INDIANAPOLIS –
The game begins at 8:17 at Lucas Oil Field in Indianapolis and will be televised locally on Fox28.
No. 2 Ohio State comes to Indianapolis with its trendy, up-tempo offense piloted by quarterback Braxton Miller (right) and a powerful old-style ground game led by 1,000-yard rusher Carlos Hyde (above) that has been virtually unstoppable.
No. 10 Michigan State (11-1) counters with its typically stout defense, which doesn’t allow many opposing offenses to get in sync and is among the best in the nation at keeping them out of the end zone.
Michigan State will make its second title game appearance in three years while the Buckeyes are playing in their first.
One thing is sure: At least one team is guaranteed a trip to Pasadena.
The Spartans are in an enviable no-lose position. Win or lose, they will almost certainly go to the 100th Rose Bowl Game on Jan. 1. If they win, the trip is a sure thing.
If they lose, that means the Buckeyes will have extended their school record winning streak — the nation’s longest — to 25 and will advance to the BCS title game on Jan. 6. against top-ranked Florida State, their fourth appearance in a national championship game and the first under coach Urban Meyer.
A shakeup at the top of the BCS standings after Saturday’s games could change that scenario. A strong performance by Auburn in the SEC Championship game against Missouri could vault the Tigers into the No. 2 spot, but most observers say that is highly improbable.
The Spartans and Buckeyes will meet for the first time since the 2012 Big Ten opener, Meyer’s first Big Ten game as OSU’s head coach, when Ohio State edged Michigan State, 17-16, in East Lansing.
In a back-and-forth game, Buckeyes quarterback Braxton Miller connected on a 63-yard scoring strike to Devin Smith to take a 17-13 lead in the third quarter. The Spartans added a fourth-quarter field goal, but Ohio State held on for the one-point victory.