Ohio State??? Hahahahahaha...

I admit it. Sunday night I chickened out. After watching USC blast Michigoon in the Rose Bowel and then LSU torch Notre Dame in the Sugar, I was convinced that Florida was going to beat Ohio State to take the title. I had a blog posting halfway done...and then I had second thoughts and hit delete. I guess I started listening to too many of the so-called experts tell us how badly Ohio State was going to trash the Gators. Problem is, these are the same experts who tried to sell us 2005 Southern Cal and 2003 Oklahoma as the greatest team ever. Before that, they tried to tell us that 1995 Florida had too much speed for Nebraska or that 1993 Nebraska had no business playing Florida State.

In other words, I should have trusted my instinct. I thought better of it on Monday and made a quick prediction on Mavpuck.com, since I didn't have time to blog it. So as Florida ran up and down the field on the Buckeyes, I wasn't all that surprised. They play great football in the SEC, and the Big 10 is continually overrated, plus factor in the extra layoff the Buckeyes had as well as the Heisman jinx.

For what it's worth, here's my top 5 for the 2006 season:

1. Florida
2. Boise State
3. LSU
4. Southern Cal
5. Ohio State

Why drop the 12-1 Buckeyes to 5th? Simple...they not only got beaten, but also exposed. Their win against Texas was nice, but Texas proved to be overrated this season as well. What about their win against Michigoon? Didn't the Weasels struggle to beat Ball State? Heck, let's compare Ohio State's results to Frank Solich's Ohio Bobcats in common opponents: Ohio State 35, Northern Illinois 10; Ohio 35, Northern Illinois 23; Ohio 20, Illinois 17; Ohio State 17, Illinois 10. The Big 10 finished the bowl season 2-5.

In other words, forget the preseason hype and look at what Ohio State did this season on the field. Since nobody beat Boise State, you have to give them credit. LSU was about as dominant as anybody in college football (especially with the BeauxShirt defense), so they get #3. The difference between USC and Ohio State? How they did against Michigoon, and the Rose Bowel gives the Trojans the edge here.