Entering Saturday, Ohio State had a clean sweep of the Associated Press and USA Today polls. All 126 voters ranked the Buckeyes No. 1.
The Harris Poll, though, had two independent thinkers. One of the 114 voters ranked Michigan No. 1. Another had USC at the top. Unless those two voters spent Saturday in a cave, the Buckeyes will be a unanimous No. 1 when the next poll is released Sunday.
It’s easy to identify greatness. And the Buckeyes have it.
While Ohio State breezed to a 44-0 victory over Minnesota, Michigan stumbled against Northwestern in a 17-3 win and USC was stunned by Oregon State 33-31.
The Trojans rallied from a 33-10 deficit, but with seven seconds left, Oregon State knocked down John David Booty’s pass on an attempted two-point conversion.
Few expected USC to survive November undefeated with a slate that features Oregon, Cal, Notre Dame and UCLA. But to fall to a 4-4 Beavers team that had lost to Boise State by four touchdowns? Guess it isn’t so easy to replace two Heisman Trophy winners.
USC’s loss makes Thursday’s Big East showdown between West Virginia and Louisville downright huge. The survivor will become the favorite to take on the winner of Michigan-Ohio State in the BCS national championship game.
The Trojans’ fall also wipes out Notre Dame’s hopes for a national title. It’s not as if the Irish can win over voters in the next three weeks by pummeling North Carolina, Air Force and Army.
If a one-loss team makes it to the national title game, it’ll either be the Southeastern Conference champion, the Michigan-Ohio State loser or Texas. Sorry, Charlie. (That would be Weis.)
At this rate, it’s hard to envision Ohio State losing to any team. (Are the Bears free next Saturday?)
The Buckeyes dominated Minnesota so thoroughly, the difference in first downs was 29-10. And Ohio State rushed for 266 yards, none more spectacular than the 21 quarterback Troy Smith gained on a third-quarter scramble for a TD.
Michigan, meanwhile, played a sloppy game to match Ann Arbor’s horrid conditions. When Steve Breaston wasn’t muffing a punt, he was dropping passes. Freshman tailback Brandon Minor also coughed one up.
Michigan did rush for 202 yards, 215 more than Northwestern. But the precision wasn’t there.
The Wolverines have two more tuneups before facing Ohio State on Nov. 18 in Columbus. It looks like they need ’em.
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tgreenstein@tribune.com
