Walters Football Site: NCAA Football Tournament: Final Four

Final Four

What is this?
Since NCAA Football desperately needs a playoff, why not create one? Sixteen teams were chosen (11 conference winners and five at-large bids) and placed into brackets. Dan Biggio, Sim Lucien and I will take a look at each game and decide who we think will win the game. The team that moves on to the next round will be the team that gets two votes to win out of the three predictions. The predictions for each game will be posted during the time listed for each contest (i.e. Ohio State-Florida will be posted 7:00 Saturday).

#1 Ohio State (12-0) vs. #2 Florida (12-1).
Saturday, 7:00 ET

Walt's Take:
I hate how I have to break this matchup down. I'll do it with Ohio State-Ohio. Florida-Western Carolina is fine. But not Ohio State-Florida. This is the BCS National Championship, and I'm against anything the BCS or NCAA does.

With that in mind, let me make this quick. Both teams have solid defenses, although Florida certainly has the edge in that department. However, the greatest disparity between the squads is at quarterback. Troy Smith completely trumps Chris Leak and Tim Tebow. I don't see Smith losing to anyone, save JaMarcus Russell. We'll wait next week for that.

Ohio State 24, Florida 21.

NCAA Dan's Take:
Critics can argue that the Gators did not win a lot of their games convincingly. They can argue that Florida was inconsistent at times. But nobody can take issue with Florida's strength of schedule, arguably the most difficult in the country in '06. Florida will be ready to face a tough Ohio State team.

That said, these Buckeyes are simply too good. They have been dominant all season long. The Buckeyes are a very complete team. They have a Heisman Trophy winning quarterback, a very solid rushing attack and good receivers. Florida will be able to score a few points on Ohio State, but look for the Buckeyes to frustrate Chris Leak at times and force turnovers. This game might be higher scoring than some people predict, but I do not anticipate it being as close as the oddsmakers might say. Simply put: Ohio State is a better football team.

Ohio State 37, Florida 20.

Sim's Take:
Here it is, the Big Show. These two teams will be matching strength on strength in what should be one for the ages. Both squads have ferocious, athletic, and physical defenses. Both teams have offenses that can score from anywhere on the field. Both have quarterbacks who are proven leaders and big time playmakers.

The Buckeye lovefest ends here. Troy Smith hasn't seen a defense this fast and physical since last season's loss to Texas. The Gators have weathered the storm of the entire SEC except Auburn. One could make the argument that Florida has taken more pounding this year, and that kind of wear and tear could hurt them. I think it has made them a tougher team. Ohio State, having never been tested this year and having everyone on their bangwagon is primed for an upset.

Florida 24, Ohio State 14.

Mike's Take:
Unfortunately enough, we get to see this match up in November. It is a match up of the widely thought best team and the winner of the hardest conference. Ohio State is an overall better team. Since "southern speed" is completely made up in college football, Florida doesn't have many advantages. If Chris Leak gets pressured he is known to throw some bad balls which happened against Auburn, negating Florida its chance at winning the game. Ohio St cruises again.

Ohio State 28, Florida 14.

Public Poll: Ohio State 61%

Winner: #1 Ohio State.
Ohio State 26, Florida 20.

#2 LSU (10-2) vs. #5 Auburn (10-2).
Saturday, 3:00 ET

Walt's Take:
Can I do it? Please? I'm dying here. I need to make this joke. It's going to be very corny � I know. I'll live with that, just like Dick Vermeil lived with his "Lousaka Polite is polite" joke. But I have to do it. Here it goes: I know the winner of this game. It'll be the Tigers! Bwa hwa hwa hwa hwa.

OK, please stop throwing tomatoes at me. I'm going with my old adage: It's nearly impossible to beat the same team twice in a single season. Auburn won the first time, 7-3, but that was at home. I think LSU gets it done on a neutral field; JaMarcus Russell is the superior quarterback in this matchup.

LSU 24, Auburn 10.

NCAA Dan's Take:
The other Final Four matchup features a pair of SEC teams and two fierce rivals in the SEC West � LSU and Auburn. To anyone who watched the battle between these two teams earlier this year, what a treat. One might think a 7-3 game would be quite boring, but that game was anything but. I would say that contest was one of the greatest college football games of the season. Time ran out on the LSU Tigers, who mounted a furious drive at the end of the game and nearly pulled out victory.

This time LSU will be looking for revenge. The sequel will be equally as intense, hard-hitting and fun to watch. These teams epitomize SEC football; they are tough, physical and feature very tough defenses. Look for a back-and-forth type game, and I think a few more points will be scored this time around. If you like a ton of offense and scoring however, this is not the game for you. Regardless of that, LSU and Auburn in the Final Four will be a great football game. Tigers get their revenge.

LSU 17, Auburn 13.

Sim's Take:
Part II will be just as epic as the original. Auburn was the better team then and things haven't changed. The only thing that could change this game is the location. If it is at Auburn, those Tigers win by seven. If the game is in Death Valley, Auburn wins bye a field goal. Either way, this will not be another 7-3 result, because the familiarity of these two teams will let them open the playbook much more than last time.

How LSU is ahead of Auburn who beat them already is beyond me.

Auburn 28, LSU 21.

Mike's Take:
For some reason, some people believed Auburn could beat a team with one of the best players in the nation at quarterback (Chad Henne), running back (Mike Hart), wide receiver (Mario Manningham), left tackle (Jake Long), defensive tackle (Alan Branch), defensive end (Lamar Woodley), and cornerback (Leon Hall), and not to mention a great linebacker in Prescott Burgess. There are only two teams in the country that can beat LSU right now, and that is Ohio State and Michigan. LSU is a much better team than they were when they played Auburn and Florida. What a game LSU and Michigan would be; instead we have a rematch of two SEC teams that will be controlled by JaMarcus Russell and LSU.

LSU 21, Auburn 13.

Public Poll:
LSU 73%

Winner: #2 LSU.
LSU 21, Auburn 16.

NCAA Football Tournament 2007
Brackets:
Championship / Final Four
Elite Eight - East / Elite Eight - West
Sweet Sixteen - East / Sweet Sixteen - West

NCAA Football Tournament 2006
Brackets:
Championship / Final Four
Elite Eight - East / Elite Eight - West
Sweet Sixteen - East / Sweet Sixteen - West

NCAA Football Tournament 2005
Brackets:
Championship / Final Four
Elite Eight - East / Elite Eight - West
Sweet Sixteen - East / Sweet Sixteen - West

NCAA Football Tournament 2004
Brackets:
Championship / Final Four
Elite Eight - East / Elite Eight - West
Sweet Sixteen - East / Sweet Sixteen - West