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2006
national championship - Florida at OSU - December
07, 2006
by: VIP.com
vs 
Tony Adams gives an early
first look at the BCS Championship showdown between
Ohio State and Florida. The Gators go into the
biggest college game of the season with a massive
point to prove as they are 7.5 point underdogs
against undefeated Ohio State.
Many people believe the Gators
should not even have the chance to play in the
championship game, and that it should be Michigan
instead.
But in the crazy system that
is college football, the Gators scraped by with
a BCS average of .945. That was slightly better
than the .934 average of Michigan. The two teams
actually finished dead even on the computer rankings,
with Florida ranked higher in the Harris and coaches
polls.
Florida (12-1) won their
way into the number two spot by beating Arkansas
in the SEC Championship game. And while the Gators
credentials are being questioned, they appear
to have the ability to make a game of it against
the powerful Buckeyes in Glendale, Arizona.
Coach Urban Meyer, in only
his second year with Florida, has put together
an impressive squad that survived a very tough
overall schedule.
The Buckeyes, undefeated
in 12 outings, deserve their favorite status,
as Coach Jim Tressel has had his team playing
mistake-free, consistent football all season.
But ironically, it almost fell apart for both
teams in their final games of the regular season.
The Gators started last weekend
as long-shots to make the big game, behind both
Michigan and USC in the BCS Standings. Unbelievably,
USC fell to UCLA in a major upset, while Michigan
did not have a chance to impress the voters as
their season was finished.
Even then, with the door
wide open, the Gators almost shut it in their
own faces.
Florida had to struggle all
the way to beat Arkansas 38-28, with talented
quarterback Chris Leak having a nightmare third
quarter. Leak threw two interceptions, including
one returned for an Arkansas touchdown, and the
Razorbacks had a 21-17 lead after trailing 17-7.
But Leak regained his composure
to get the Gators back on track, finishing strongly
to clinch the SEC Championship and their controversial
berth in the biggest college game of them all.
In the process, Leak broke
Florida’s record for career passing yardage,
a fine performance from a playmaker who looks
set for a crack at the NFL next season.
The Buckeyes last game was
on November 18th, and they had plenty of problems
putting away a determined Michigan squad, 42-39.
That put the icing on their unbeaten season.
While they led all the way
from the second quarter on, the Buckeyes kept
allowing Michigan back into the game. Only some
cool play from quarterback Troy Smith got the
Buckeyes home by a three-point margin, their narrowest
win of the year.
Ohio State has one of the
best defenses in the nation, with middle linebacker,
James Laurinaitis leading the way. Laurinaitis
won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy this week as the
nation’s best defensive player, and he is
certain to make life difficult for Leak.
Summing Up: The Gators have
done well to make it this far, but it’s
hard to see them matching up against this well-balanced
Ohio State team, especially in such a high pressure
game. The Buckeyes will win, the only question
is by how much…
For all College Football
betting lines, visit VIP.com
Posted by miker at November
16, 2006 09:08 AM
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