BCS Championship game

[parkplace]

We only have to wait one more day. There is nothing better than seeing these two teams jaw at each other. Franks & Spikes comments have just wratcheted these two teams up another notch.

The only thing we haven't seen is one of the teams showing up in fatigues prepared to go to war!!

I myself can't wait. I have gone to the store and bought my normal game day meal: Oscar Mayer wienners, the Wolf brand chili, the grated cheese and my favorite game day beverage. The only thing that's misssing is Lee Corso and other ESPN pundents to tell me who they thinks is gonna win and why.

I expect a great game for a quarter or two and then one team is gonna walk away with this game. I expect a one sided affair, one team isn't giving the other enough respect or just maybe, this one team is so over-confident they don't know how to respect the other team.

I look forward to a Sooner walk away or shall I say run-away as these Gators have spoken way too much trash. Look for Mike Balogan to knoch Tebow into next week, Harvin will limp off the field in the 1st quarter or shall I say crawl off the feed begging for mercy. Spikes will have wiplash and wonder how Phil Loadholt just planted him into the 45 yd line.

The Oklahoma people will see another OKlahoma Land-Run as Florida will not be able to stop the run or the pin-point throwing of Sam "The Man" Bradford. Tim Tebow will be his normal self, running around, throwing his towel into the air trying to get his team to respond but the damage will already be done.

Sooners by 21!! :D :D :D :D & the 8th National Championship will come back to Norman!

Boomer Sooner all the way!

I am looking forward to hearing all your responses and views on the game for the next 2 days. How do you guys like my new signature. :D :D :D

[JimPat]

Signature looks good, Park Place. Congrats again on the contest win.

I myself am getting tired of all the hype. I think they could have played that Tulsa/Ball State GMAC Bowl last week and played the BCS Championship last night (Tuesday). I know Wednesday is not a good night because it's a church night for a lot of people, but I hate that they drag it out another day.

It used to be Jan. 3rd or 4th, then the 5th or 6th, and now the 8th. What next?

Turnovers and momentum will decide the game. If OU can get off to its usual good start, they could keep it rolling. Just have to avoid the turnovers. And if OU can cause some Florida turnovers, look out! :thumbsup:

[Clean Green]

the Florida Tebows vs. the Oklahoma Bradfords
With all due respect to the supporting casts, this is all about the QBs. He who plays best wins. (The effect of turnovers is always a given)

[wishbone_seven]

Can't wait either I am so exicited! I got cold Coors Light in the fridge ready to go! Game is gonna be awesome! The game will be close it will come down to a big play on defense or a specail teams touchdown!

[DusterDad]

From deep in the heart of Florida....

Anger gives Sooners an edge

JANUARY 7, 2009
by Pete Kerasotis

I've seen this look before.

Eyes filled with disdain. Words bitten off through gritted teeth. Anger exposed in flared nostrils.

I've seen it before.

I saw it two years ago. From the Florida Gators. Just before they beat -- and, yes, it was a beating -- Ohio State for the national championship.

Now I'm seeing it again.

From the Oklahoma Sooners.

I'm not surprised.

All this past month, people asked me who I thought would win the BCS National Championship Game. Mostly it was Gator fans asking, expecting to hear validations for what their orange-and-blue hearts were telling them.

"Oklahoma," I'd say.

Oklahoma? Why?

"Because Oklahoma is going to be angry," I'd say. "Real angry. And at the college level, you can't buy that kind of motivation."

The Sooners heard a lot of things during the break. Mostly negative. They heard they have a junior college defense, playing in a conference full of inferior defenses. They heard that while their quarterback, Sam Bradford, won the Heisman Trophy, it is really Florida's Tim Tebow who is college football's most valuable and most outstanding player. They heard that their head coach, Bob Stoops, is no longer "Big Game Bob." And they heard that while they're ranked number one, oddsmakers say the Gators will win.

Yeah, they heard a lot.

And they're angry.

It makes a difference. Just ask Florida head coach Urban Meyer. I know, because I did.

"It's much easier to coach an angry team," Meyer told me. "I'm sure they're very motivated. I'm sure their coaches are playing that lack-of-respect card. I know I did two years ago."

Oh, did he ever.

In Arizona two years ago, Meyer had a mobile bulletin board built. Some reports have it at 25 feet. He had it strategically placed where his team would see it daily, often several times a day. It was filled with newspaper and magazine headlines, clippings, various and sundry stories extolling the Buckeyes and maligning the Gators.

Some weren't even true.

"Half of it was real and half of it was made up," Meyer says in his authorized biography, Urban's Way. "And the half that was made up I signed 'Kirk Herbstreit of ESPN.' "

Two years ago, Meyer also got a copy of Lindy's magazine previewing the BCS Championship Game. The magazine had page after page after page of nothing but Ohio State photos and text. In the entire magazine, only two pages were devoted to the Gators.

Meyer carried the magazine almost everywhere with him, even during practices, sparing no opportunity to note to his players the abject lack of respect they were getting.

It worked.

All of it worked.

By the time the game arrived, Meyer didn't even need to deliver his team a pregame pep talk. He describes the scene leaving the locker room before playing Ohio State as if he were letting loose caged animals.

"It's easier to coach an angry team," Meyer said again. "It's harder to coach a team that's satisfied. You want to coach a team that feels like it has something to prove."

The fact that Meyer understands this, and understands the edge Oklahoma's coaching staff is no doubt tapping into, bodes well for the Gators. Meyer is no dummy. He knows he has to reach deeper into his bag of motivational tricks to counteract a team he understands has more justification for anger.

A team that has something to prove.

"It helps," Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops said, when I asked him if it's been easy to motivate his team, what with so many people discrediting them. "You see it in their focus, their practice, their preparation."

Is he playing the lack-of-respect card?

Stoops eyes twinkled. He showed a hint of a smile.

"Oh, you know," he said, "maybe."

Riiiight.

You just need to listen to Oklahoma's players to know that not only is the lack-of-respect card being played, it just might prove to be this game's trump card.

You can hear it in the players' voices. Like Nic Harris' voice. Oklahoma's defensive back was asked all the same questions.about the Sooners' suspect defense, about their quarterback who won a prestigious award many people feel UF's quarterback was more deserving to get, about Oklahoma's recent spate of bowl losses, about oddsmakers not buying into their number one ranking.

Harris gritted his teeth, flared his nostrils, bit off his words in short, choppy replies. His message? Watch. Just watch.

"We can settle everything we need to settle Thursday, Jan. 8 at 8 p.m.," Harris said. "People can talk all they want. We'll see."

Motivated?

"We'll take care of what we need to take care of between the hashes," Harris added.

From other Oklahoma players, it's been the same reaction.

It is why you're hearing Oklahoma players describe Tim Tebow as nothing more than the fourth best quarterback if he played in their conference, the Big 12. They're fed up with hearing about Tebow. They're fed up with hearing about Florida. They're fed up with hearing that what they accomplished this season was built on inferior football.

They're fed up.

"There's nothing like an angry team," Meyer said.

Nothing.

http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20090107/COLUMNISTS0306/901070315/1065/SPORTS

[DusterDad]

Btw, I want to follow up that article with a bit of my own observation. Back when the Sooners played SoCal and LSU for the title, we were very predictable. Everybody knew we were going to hand the ball off to AD. Heck, even I knew it was coming before each and every play. Jason White was a good QB but he was nothing like Sam. White's knees were banged up to the point a junior high kiddo could out run him. That's taking nothing away from his marvelous accomplishment in winning the Heisman. His trophy spoke for the things that trophy is made for. Self determination on oneself, to get back to the top. To come from two major knee surgerys and do what he did was phenominal. But, be that as it may, OU was ultra predicatable and nowhere near as lethal as they are today. When AD left, our offense suddenly became better just because opponents could no longer key on him alone. The losses against BS and WV were basically let downs. Everybody tried to pin it on coaches or not enough Okies on the team. Sure, both may have been part of the equation but I honestly think it was nothing more than lack of motivation. Seriously! Playing Boise State and West Virginia is not why you come to OU. You come there to play the upper echilon schools in big time ball games, not some team that has the David vs Goliath basis. To add to that game against the smirfs, Paul Thompson, a great individual nonetheless, was simply not the QB that we have today. He was a wide reciever made back into QB after our bonehead 5 star recruit wanted to play hookie. Last year, was a learning lesson for our 20 pound underweight freshman QB who had no running game behind him and a supposed ubber star wide out with an ultra ego who had more thoughts on turning pro and who gave little effort in that game. (Is he even playing today?) Anyway, the bottom line is, this team is different. Much different than teams of recent past. There are Okies aplenty on the starting lineup, all with a hunger we haven't seen in a long time. I'm not predicting a runaway Sooner victory, but quite frankly, I wouldn't be surprised it one happened.

[CBRdrummer]

Here's to the greatest game of this decade...at least.

[parkplace]

Some of my neighbors have decided to come over tomorrow night. I'm gonna go by some BIG cans of Wolf Brand Chili, I hope they aren't insulted but that is my game tradition and I'm not gonna change for them. As for beer, they can bring their own as they are some BIG DRINKERS!! I will though, provide the Champagne for after the game!:thumbsup:

[CBRdrummer]

I'd sure hate for Tim Tebow to spoil your party pp ;).

[wishbone_seven]

I will though, provide the Champagne for after the game!:thumbsup:
Sorry buddy but the Champange will have to stay corked one more year!:thumbsup:

As for Franks comments I guess he is eating some crow and learing some humilaty! As for Tebow being the fourth best qb in the Big 12 is hog wash he proved he could play in any confernce and start at QB! Florida has something specail going on I think Tebow comes back for one more year!

I think Stoops has got to be thinking that what he can do to win the big game with his PLAYERS!

This was one of the best bowls I have watched in a long time! Very well played by both football teams!

CHOMP EM GATORS!