The Rose Bowl is being featured as “irresistible force meets immovable object.” It’s Oregon’s offensive juggernaut against Ohio State’s defensive stalwart.

There is no denying each team flashes greatness on those two sides of the ball. But what about the other story, the one you could supposedly call “completely resistible force meets entirely movable object?”

The Buckeyes offense doesn’t garner headlines nor does the Ducks defense. But does that really mean each unit is as flawed as perception allows?

Today, we’ll look at the Ohio State offense and see where the danger lurks. Tomorrow, we’ll probe the Oregon defense and find out what the opposition should fear.

Part I: Is it better than you think? The Ohio State Offense

The book on Ohio State’s offense says conservative, plodding and unimaginative. And if that’s not the book, it’s at least perception. Coach Jim Tressel was roundly criticized for shutting down his offense in the waning moments of regulation against Iowa when there was more than enough time to drive for a winning field goal. It would have made Chip Kelly gag.

But it proved to be a winning formula on that Saturday and guaranteed Ohio State’s Rose Bowl berth.

To gain some perspective on Ohio State’s offensive prowess, let’s look at the numbers in the chart displayed to the right.

The only thing that positively sticks out is Ohio State’s ability to run the football. This certainly fits the image of a conservative, plodding and unimaginative team, right?

The other thing that sticks out is decidedly negative. The passing offense is statistically bad. In fact, it’s among the worst in the nation. But then again, so is flashy, dynamic Oregon who ranks only slightly better in both yards per game and pass efficiency.

So flashy, dynamic Oregon is similar in style to plodding, conservative Ohio State? Well, not exactly. The Buckeyes score 8.4 fewer points per game and the curve of the season has shown Jeremiah Masoli’s numbers to dramatically improve while Terrelle Pryor has thrown fewer passes in the last three games than all but two others from the first nine contests.

But following that same curve, the Buckeyes have become far better at running the ball and, as such, have relied heavily on that part of the game. Since back-to-back midseason games in which it failed to reach 100 yards, Ohio State has rushed for at least 228 yards in the final five games.  They have dominated time of possession and were seriously threatened only once. The fewest rushing attempts in any of those games was 49.

And this five game stretch was not against the weaker part of the conference. The Buckeyes played both Penn State and Iowa during this run and finished against rival Michigan which regardless of current standings still means something.

Ohio State, over the last five weeks, has committed more to the run and less to the pass

It would be surprising to see Ohio State have much success through the air given Pryor’s lack of numbers on the season and the team’s overall lack of confidence in that part of the game. But one could easily imagine an undersized Oregon Duck defensive line getting pushed around allowing the Buckeyes to control the clock as they have done over their last five games.

UO’s defensive line features only two players on the two-deep heavier than 270 pounds. Every Buckeye starter on the offensive line is at least 296 pounds. Tressel is surely looking at those numbers and seeing a possible opportunity that he can exploit.

If he finds success and OSU is able to get to 50 carries, which has worked so well lately, the Ducks could find the Buckeye offense to be more formidable than previously thought.

Sometimes, a game is greater than the sum of two team’s parts. Such is the 2010 Rose Bowl. How else do you explain the fact that both participants will be fielding one measly first team all-conference performer as voted on by conference coaches?

For Oregon, it’s tight end Ed Dickson. The Buckeyes can boast only of safety Kurt Coleman. That’s it. Five Big 10 and five Pac-10 teams have more all-conference representatives than these two league champions.

Forget all-Americans, Doak Walkers, Bronco Nagurskis or any other individual honors. These guys are fighting just to get recognition within their own conference.

The Rose Bowl isn’t a game so often lacking in star power. We’re talking hallowed grounds where the legends have walked. Vince Young, Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart are just the recent headliners.

Okay, sure, some of this is dramatic effect playing on (flawed?) conference voting that basically ignored the individual accomplishments of two champions. And I’m sure coaches Chip Kelly and Jim Tressel spent all of one minute caring about such perceived slights.

But it is odd, isn’t it?

Perhaps the matchup we were supposed to get was Oregon State vs. Iowa. After all, both conference runner-ups placed seven players on their respective first teams. That game would have featured 14 first team players. The one we are getting has two.

And with that said, would anyone choose that over Oregon and Ohio State? Okay, perhaps this audience is a highly biased sample, but I’m guessing there’s not a lot of clamoring for a Hawkeyes-Beavers matchup beyond these digital walls of Duck fandom.

Whatever slight fans, players and coaches may have at first felt can be safely buried beneath a rug of rose petals. These teams should carry the all-conference voting as a badge of honor where “team” matters and “individual” is a passing thought.

On January 1, it’ll be Ducks ‘n’ Bucks and that’s all you need to know. The pieces within those two team names are simply an afterthought.

Note: The Pac-10 includes three more special teams players on its all-conference teams. The Big Ten features both a media and coaches team. The Pac-10 uses only coaches’ selections. For a straight up comparison, the Big Ten’s media vote was not considered.

It was the game the rivalry deserved. And now that it’s over, just a few simple words say it all. The Ducks are going to the Rose Bowl.

Wow.

The game wasn’t always always clean, but it was one for the ages.

Ducks and Beavers traded blows for 60 minutes and as has been the case all season, Oregon wore its opponent down in the second half and asserted itself when the game entered the decisive stages.

Until then, it looked like the Beavers might take control and use a script laid out by the Ducks in 2008 to ruin the home team’s Rose Bowl dreams. But would you believe that when things were at their worst, Chip Kelly would turn to LeGarrette Blount for the first time since the season opener?

Putting Blount in the game while facing a nine point deficit seemed crazy. Turns out, it was brilliant as the big back came up with a huge touchdown to draw Oregon within two at 30-28.

From there, LaMichael James became dominant, turning in a 52 yard lead-taking touchdown run on the next offensive series. The defense began to shine after giving up scores on five consecutive drives between the second and third quarters.

When the game was on the line in the final six minutes, it was fitting to see Jeramiah Masoli, James and Blount all turning in huge plays to ultimately ensure the Beavers would never get another chance.

Oregon State played a great game. Sean Canfield looks like a bonafide pro. The Rodgers brothers are ridiculously talented. And they all deserve a much better bowl than what might be available after Saturday’s games. The Holiday had better think long and hard about the Beavers who would travel well and be an ideal representative for the Pac-10 in the league’s second best bowl.

But I’m sure opponent respect isn’t what the Beavers were after. Clearly, they wanted the spoils of the victor, but Thursday, those were reserved for Oregon.

As the final seconds ticked down and melted into a post game celebration where fans could not and would not leave, the scene at Autzen Stadium seemed surreal even through ESPN’s cameras a state away.

I sat and watched. And smiled. And kept smiling. And then I saw that first red rose, and Oh My God! The Ducks are in the Rose Bowl! That really just happened. How sweet it is.

It’s Thursday, December 3, 2009 and you know what that means.

This is no time to be timid. Oregon State is thine enemy and no mercy can be shown. Roses are on the line, winner take all and while flowers might seem like a silly thing to play for, to a collegiate man, there’s nothing more valuable.

But don’t mistake the Rose Bowl as the only thing on the line tonight. It’s not all these guys are playing for. Mike Bellotti would tell you it’s for the right to live in the state (well, if you actually live there). Co-workers, family and friends are just a tad more bearable when you have the W on your side.

I come into this game more nervous than a year ago. Perhaps it’s because Oregon’s stakes are higher, but I think it has more to do with knowing the Ducks aren’t dropping 65 on the Beavers two years in a row. By default, this game has to be more competitive.

FOTB Pick

But also, the Beavers have their full arsenal on offense with Jacquizz Rodgers healthy this year. Say what you will about the debate between him and LaMichael James running the football, but Rodgers is also the Pac-10’s second leading receiver. He’s dynamic and it’s something OSU didn’t have a year ago.

Still, Autzen Stadium is the security blanket. The defense is far better in front of the home fans and the offense’s worst output in Pac-10 play was 42 points against Cal. The Ducks have been more dominant at home this season than any in recent memory.

At some point, with the raucous energy of the crowd behind them, Oregon is going to have that opportunity to deliver a couple of haymakers. Chip Kelly will put the pedal to the metal and the Beavers won’t know what hit them. I can see this game turning over a 5-10 minute span of defensive and offensive playmaking that demoralizes the orange and black.

But enough already. It’s all words and there’s really nothing left to discuss. It’s been two weeks of rehashed stereotypes and storylines.

The only thing left unsaid is 60 minutes of football. We’re just hours away. Your travel agent is standing by.

The Civil War count stands at 112. It’s about to move to 113. Through all those games, there have been just a handful that have truly mattered at a national level. In recent memory, a Pac-10 title has been at stake four times (that’s since football began in 1994). Before that, I’d guess the total was probably about four all time.

But really, the argument for “Biggest Civil War Ever” really comes down to one of two years: 2000 or 2009?

You can make an argument for either year. I had been thinking 2009 without question. Now that I look back at it, it’s a lot closer than I thought but two things ultimately make this the bigger game: (1) The winner goes to the Rose Bowl and (2) Media attention is infinitely more intense now.

In arguing for the the 2000 game, you could say both teams were more nationally prominent. The records were much better and Oregon was aiming at becoming one of a select few teams to ever go undefeated in Pac-10 play.

Either way, you can’t go wrong.

	Tale of The Civil War Tape
Category	2000		2009
UO/OSU Ranking *	5 & 8		8 & 16
Winner Eligible For Rose Bowl ¥	Both		Both
Combined Record Prior to Game	18-2		17-5
Combined Win Percentage	90%		77.2%
Worst Case Scenario for Losing Team	Holiday Bowl		Las Vegas Bowl
TV Broadcast	ABC Regional ??		ESPN HD National
Venue	Original Reser		Remodeled Autzen
Coaches ±	Erickson/Bellotti		Riley/Kelly
Star Players †	Chad Johnson/Joey Harrington		Jacquizz Rodgers/Jeremiah Masoli
Roses Being Waved From Our Car in Corvallis En Route To Game	A Bushel		None
Soul Crushing Defeats	1		No Freaking Way

* Using AP Rankings.
¥ Oregon State would have gone to the Rose Bowl had Washington lost later that day so technically, the Beavers had a shot going into the game.
± None of the four coaches had/has the cache that Dennis Erickson carried with him off of his Miami Hurricane fame and NFL experience.
† I think the 2009 game has more star power, if only because the media is more intense now. Chad Johnson wasn’t even close to a household name yet and Joey Harrington was a year away from a Times Square billboard.

It happened a week later than perhaps everyone thought, but LeGarrette Blount will be back in an Oregon uniform, finally able to shed the opposing team’s colors from his scout team work.

The story is well known, everyone has their own, immovable opinions and there’s really nothing new to talk about here.

The Oregonian’s John Canzano will literally explode trying to take everyone to task, Duck fans will fall for his bait, OregonLive.com will make some money, most everyone else will say this is the right thing to do, the blog you are reading hates this topic, Blount will play on Saturday and we can all move on.

Oy vey.

In light of the events occurring around midday on November 7, the blog is making some new promises. Can they be kept? Probably not, but I’ll try for at least a day.

This blog will…

• …Never again question the enlightened wisdom of San Jose Mercury News columnist Jon Wilner. He may be a traffic-baiting, uh, (insert word for prostitute), but he was dead on regarding Stanford vs. Oregon. I refuted all ten of his points on why Stanford would win and in hindsight, he went 8 for 10. Even his silly mention of the 2001 disaster seemed spot on given that the score of that game was 49-42. This year? 51-42. My sincere apologies go out to Mr. Wilner, a man whose last name is now synonymous with a curse word in my circle.
• …Stop caring about Iowa, TCU, Cincinnati, Boise State, Florida, Alabama and Texas. Cheered like hell for Louisiana Tech Friday night. Was ecstatic when Northwestern beat Iowa. Then found out I just wasted a week worrying about irrelevant teams. Not so interested in the national picture anymore. Also not all that into writing complete sentences.
• …Call all voters who place USC ahead of Oregon hypocrites. Many voters explained to The Oregonian’s John Hunt last week that they could never put Oregon ahead of Boise State because of the head-to-head result. Now, I’ll wonder about their logic when the Trojans jump Oregon in the polls on Sunday.
• …Completely focus on the Rose Bowl. Never should have thought about anything but it. The Pac-10 is a lot more wide open now and we’ll get into that soon enough. Oregon still has some serious advantages, but for now, the important take-away is that the Ducks and Arizona both control their own destiny. The rest need help. With three games to go, you can’t ask for much better.
• …Wonder how Jeremiah Masoli ended up with at least 500 relatives. I need to eat a lot more if I want to get into that clan.
• …Not explicitly blame Nick Aliotti, but it won’t necessarily trust him either. My final conclusion on the defense is that Stanford did a hell of a job executing a game plan that was tough to defend. Oregon’s lack of size hurt as did its depleted numbers in the secondary. The Cardinal was well-balanced and the Ducks were both confused and outworked.
• …Avoid Bay Area trips no matter how much fun they are. Last year, the blog got caught in a Berkeley monsoon and lost. This year, it got sucked into Stanford’’s beautiful campus and stadium only to get ambushed upon kickoff. There’s something wrong in this region. Must. Not. Come. Back.
• …Not give up on this team at all. Take Chip Kelly’s advice and allow yourself 24 hours to dwell on Saturday and then get over it. We’ve all been watching a damn good football team this season and if you think they’re done, well, exit now. This is a Rose Bowl-caliber team and it’s just three games away from getting there.

Sometimes, blogs get hangovers too, so if it seems the place is a bit dead, just know it’s refocusing and getting back up for another round.

Hopefully, so too will the Oregon Ducks football team.

Eugene was some kind of utopia on Saturday and given how early many got started with ESPN’s College GameDay, there was very little of the day that went unused. For the blog, it started with an early morning flight and ended late at a place that would make ESPN’s Neil Everett proud (Rennie’s of course). For all, it was one hell of a day.

But this isn’t so much about the party as it is about how we move on.

All the excitement and hype of the day and the week preceding may have manifested itself into three and a half hours of perfection that vaulted Oregon into a Rose Bowl driver seat, but it’s all for not if the Ducks don’t forget everything they just did. They’ll need to put forth the same preparation and the same effort for a Stanford team that defends its home turf like a rabid animal.

In year’s past, this was a legitimate concern. Oregon played hangover games all the time and left you feeling frustrated by a group so capable and yet so easily distracted.

Now, not so much. Chip Kelly’s stringent policy that the most important game you’ll ever play is this week seems to really work. It’s fun to mock because it’s so silly to fans and media, but it has a genuine purpose that his team has bought hook, line and sinker.

There was no hangover from Boise State, just a win the following week. After beating Cal in an emotional, “we’re back” statement game, they went right back to business and dismantled a Washington State Cougar team in a way no one else has done all year.

I can almost guarantee Stanford has their full attention, LeGarrette Blount’s status notwithstanding. The Cardinal is a team that has only one loss at home in the last two seasons and is still somewhat in the race for the conference crown.

Lose to Stanford and Oregon opens the door back up for a litany of teams to challenge for the top spot. Win and it’s virtually shut to all but Arizona.

No doubt, a big game looms this weekend, one the Ducks can ill afford to lose. If eight games has been any indication, the Ducks know this more than anyone.

Ten years ago, Oregon football was in a much different place. And so was I.

Just an 18 year old freshman that couldn’t tell Agate from University, I wandered into Autzen Stadium on the night of September 25, just days after arriving on campus. I’d been to a game before when I was about six, but with little memory of the event. Even if I could remember that day, it’s safe to say it was nothing like this.

This was a night game and this was USC.

I’d arrived at the game by way of a standing room only ticket having not been able to secure one of the student variety. Even though I’d been a fan as a kid, at this moment, standing at the top of the student section for the first time, I felt out of place. It was like I was in a room with 45,000 people that knew something I didn’t.

What they knew was what I was about to discover. Oregon football is fun.

My immersion took only a full game and three overtimes. The intoxication that had me at hello involved a roller coaster of sinking feelings and utter joy that would eventually be capped by complete euphoria. On that night, the leg of a backup kicker gave Oregon a 33-30 win and, me, an addiction.

It was an unforgettable moment in the middle of a historical run that saw Oregon increase its win total every season from 1997 to 2001. Included were some monumental achievements including the school’s first ever 10 win season. Oregon’s journey would eventually reach a  remarkable crescendo when it finished number two in the country after winning the 2002 Fiesta Bowl. By the end, a program had been forever changed.

The expectations going forward would be different (and so would the uniforms). The stadium would get bigger, the budget more bloated, the scrutiny more intense and the experience just a little less organic.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s always been exciting and I relish every advancement the program makes. Still, it’s hard to recapture those first moments you experience something, those moments before you realize what it is you’re really doing.

If all of the preceding seems dramatic, just know it’s simply to say, it feels like we’re there again, like it’s 1999 and we’re about to take in something special for the first time.

Maybe it’s the Halloween setting or perhaps it’s the magnitude of what’s at stake as the nation’s attention shines on little ol’ Eugene. Certainly, there’s a growing sense that Chip Kelly, the first year head coach, is piloting the beginning stages of Oregon’s next evolutionary step into college football’s elite.

Whatever it is, the excitement is palpable even if you’re experiencing it through a computer 975 miles away. Something special is brewing in Eugene. You know it, I know it and on Saturday, the whole country will know it.

Washington vs. Oregon enters into a new era this year with two new head coaches. Mike Bellotti won’t be coaching in the game for the first time since 1988. It’s the first time since 2003 that Washington has had a pulse. It seems to me that we need a rivalry refresher. As such, I sat the new guys down for a little Q&A session.

OTP: Coaches, thanks for being here. Fire away.

Steve Sarkisian: Thanks, Nick. First thing I have to say  is, from looking at results recently, you guys have owned us.
OTP: Is that a question?
Sarkisian: Not really. I mean, it’s pretty much a fact and I just thought I’d mention it.
OTP: Well, yes it is and thanks for the note, but I’m here to help you understand this rivalry, not repeat the fact that Oregon has owned Washington with five straight wins and an average margin of victory of just under 23 points, ok?

Sarkisian: Got it. Here’s a question, then. Who is this Rick Neuheisel I keep hearing about? Only thing I know about him is he told us at USC that our dynasty was over. Seemed absurd.
OTP: Now you’re talking. Nueheisel was essentially Washington’s answer to Oregon’s mid-90s dominance when they took 3 of 4 from the Huskies. Scared as hell that lowly Oregon was surpassing their program, they found a coach that could actually beat the Ducks. See, Neuheisel had defeated Oregon twice in bowl games while at Colorado. This included the 1996 Cotton Bowl where he pissed off Oregon with a fake punt in a game the Ducks were getting blown out. He was a natural fit for Washington.

Sarkisian: So how’d it go?
OTP: Haha, famously. Well, until it became a disaster. He went 2-1 against the Ducks and was pretty much hated south of the border. In other words, just what Washington wanted. There was no love between him and Mike Bellotti. He has a shady recruiter that was really good at bending the rules without actually breaking them. But then he did break them. And got fired. It was messy, but along the way he got Washington back to the Rose Bowl and to this date, is still the last Husky coach with a winning season.

Chip Kelly: Didn’t Oregon do something with Rick and a video board?
OTP: Someone’s been studying. In 2001, at the Civil War with Washington recruits in attendance, Oregon repeatedly played a clip of a woman vomiting juxtaposed against an image of Neuheisel. Frankly, I thought it was in good taste, but Oregon later apologized.

Sarkisian: That seems mean. Was it nasty when Neuheisel was around?
OTP: You could say that. There were absurd accusations that Bellotti was using the Huskies list to recruit players. Oregon safety Keith Lewis sparked some spirited trash talk in the media for a couple years. Washington even concluded a dominant win in Autzen Stadium by dancing at midfield on Oregon’s logo in 2002. By the time Neuheisel was fired in the offseason before the 2003 campaign, the rivalry may have been at its peak.

Kelly: I keep watching this highlight video before home games and they always end with the same play. They’re wearing this uniform I’ve never seen with a Duck that looks like Donald. What the heck happened?
OTP: Well, Chip, I’m glad you brought that up. In 1994…
Kelly: 1994! That’s when football started right?
OTP: Yes Chip. Now don’t interrupt me again. In 1994, Oregon came into the game against Washington with only three wins in the series dating back to 1974. The Huskies had gone to six Rose Bowls in that span and Oregon had only recently competed in a bowl game five years earlier for the first time since 1963. In other words, Oregon had been really bad, Washington really good. The Huskies came into Autzen Stadium highly ranked and again gunning for a Rose Bowl appearance. Late in the game, a guy named Damon Huard drove the Huskies on a late drive that was aiming to break the hearts of all Duck fans. Then, this happened.
Sarkisian: What’s “this?”
OTP: You just need to click the link when I post this, ok, Steve? To answer your question, Chip, that “replay” you see every Saturday is your program’s defining moment. It touched off a Rose Bowl run for the first time since 1957 and more importantly, it changed the course of Oregon football. For 15 years since, the Ducks have been a different program. They’ve won 10 of 14 in the series. It was, as you stated a moment ago, the birth of modern Oregon football.

Sarkisian: Did you guys really throw feces and urine at us?
OTP: Ah, Steve refers to the legend that Oregon fans hurled dog feces and urine at Washington players. I’ll tell you what. I’m just going to say it’s true, because I want you to feel frightened next year when you visit Autzen. But if you really believe that, don’t blame me for calling you dumb.

Sarkisian: Ok, I guess it didn’t happen. But I was wondering if you ever heard of this half national title Washington won in the 1991 season?
OTP: Whoever heard of half a title? What does that mean? Does it really even count? I mean, Washington cheated so much back then, it made Tonya Harding blush. Actually, that brings up another point. Washington’s dominant run was killed when it was discovered the Huskies had been rampantly cheating. They were put on probation and the program has never since sustained success like it did for those 20 or so years. This is something Oregon fans revel in.

Kelly: Cheaters, huh?
OTP: Yep, cheaters.

Kelly: Is this really a rivalry anymore? I’ve been here two years and it seems pretty boring.
OTP: Funny you should say that. Used to be, Husky fans wouldn’t acknowledge the rivalry. But for the recent lull, blame Tyrone Willingham. He was big on running a classy operation, but didn’t seem to care much about winning.

Sarkisian: I think I got a solution for that. Have you seen Nick Holt?
OTP: Very promising, coach. I like what you did, there. Frankly, and no offense to you, I thought the Huskies hired the wrong USC offensive coordinator. Lane Kiffin would have been way more fun. But you seem to possess a quality I could get annoyed with and Holt certainly will be easy to hate. Let’s just say I’m intrigued and hopeful.

Kelly: Hey, did you see what I did in the spring? I’m trying to kickstart this thing into gear.
OTP: Yeah, good work, Chip. We need more. Digs at Washington when there’s really no reason for it is completely acceptable in my book and, frankly, I want more if it.

Kelly: I’ll do my best. I’ll start it off with a win this weekend, ok?
Sarkisian: Hey, look out, we’re back!
OTP: No you’re not. Not yet, anyway.