Prediction Time

It's Friday, which only means one thing around these parts. One more day until Christmas. We are about 30 hours away from kicking off one of the greatest rivalries in the Midwest, and I could not be any more excited. Fat Charlie will lead his much ballyhooed troops into The Big House to take on Coach Rod's Michigan Wolverines, in which the winner should gain some much needed confidence going through the rest of the regular season. Before I get to far into this one, there is one other game I want to talk about..

USC vs. Ohio State

Some would say this is the "main event" of the evening, but I think it will be more like 1991 WWF wrestling. More people wanted to watch Mr. Perfect and Bret Hart fight it out for the Intercontinental Title than watch Hulk Hogan take on "Iraqi Turncoat" Sgt. Slaughter. Two huge superpowers in the sport, but somehow you thought that the guys fighting before them were going to be the future of the sport. In this case, Notre Dame would clearly be Mr. Perfect, not fulfilling its potential and dying prematurely. Anyways, back to the game; there a couple key match ups that I believe will dictate the outcome of this one.

• OSU D-Line vs. USC O-Line - The OSU defensive line is what I perceive to be the strength of their team. With Cam Heyward leading the way, they have a couple serious NFL prospects. That being said, USC also is loaded with talent up front. OSU needs to consistently get pressure on true frosh QB Matt Barkley so that he becomes rattled and makes some freshman mistakes. If Barkley is allowed to sit back there and get comfortable, his natural talent will take over and it will be an uphill battle for the OSU defense.
• Terrelle Pryor vs. USC Secondary - Pryor needs to be better in the passing game. USC will eat "Boom" Herron and the running game alive if they are allowed to stack 8 in the box. Pryor did not show me that he could complete the timing routes against Navy, instead showing the 2008 Pryor who relied on scrambling ability and wide open receivers to gain yardage through the air. That will not work against USC. They will track TP down much faster than any Midshipman could. MLB Chris Galippo is a legit future NFL starter, and his spy game with Pryor will be another key match up to watch. If TP cannot loosen up the USC defense than it will be a long night in Columbus.

So who wins? Fight on, Trojans. All the nonsense about wanting the Big Ten to win goes right out the window in this one. I root for four teams: 1) Michigan 2) OSU's opponent 3) ND's opponent 4) MSU's opponent.

USC 38, Ohio State 20

Now to the game that matters most to me. There a couple key match ups that I will be watching in this one..

• ND's Passing Attack vs. UM Front and Secondary - This is probably the biggest match up in the game. Last year, Notre Dame relied on a lot of max protection to afford Jimmy Clausen some time to throw the ball against Michigan's terrible secondary. I look for them to do much of the same this year, only Michigan is much, much improved on defense. If Brandon Graham and company can still get some pressure on JC Superstar, than the Michigan defense will be successful. If they cannot get pressure, than it will be a long day for them. Michael Floyd, Golden Tate, and Kyle Rudolph are too talented to be shut down. The big plays scare me in this one, so if Michigan limits them they will have an advantage.
• UM Rushing Attack vs. ND Front Eight - I say front 8 because I believe ND will stack the box, especially with Junior Hemingway being listed as questionable. If Michigan does not have a deep threat, there is no reason for the Irish safeties to be playing 12-15 yards off the ball. Michigan must be able to run the football and break some big plays off the running game. Brandon Minor is listed as probable, but he is still a bit gimpy so I think we see more of Carlos Brown and Michael Shaw. They both proved they could fill in nicely, but they are still not Brandon Minor. The wild card (or wild cat?) in this situation is Denard Robinson. If Shoelace can break a couple long ones that will relieve a lot of pressure on Tate and the passing game.

So who wins? Who do you think wins?! I like Michigan in this one, if for no other reason than I cannot pick against them. I'll admit, I'm not overly confident about this one, as the Irish have a ton more experience on offense. Somehow though, I think Michigan pulls this one off. I think the main reason I expect that is because of the huge chip on their shoulder. They have a big "Eff You" attitude going right now, and with Charlie "To Hell With Michigan" Weis coming into town, they will be sky high. The crowd carries them through to a victory - Go Blue!

Michigan 27, Notre Dame 21

NRTTS

Coach Deuce