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

Other odds of note:

Other Notable 2011 BCS Odds

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?

Let me first admit, my opinion is founded on almost completely selfish ideals.  I do not want to rush out of work at 5:30pm, drive 30 minutes home, change my clothes, to ride  my bike to the stadium, for what?  Marshall?  I am going to get home at 11:30 for no acceptable reason.  I just don’t get it.  I am not being a conservative curmudgeon, as some would suggest, but I find it hard to identify a major positive for this new date.

“A national television audience?”  Doubtful, since the game is likely to be on BTN and I would be willing to bet that the ESPN noon slot gets more viewers.  ”What about the awesome vibe for the game?”  Contrary to often espoused statements, the night game will not create a great opening game atmosphere.  In fact, I think the exact opposite is true.  My guess is there will be less tailgating, a longer game (more commercials in prime time), and far worse traffic.  And, unless you live within a few miles of campus you will not get home until after the local news.  How many kids get to go that game?

I am sure you think I totally suck, but the new Marshall time seems like a needless waste of chest-thumping and pandering to a time-slot created for the have-nots.

Time heals all wounds?  Not really: My diehard recruitnik friends seem to be getting rather restless these days.  I have never dedicated an unceasing amount of energy to following recruiting and it boggles my mind the amount of time that gets devoted to it.  When I say, “They consistently get mega-recruits and heroes of All American games.  What more do you want?”  invariably, with a minutely discernible, yet punctuating pause, they say: “They can’t close…”

Terrelle Pryor is the clear, immediate exception that should be flying through your temporal lope right now.  But what if he is the only exception?  Is the Buckeyes’ coaching staff losing out on game-changing players when the chips are down?  I don’t know, but let’s look at some numbers.

So, while there may be the smallest of somethings to this armchair theory for the current season, there is no historical credibility.  From the looks of the tremendously unscientific data table above, there does seem to be reason for the increased frustration experienced by some fans, and presumably, the coaches but why should we assume it is anything more than an isolated incident.  I may find the number of commitments after December 1st to be the kinda troubling, as more recruiting seem to wait for the all-star games and signing to announce their choices.  And, that stat does yell “closer!”, yet it seems so decidedly unfulfilling to make an argument based on such arbitrary vagaries of the calendar.

If coffee is for closers, I’d say the OSU coaching staff is plenty caffeinated.

Grasping at straws: A friend of mine recently pointed our some similarities between the upcomign season and Ohio State’s 2002 season:

1. Ohio State played in the opening CFB game
2. Played PSU and scUM in Columbus
3. Played the Miami Hurricanes
4. BCS Title Game is at the Fiesta Bowl

It is a long off-season.  I need every distraction/good vibe I can get.

*Courtesy of Rivals.com [HT: Hinton]
**As of Jan. 20

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

Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford:

• 311 attempts
• 1,736 yards
• 5.6 yards per carry average
• 26 TDs
• 0 Fumbles
• 10 receptions
• 149 yards

Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska:

• 82 tackles
• 47 solo tackles
• 12 sacks
• 1 interception

Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama:

• 249 carries
• 1,542 yards
• 6.2 yards per carry average
• 15 TDs
• 30 receptions
• 322 yards
• 3 TDs

Tim Tebow, QB, Florida:

• 182/279 passing (65.2%)
• 2,413 yards
• 18 TD, 5 INT
• 203 rushes
• 589 yards
• 13 TDs

Colt McCoy, QB, Texas:

• 330/468 passing (70.5%)
• 3,512 yards
• 27 TDs, 12 INT
• 128 rushes
• 348 yards
• 3 TDs

Now, who do I think should win the trophy?  Well, if I had a vote I’d cast it for either Ndamukong Suh or Toby Gerhart.  They both played like men among boys during their respective seasons, easily head and shoulders above anyone else at their positions this year in college football.  Who do I think will actually win?  Probably Mark Ingram.  He had a great performance in the SEC championship game on national TV and that game, coupled with his season stats, will probably catapult him to the stage on Saturday.

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.

Psshh.  That proves nothing.

Then man should allowed to celebrate after the biggest win of his young career, right?  This is America and… but, shouldn’t he know folks want to take his picture and put it on the Internet?  That is college 101, no?  Kind of like knowing not to throw late and across the middle while on the run and throwing off your back foot.  Everyone know that.

Oh, god. This sarcasm is not working.

Please don’t let anything bad come from this.  Something tells me Bauserman is not capable of pulling of Krenzel-esque heroics.

[ht: busted coverage]

This may be the hardest piece to write each week.  I have an opinion but it is compulsory in many ways.  I believe in my ranking but I also know they only live for one week.  Instead of attempting to justify this slop, I am just going to talk about it.

Best of a bad lot: Stanford is a the best 7-3 team.  You could make an argument for Virginia Tech or Miami, but you would be wrong.  I can hear you saying, “So, that makes them the 8th best team in the country right now?”  No, but their back-to-back offensive clinics against Oregon and USC gives them a seriously impressive streak.  If they polish off California and Notre Dame in the same fashion, they will definitely be the best 9-3 squad and deserving a ranking higher than #8.

Worst of the best: Boise State continues to excel in the not-that-impressive department. Raise your hand if you think the Broncos are the 4th, 5th, or 6th best team out there.  (I have both hands up right now.)  And, yes, I think Oregon would dispatch of them at this point by more than 7 points.

Uno: Does anyone else think it is weird that there are only two teams with only one loss?