Five years later, justice must prevail…again

It was half a decade ago (time flies…), but I still want justice. I’ll never forgive Terry Porter for throwing the late flag and I still curse all things scarlet and gray after seeing Will Allen go low on Willis McGahee late in the fourth quarter of the 2003 Fiesta Bowl, ending the Heisman finalist’s night early, almost killing his career and making Miami’s challenge that much hard after seeming to turn the corner and take control of the game. 

I still hate fat ass Maurice Clarett too. Tubbs averaged 2 yards per carry with 47 yards on 23 carries, yet his 5-yard score in overtime gets about as much TV time as Flutie’s Hail Mary. I wonder how #13 will enjoy the game from the pokey this evening?

Five years after the fact, Miami faithful are still bitching. True, the Canes are beyond down and out while the Buckeyes are on their fourth BCS game since that fateful night in Tempe. No disputing which program is up and which is down. 

Ohio State can boast back-to-back title games entering tonight’s contest against LSU in the 2007 National Championship. Meanwhile, the U is sitting home licking its wounds after a 5-7 season – on the heels of 7-6 last year. Pathetic. 

Some could call the Canes’ venom “sour grapes” but that’d be trivializing it. This whole feeling comes from wanting to seeing a wrong righted. The only thing worse than losing a championship is having one stolen, as well as a 34-game win streak ending prematurely. 

That and a late flag in overtime… and seeing a dirty program continue to get away with murder… and seeing guys in the black hats continuing to achieve success at all costs. Doesn’t seem right, does it? 

Something’s gotta give. Justice has to prevail… again. 

#2 Florida did their part a year ago this week, dismantling #1 Ohio State to the tune of, 41-14 in the title game. A dream crushed. A team embarrassed. Temporary relief for Buckeye haters nationwide. Things got really quiet for a way-too-loud and arrogant fan base. 

Can we expect the same this year? We’ll find out in a few hours. Ohio State enters tonight’s contest ranked #1, but an underdog to #2 LSU. A heavy favorite last year, the underdog more than got the better of the favorite. The Buckeyes have played that card in the post-season, but tonight the world will find out if it’s lip service or if they’re really the more motivated team.

Motivation is the key. Look no further than Michigan working Florida in the Citrus Bowl or West Virginia upsetting Oklahoma in the Fiesta. Both victorious team had something big to play for and proved it. The Wolverines’ senior class was 0-4 against rival Ohio State, 0-3 in bowl games and their head coach Lloyd Carr announced it’d be his last game. It proved the be the difference maker. 

Same with a hungry Mountaineers squad facing the Sooners in the desert. WVU choked in their season finale against Pitt and cost themselves a slot in tonight’s title game. Weeks later, head coach Rich Rodriguez bailed his alma matter for Michigan.

WVU was more than ready to stick it to an OU team who is now 0-4 in their last four bowl games. No mystery who wanted that game more. 

We all know LSU is the tougher team in the better conference. OSU plays in the Big Ten. They didn’t beat a ranked team all year and lost to an Illinois team who USC worked, 49-17. How good can Ohio State really be if they lost at home to this same Fighting Illini bunch?

Conversely, the Tigers are a two loss team thanks to a pair of triple overtime games in 2007. As for the 11 wins, LSU worked some big time teams. 48-7 over then-#9 Virginia Tech. 28-16 over then-#12 South Carolina. 28-24 over then-#9 Florida. 30-24 over then-#17 Auburn as well as a 21-14 win over then-#14 Tennessee in the SEC Championship game.

LSU faced more challenges on any given Saturday than OSU saw all season combined.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m no LSU guy by any stretch of the imagination. I’ll never root for a team who worked Miami 40-3 as recently as 2 years ago. That said, my favorite teams are Miami as well as whoever is playing Ohio State or Florida. That made last year’s title game a lesser of two evils, but this year is a no brainer.

The Tigers may be a two-loss bunch, but have this year’s ‘team of destiny’ stamped on them. Thrilling late comebacks again South Carolina, Florida and Auburn sealed this team’s fate in my book. Even after losing the regular season finale to Arkansas, 50-48 – you had to give LSU a shot at sneaking back into the title game on championship weekend. Winning on the field in their own conference title game, while Ohio State backed in by watching from home and praying for losses.

Miami faithful are sick to see Ohio State back on top the mountain, but the saving grace will come in another loss this evening. Let’s all raise a glass to that, the same way the ’72 Dolphins might celebrate the last undefeated going down at some point every year.

Seeing Ohio State exposed on the grandest stage again tonight will be poetic justice. Karma for 2002 and all the revisionist history and grandstanding that’s occurred since. You stole a title. Smile and say ‘thanks’ instead of seeking validation and convincing yourselves the flag was legit or somehow made up for a missed call earlier in the game.

A Buckeyes loss is more than just a “L” tonight. This would be a huge blow to the Big Ten and weak out of conference scheduling. Jim Tressel is going to take a ton of heat if his team is worked tonight and for a guy whose integrity has been questioned at times, again, nothing would make me happier.

Playing for pride. Talking about a tougher attitude. Silencing the critics. Proving they have just as much speed as the other guys, despite the 0-8 bowl record against the SEC. Ohio State is saying all the right things, but can they do them? Will they pull a Michigan or West Virginia and use motivation as a springboard to a national championship?

God, I hope not. I don’t want to cheer an LSU win tonight, but sure as hell want to celebrate back-to-back title game losses for OSU. If the ‘football gods’ have any heart, the Buckeyes won’t win another championship until the Canes get back to a title game and rightfully earn what was taken away five years ago. My call? LSU 27, Ohio State 16. 

Geaux “team-who-is-playing-the-Buckeyes”. Keep another title out of Columbus, ruin some more dreams this evening and give the fine people of New Orleans something to cheer about with a home state victory tonight! 

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