Alabama.  Other oddsmakers have slightly different interpretations, but they are all relatively similar.  Here is the Bodog Top 15:

2011 BCS Championship Odds

TEAM	ODDS
Alabama	3:1
Ohio State	13:2
Oregon	12:1
Southern Cal	12:1
Oklahoma	15:1
Texas	15:1
Nebraska	15:1
Boise State	15:1
Virginia Tech	18:1
TCU	18:1
Iowa	20:1
Penn State	20:1
Miami	20:1
Florida	25:1
LSU	25:1

Other odds of note:

Other Notable 2011 BCS Odds

TEAM	ODDS
Michigan	50:1
Notre Dame	75:1
Illinois	100:1
Michigan State	100:1
Northwestern	125:1

The field’s odds: The Tide is an top obvious selection as they are bringing back a cadre of starters and stars - Ingram, Jones, McElroy - but I found it slightly surprising that Boise State was not considered to have as good or greater odds than Nebraska, Oklahoma, and/or USC, all teams that lost a significant amount of firepower, including a Heisman winner and future no. 1 draft choice.  As you probably know, I am not supporter of the non-AQ field, but I thought the Broncos may have generated more gambling buzz.

Another surprise for me was Virginia Tech’s relatively low odds considering the league they play in sucks on ice, while they are returning a reputable amount of talent.  Finally, Ohio State plays three teams with odds of 20:1.  By my count, they are the only team to play such (theoretically) contending teams.

OSU odds: While, I share the optimism for 2010 and I agree with most fans that Pryor looked far, far better in the Rose Bowl than he did at any point during the year, we should be cautious about getting too carried away about him.  I thought that the main difference in his Rose Bowl play was that he had time to operate, which I attributed to four things: (1) improved o-line play, (2) balanced play calling that kept Oregon’s defense guessing, (3) a small, average Oregon defensive front, and (4) Oregon’s coaches’ inability to adjust to OSU’s pass-heavy gameplan.  Pryor’s mistakes in the Purdue debacle almost all came when he panicked under the pressure that Purdue brought.  He only faced pressure in his face three or four times against the Ducks and, frankly, he still didn’t handle it well.   On one occasion, he badly missed a wide open Sanzenbacher on an almost certain TD and the other was the Holy Ballard catch.  I realize I seem far more skeptical than most, but I just question whether the improvement in his decision-making and game-management has been as drastic as everyone has declared.   I really want it to happen for him — and the entire offense — but he won’t succeed unless the entire offensive operation (blocking, scheming, play-calling) improves.

So, are the 13:2 odds justified.  If they play as well in every game as they did against Oregon.  The real question is, what are the odds that another Purdue disaster is on the schedule?

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	SOS*	BEST WIN
1.	Alabama	14-0	2	v. (2) FLorida, 32-13
2.	Florida	13-1	15	v. (12) Cincinnati, 51-24
3.	Texas	13-1	38	v. Oklahoma St., 41-14
4.	Ohio State	11-2	50	v. (6) Oregon, 26-17
5.	Boise State	14-0	96	v. (10) TCU, 17-10
6.	Oregon	10-3	6	v. (21) USC, 47-20
7.	Nebraska	10-4	52	v. Arizona, 33-0
8.	Iowa	11-2	41	@ (9) Penn State, 21-10
9.	Penn State	11-2	73	v. (16) LSU, 19-17
10.	TCU	12-1	60	v. Utah, 55-28
11.	Virginia Tech	10-3	13	v. (19) Miami, 31-7
12.	Cincinnati	12-1	44	@ Oregon State, 28-18
13.	Georgia Tech	11-3	10	v. (11) Virginia Tech, 28-23
14.	Pittsburgh	10-3	40	v. Notre Dame, 27-22
15.	Wisconsin	10-3	64	v. (19) Miami, 20-14
16.	LSU	9-4	5	v. Georgia, 20-13
17.	Mississippi	9-4	46	v. (16) LSU, 25-23
18.	Miami	9-4	8	v. (13) Georgia Tech, 33-17
19.	USC	9-4	19	@ (4) Ohio State, 18-15
20.	BYU	11-2	61	v. (23) Oklahoma, 14-13
21.	North Carolina	8-5	32	@ (11) Virginia Tech, 20-17
22.	Texas Tech	9-4	62	@ (7) Nebraska, 31-10
23.	Oklahoma	8-5	22	v. (24) Stanford, 31-27
24.	Stanford	8-5	29	v. (6) Oregon, 51-42
25.	Navy	10-4	82	v. Missouri, 35-13

Well, there it is.  Another year in the books accompanied by another Final Top 25 that barely makes sense at this point.  If preseason poll makes no sense based on lack of play, the final poll makes equally little sense when considered against the backdrop of an entire season’s worth of games.  I mean, when teams have 3, 4, and 5 losses there is a very good chance that a team has defeated and lost to other teams both ahead and behind them.  Feel free to take shots at these rankings but know that I did put a lot of thought into them (not to mention hours and hours of “research”).

Please keep in mind, these are the rankings of teams as I believe them to be at this moment.  It is not a reward for the entire season.

Top Tier: Alabama, Florida, and Texas were clearly the best and most consistent teams in 2009. Despite close calls by all three teams, for me, there is no credible argument for placing any other team with the top 3.  Alabama proved to be the nation’s best, while the difference between Texas and Florida is still unclear considering the Colt-less circumstances with which the Longhorns were required to deal with Tide.  But I rank Florida ahead of Texas for a different, yet similar reason: the circumstances that Florida faced while trying to beat Alabama.

The Tide had spent year waking second since the 2008 SECCG, be it offseason conditioning, spring practice, fall camp, or the entire 2009 campaign, to work on one thing.  Beating Florida.  That proved too much for the fighting Tebows.

Best of the Rest: Ohio State, somewhat miraculously, found their way to #4 in my final ballot.  I am as shocked as you may be. Pryor’s Rose Bowl performance alongside another super solid defensive effort, makes the Buckeyes an extremely formidable opponent.  I do not think they would stand much of a chance against the Top 3, but they appeared capable of beating everyone else out there.  Let me know if you think I am still wearing the Rose-colored glasses.

Answers to some Questions: “Nebraska in the top 10?  Oklahoma ranked at all (much less #23)?  What is wrong with you?”  Didn’t you notice the Big 12’s lackluster bowl performances?”  The answer to all of those questions is “yes.”  Nebraska’s defense is rolling, doing a better job against a Longhorn squad armed with Colt than the Tide defense did without.

If you do not believe in Stanford, then you will not be swayed by the Sooners Sun Bowl victory.  And, quite honestly, any ranking after #10 is a hot mess, which is fairly reflective of reality at the end of the season.

*SOS provided by Sagarin’s rankings

By now you know who is facing whom in all of the BCS games this year.  But for the record here is the rundown:

Sugar Bowl:

Cincinnati vs. Florida

Fiesta Bowl:

Boise State vs. Texas Christian

Orange Bowl:

Iowa vs. Georgia Tech

Rose Bowl:

Oregon vs. Ohio State

BCS National Championship Game:

Texas vs. Alabama

Well, as much as it would seem that the BCS hates the Big Ten, they’re one of only two conferences to get two teams into BCS bowls.  (Partially due to the two “mid-majors” in the Fiesta Bowl.)  I would love to see Texas beat Alabama because I really don’t like the SEC and never have, but I’m kind of getting tired of this whole “Big 12 vs. SEC” game for the national championship.  And I really don’t understand the Fiesta Bowl matchup.  I know both TCU and Boise have been trying to make a case to play for the title, but playing each other isn’t going to get it done.  If anything, I think the greatest interest would have come from switching TCU and Cincy in their respective bowl games.  But I digress.  For the state of Ohio football, I hope that Florida puts Cincinnati in their place by 30 and that Ohio State is able to muscle out a win against Oregon.  Tell me your predictions below in the comments section.

My history major brain is telling me that no Civil War battle ever took place in Oregon.  But, if this were 140 years ago we might be getting pretty close.  Oregon and Oregon State are currently locked in their annual Civil War.  I can’t imagine what those who are devout American-ites would be saying about the rivalry if it was as huge as, say…The Game.  But, I digress.  Oregon hasn’t been to the Rose Bowl since 1995 and Oregon State hasn’t been there since 1964.  No matter who wins, our Buckeyes will be facing two teams who love to run the football and take it up and down the field.  Unfortunately for them, the Pac-10 has this nasty habit of not playing defense very well (part of the reason why USC has dominated the past decade).  Who would you rather see in Pasadena on January 1?  I was rooting for Arizona, but since that’s out of the question, I’ll go with Oregon State for a number of reasons.

Your’s truly just jumped in Mirror Lake for the first time in his life.  It was actually pretty warm.  The last two years it was snowing.  There was a newspaper photographer taking pictures there, so look for me in tomorrow’s Dispatch.  It may or may not happen.  In either case, LET’S BEAT MICHIGAN. (regardless of what terrelle pryor is doing after the last victory.)

I don’t want to jinx us with the picture, but the entire off-season, the entire regular season has led up to today (well, about 2 hours from today).  I will be live tweeting my thoughts and observations on the game, so if you’re a twitter fan pay attention.  Here’s to the first Rose Bowl in the new millennium.  Cheers.

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	PREVIOUS	SOS	NEXT
1.	Alabama	9-0	1	25	at Mississippi State
2.	Texas	9-0	2	52	at Baylor
3.	Florida	9-0	3	42	at South Carolina
4.	Georgia Tech	9-1	5	12	at Duke
5.	TCU	9-0	9	47	v. (20) Utah
6.	Cincinnati	9-0	7	67	v. West Virginia
7.	LSU	7-2	8	17	v. Louisiana Tech
8.	Oregon	7-2	4	6	v. Arizona State
9.	USC	7-2	11	7	v. (24) Stanford
10.	Miami	7-2	18	11	at North Carolina
11.	Ohio State	8-2	19	46	v. (13) Iowa
12.	Boise State	9-0	13	82	v. Idaho
13.	Iowa	9-1	6	39	at (11) Ohio State
14.	Arizona	6-2	14	16	at California
15.	Pittsburgh	8-1	15	70	v. Notre Dame
16.	Houston	8-1	16	94	at Central Florida
17.	Oklahoma State	7-2	20	68	v. Texas Tech
18.	Penn State	8-2	12	72	v. Indiana
19.	Tennessee	5-4	25	32	at Ole Miss
20.	Utah	8-1	24	99	at (5) TCU
21.	Wisconsin	7-2	22	44	v. Michigan
22.	Virginia Tech	6-3	21	4	at Maryland
23.	Clemson	6-3	NR	23	at N.C. State
24.	Stanford	6-3	NR	15	at (9) USC
25.	Oregon State	6-3	NR	9	v. Washington

Let’s Start at the End(zone): The bottom half of this thing is regoddamnduculous.  Once you get past Pittsburgh, it is essentially arbitrary selection.  As soon as you hit the mid-teens all teams look the same: hideously inconsistent, burdened with multiple defeats (one inexplicable), and aiming for a season that will ultiamtely be crowned by a post season appearance sponsored by company that you would not work for.

Am I being too hard on Virginia Tech?  Almost certainly, as two of their losses are to my #1 and #4 teams, respectively.  Oh yeah, they lost to Chapel Hill along the way.  Ick.  Meanwhile, a team they throttled resides at #10.  I know.  I am an idot.

Seriously: Tennessee at #19?  They are only 2-3 in the SEC and played the worst really close game in recent memory against Alabama. How can they even be ranked?

While we are in the neighborhood, should Penn State even be ranked?  What is their best win? Temple?  Northwestern? Could they really beat Wisconsin?

Thank God for 1-3: Eventually, this triumvirate will have to change.  Or, maybe not.  These are the best three teams around, easily.  Could GT really rush for their customary quarter mile against the top dogs?  Will you on TCU, Cincinnati, or Boise State against the Tide or Gators or Longhorns?

The Best of the (2-loss) Rest: The Tigers have lost close games against Florida and Alabama, a distinction they share with Tennessee.  That does not necessarily make them the best 2-loss team, just the least offensive.

And, yes, Boise State is #12.  Does that defense look any good to you?  Not me.  They need to be nuking their competition and, to the contrary, they are struggling for large parts of their games.  I don’t want to hear about the Oregon game from 2 months ago.  One game does not a ranking make.

Alternate uniforms have been en vogue for quite some time, from the NFL to the NBA, from college basketball to college football - North Carolina, Virginia Tech, Georgia, and Tennessee all wore them in the last two weeks to varying degrees of success.  But there are teams that appear to be immune to the fads of sports fashion and impervious to the pressures of hulking apparel sponsors.  Oregon is not one of those teams.  But Ohio State appeared to be. Until now.

Pat Forde mentioned it earlier this week and some brief scouring of message boards reveals the image to out left.  Are the Buckeyes about to break out new jerseys to help their mojo? It bears mentioning that other than pictures appearance on an Ohio State-related site, there is no evidence to suggest that it was designed to be worn by THE Ohio State University, say, during a game against Penn State, in early November, three days now.  None.  It could belong to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for all I know.

Is that a ‘Block O’ at the bottom of the neck?  [/sigh]

Let’s just assume that this is, in fact, the “alternate” road uniform the Buckeyes are going to trot out on Saturday afternoon.  It’s bad, to be sure.  But what about the pants?  Are those going to be red?!  That could be a pure disaster.

I have already pontificated about the meaningless, derivative, and largely uncool “red” end zones.  If these uniforms happen, I may lose it.  Is anyone at Ohio State paying attention?  How would this get past the people that it has to get past?

This is not to say that I oppose all things outside the bounds of the norm.  I think retro uniforms could be amazingly cool, perhaps even inspirational for the team.  And there is plenty for the program to draw from (see below).  What about the 1954 unis, with some appropriate updates (like a face mask, for example)?  I think Tressel would go for that and it would not look like a rejection from a UFL trunk sale.

Update (3:15pm): 1460 just read a statement from Nike that did not confirm or deny the possibility of alternate uniforms.  Apparently The Fan contacted Nike for a comment and the following was provided: “We are always looking for ways to innovate and inspire - so stay tuned.”

Saine flows like river
Hazell knows eloquent game
Russell redemption?

Are you telling me no one else thinks about Ohio State football in haiku form?  Give us your 17.

The object of affection for many Ohio State fans had a big night on Friday.  Lamarcus Joyner scored two touchdowns, including a 93-yard kickoff return, in front of a national audience as top-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas beat No. 2 Byrnes (S.C.).

His play on the field was spectacular but it is perhaps the interview after the game that is my favorite part.  Highlights include this self-proclamation: “Man, I consider myself as a freak of nature, man.”  His highlight reel confirms that statement.  The interview also includes the first time I have heard a player reference the return formation called - Wiper Left.

He is consistent in the post-game department as well:

I am not sure if you call this swagger, confidence, or honesty.  Whatever it is, the Buckeyes could use his skill set at the corner next season.