We are down to the last semi-final game - Southern Cal vs. Virginia Tech - with the winner playing Oklahoma....therefore, I officially call to order the Kings of the Roundtable....I have brought together the blogosphere's best and brightest to breakdown college football....the Fab Five are Zach of The Big Picture, Graig of Money Shot, Jon of Complete Sports, Virgil of The Ship of Fools (formerly of Wasting Company Time), and me (Rick) of Stiles Points.....today, only 4 Kings give their views...
Semi-Final Game
#3 Virginia Tech (11-2) vs. #7 USC Trojans (11-2)
USC favored by 7.5
Game to be played at the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans
Zach The Big Picture
SC is hot, hot, hot. Throw out the loss to Stanford and we don't have any doubt who the top team in the country is. USC has a solid QB, 800 solid running backs and good receiver. And Sed Ellis on defense is about as good as they get. Va Tech's D is impressive as well, and Beamer Ball could always lead to some unexpected points. But Sean Glenn will look like a Pee Wee football passer against this vaunted Trojan defense.
USC 35 Virginia Tech 20
Craig of Money Shot
The second semifinal features two of the best coached teams in the nation. This one will not be for the faint of heart as both teams successes are due to their strong defenses. John David Booty will have to make plays as the Hokie defense will be looking to stop the Trojan run game first. Pete Carroll has beaten Beamer Ball before and will find a way to stop the duo of QB's Sean Glennon and Tyrod Taylor. In the end, the Trojans' talent shines and gets them into the finals.
USC 26 Virginia Tech
Jon of Complete Sports
Virginia Tech might have the best defense that USC has faced all year, but they will have a hard time slowing down a Trojans offense that is starting to click. With John David Booty back and healthy, along with the talent at the skill positions (especially in the backfield), the Trojans have lots of options. Oh yeah, and they're pretty good defensively. Virginia Tech keeps it close for a while because of the defense, but they simply don't have the firepower for USC.
USC 31 Virginia Tech 14
Rick of Stiles Points
If you remember a few years back these two teams opened the season and Tech almost pulled the upset....not this time people...Tech has a solid defense, but they will not be able to slow down USC
USC 35 Virginia Tech 14
A decision has been made....So Let It Be Written - So Let it Be Done - the Roundtable rules 4-0 in favor of Southern Cal advancing to the Title Game to play Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl..so check back on Christmas Eve for our thoughts on that game...
Just some random thoughts about random things.....
I believe Carolina was trying to tank some games this year to help their draft position....why would you start Vinny Testaverde for all those weeks....you mean there wasn’t any other quarterback out there?......
Is it me or did Katie Couric put on some weight.....
Does Scott Boras still get a percentage of Arod’s new contract?.....
The new slogan in Ann Arbor - In Rod We Trust.....
I think there is always going to be a suspicion of steroid use whenever any baseball player does something out of the ordinary....
During the course of your day today, smile and tell someone Merry Christmas....
Was I the only person wanting to see the Dolphins lose all their games?.....
Am I the only person wanting to see the Patriots win all their games?.....
Not so fast Dallas fans, you better not be making your reservations for Glendale just yet.....
Isn’t it funny how the Cleveland Plain Dealer is so in love with LeBron James....but when he was in high school they smashed him because some store owner gave him a Wes Unseld throwback jersey.....
Talking about The Plain Dealer - love Bill Livingston’s columnn.....
Marvin Lewis has to be let go after the season....I believe he has taken the Bengals as far as he could - they need new leadership......
Mike Singletary deserves to be the next head coach in Atlanta....
Whatever happened to Forrest Gregg?....
I think Carolina will hold on to John Fox one more year.....then if he has another bad season - it is Bill Cowher’s job.....
Will Matt Millen finally be shown the door since the Lions have melted down over the last half of the season?....
And if anyone sees my girl from CNBC - Maria Bartiromo - tell her I said Hi.....
We are down to the Final Four - Ohio State vs. Oklahoma and Southern Cal vs. Virginia Tech....therefore, I officially call to order the Kings of the Roundtable....I have brought together the blogosphere's best and brightest to breakdown college football....the Fab Five are Zach of The Big Picture, Graig of Money Shot, Jon of Complete Sports, Virgil of The Ship of Fools (formerly of Wasting Company Time), and me (Rick) of Stiles Points.....today we breakdown the Ohio State-Oklahoma match-up...now to our thoughts on today's match-up.....
Semi-Final Game
#1 Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1) vs. #4 Oklahoma Sooners (11-2)
Ohio State favored by 1.5
Game to be played at the old Orange Bowl in Little Havanna
Jon of Complete Sports
Once again, Ohio St. will need to rely on their defense and running game against a very talented Oklahoma team. Chris Wells will see the ball a lot. However, I think Oklahoma's firepower on offense will be a little too much to overcome for the Buckeyes. Sam Bradford leads the offense, and he has a bevy of options, including guys like DeMarco Murray, Allen Patrick, and Malcolm Kelly. They'll make just enough big plays to sneak by and into the championship game.
Oklahoma 24, Ohio St. 20
Zach of The Big Picture
Ohio State plays solid football. Hard-nosed, dull, Big 10 football. Key word: dull. Oklahoma, meanwhile, isn't the most entertaining team in the world, but an exciting, young QB could be what this team needs to win another big game. Who knows, maybe they'll put a hook and ladder in the playbook, too.
Oklahoma 28 Ohio State 24
Virgil of The Ship of Fools
Both teams are very s
trong up front, both are led by stud running backs (Allen Patrick and DeMarco Murray for OU, Chris Wells for OSU) and both have efficient game-managers at quarterback (Sam Bradford for the Sooners, and Todd Boeckmann for the Buckeyes). In many ways, these teams are mirror-images of each other. I think that will make for a close, low-scoring game. In the end, I think that the strength that the Buckeyes have in the front seven will be the difference. Oklahoma did not face anyone of the caliber of DE Vernon Gholston, or MLB James Laurenitis in the Big 12, and I think that will be the difference.
Ohio State 17 Oklahoma 14
Graig of Money Shot
This one should be physical. Both teams feature power running games and stout run defenses. The key to the game will be whether Todd Boeckman will able to move the ball downfield against the best and quickest defense that he's ever seen. Sam Bradford should be able to make a few plays off of play-action after the Sooners establish the running game. In the end, the Sooners defense has too much talent for Todd Boeckman and will force a few turnovers that to points for the Big 12 champions.
Oklahoma 31 Ohio State 17
Rick of Stiles Points 
This is the Battle of Youngstown, Ohio....Bob Stoops was born and bred in Youngstown vs. the city's adopted favorite son - Jim Tressel....Oklahoma was playing as well as anyone at the end of the season.....Sam Bradford has various weapons to utilize which will challenge the Buckeye defense....look what Illinois did....the Sooners will put the heat on Boeckman like no other team has this year....this will show his weaknessed....Ohio State will not go down easy, but in the end, Boomer Sooner prevails....
Oklahoma 24 Ohio State 13
A decision has been made....So Let It Be Written - So Let it Be Done - the Roundtable rules 4-1 in favor of Oklahoma advancing to the Title Game in the Rose Bowl and playing the winner of the Southern Cal-Virginia Tech game.....so check back Wednesday for our thoughts on that game...
