Ohio State vs. Notre Dame

By Charles Farmer
Contributing Columnist
Columbus Post

It’s a college football game everyone wants to see, The Ohio State Buckeyes vs. the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame in the desert at the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, a match-up of two teams, which both feature toughness as well as flair. These are two schools that have combined for 16 national championships and both have storied traditions filled with great players and coaches who have passed through their ranks.
A few notable Irish and Buckeye greats include: the Four Horsemen (Harry Studldreher, Elmer Layden, Jim Crowley and Don Miller); Joe Montana, Archie Griffin, Paul Hornung, Raghib Ishmail, Pepper Johnson, Knute Rockne, Les Horvath, Woody Hayes, Ara Parseghian, Coach Lou Holtz, Eddie George, Howard Cassady, Jack Tatum, Paul Warfield, Vic Janowicz, Angelo Bertelli, John Huarte, John Lujack, Tim Brown, Leon Hart and John Lattner.
I’ve heard talk about the Oregon Ducks, who have a better record (10-1) than both schools, were ranked higher than Notre Dame and how they deserved a slot in the Bowl Championship Series. The Ducks even received an endorsement from Pac-10 rival coach, University of Southern California’s (USC) Pete Carroll.
Despite the subtle hints certain members of the Fiesta Bowl selection Committee provided in the press, they really wanted to feature the best match-up possible.
The reasoning behind this comes down to drawing more interest to the game as both schools feature proud fan bases that stretch across the country. While some will attend the game, others will watch via television which is a perfect scenario for the cash driven advertisers who are eager to put their products in front of lots of people. The day after New Years is perfect for the game to take place and holding it during twilight hours will allow people to recover from their celebration festivities.

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