Buckeyes v Texas in January 5th 2009 Fiesta Bowl

Buckeyes v Texas in January 5th 2009 Fiesta Bowl
Pryor Illinois 2008

Buckeyes v Texas in January 5th 2009 Fiesta Bowl

Arizona has been good for Ohio State who will have played in the Fiesta Bowl five of the past seven years, winning a national championship there in 2002. Now they are headed back to play the Texas Longhorns as underdogs ranked 10th in the BCS after a two loss season that had started with national title hopes.

By Steve Patterson

Texas Motivation

Texas could have a chip on their shoulder when they arrive in Glendale as their 11-1 record puts them in the same company as Florida and Oklahoma who will both be playing for the National Championship this year. But Texas has an even more valid reason to be upset; they beat Oklahoma head-to-head by 10 points during the season.

Buckeye’s head coach Jim Tressel does not feel that Texas will need extra motivation when they battle in January. “He's (Mack Brown) going to coach his kids to do the right things for the right reasons and become as good as they can be,” he said. “I don't think (he will use) gimmicks or 'Win one for the Gipper' or any of that stuff. They don't need that. They're good enough without it.”

Two out of Three

This will be the third time the teams will meet in four years as the teams played a home-and-home contest in 2005 and 2006 with the away team winning both years. Texas beat Ohio State in Columbus in 2005 on the way to Vince Young and the Longhorns finishing the year as National Champs. In 2006, Ohio State returned the favor beating Colt McCoy and Texas in Austin.

Vegas Odds

The odds for the game favor Texas by 10.5 points over the Buckeyes. Look for Ohio State to easily stop the run of Texas while having trouble matching up against the Longhorn receivers. Likewise, Ohio State will try to run the ball with Daniel Herron, Chris Wells and Terrelle Pryor while having a difficult time moving the ball through the air.

 
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