Return to the Desert

It is well known by now (especially among college football fans), that my Ohio State Buckeyes are ranked as the pre-season #1! I am not a college football analyst by any means and this post will not appear to be anything other than my apparent bias as a Buckeye!

Ohio State looks great on offense with returning starters and Heisman candidates Troy Smith at QB, Antonio Pittman at RB and Ted Ginn, Jr. at WR/KR. I think that Coach Tressel (who usually opts for a more conservative style offense) will not be afraid to use his big 3 on offense to put some big numbers up on the scoreboard.

The question for Ohio State is on their defense who lost 9 starters from last year. But if there is anything that Ohio State has been known for it is their defense and I think that it may take a game or two for the defense to really get its footing, once that happens watch out! For the first time in decades Ohio State could be known for their defense AND offense and that my friends is the combination for a return to the desert for a National Championship showdown. Now the picks:

I believe that we will see a rematch this year at the Fiesta Bowl with Ohio State taking on Notre Dame. Either team could be #1 or #2 at the end of the season. My prediction is that the game will not resemble last year's game in which Ohio State compiled over 600 yards of total offense shutting down the Irish 34-20. The difference then was that OSU had the #1 ranked defense in the nation. So this years game will be much closer and an offensive battle.

My prediction: Ohio State 35 Notre Dame 31