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Our Featured Writers (past and present) take a stab at predicting the outcome of this year's Rose Bowl game between Ohio State and Oregon.

Brian White: It's common and understandable that many across the country believe Oregon will beat Ohio State. After all, the Buckeyes can't win the big one (don't tell Michigan that), they've never seen an offense like Oregon's, Terrelle Pryor passes like the pro version of Ryan Leaf, they'll get blown out or find a way to choke at the end, etc, etc, etc...

While there may be some truth to all that, it's not as if the Ducks of Oregon (how's that for a phrase to incite fear among men?) are the second coming of His Majesty Tim Tebow, the Four Horsemen of Notre Dame and an all-time SEC all star squad all rolled into one.

Once the game actually gets underway and the pundits have to shut up for a few hours, I do expect Ohio State's defense to allow a few big plays. I'm not suggesting that Oregon doesn't have a lot of talent on offense, but for the most part the Buckeyes are going to control the line of scrimmage, pressure Masoli on passing plays, and generally be the great defense that they are.

When the Buckeyes have the ball, expect Pryor to do exactly what he did for most of the last 4 games of the year: hand off to Herron and Saine and mix in an occasional pass or run of his own. Sure, there'll be a few attempts at hitting a home run, that won't be new either, but when all is said and done, the talking heads will all be talking about what a "true to form" type victory it was for Jim Tressel. Run the ball successfully, don't turn it over, win the special teams battle, and at the end of the game have more points than the other team. Ohio State 27 Oregon 20

Alex Callos: The Oregon Ducks are by far the fastest and most talented team the Buckeyes have met all season.  With that being said, the Ducks have not seen a defense like the Buckeyes.  In what should be a close, hard fought battle, the legs and arm of Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli will be the difference with the Ducks winning a close one 27-24.

Mike Crosky: Bucks lose unfortunately, 27-21. The running game for Oregon is tough, and I just don't trust the Bucks offense (even against Oregon's defense) to be consistent, especially with such a layoff. I hope I am wrong however. Go Bucks!

The Coach: I'm probably going to go against the norm here but I think the Buckeyes not only win the Rose Bowl, but win it convincingly. Everybody is making a point of the fact that OSU lost the last three bowl games but leaving out the fact that they lost to teams that ended the seasons ranked #1, #1, and #3. In the three bowls before those, OSU beat Kansas State 35-28 in a game where the score didn't indicate the pounding Kansas State received, Oklahoma State 33-7 and Notre Dame 34-20. I look for the Buckeyes to win by 10 to 14 points and will call it at 31-17.

Martin Poston: The Ohio State Buckeyes have been hard to watch at times this season. Their non-conference schedule didn't do them any favors, and the stumble at Purdue was a disaster. I think there are still questions surrounding Terrelle Pryor's maturity, but he is beginning to show that he can lead this team. I believe the streak of under-prepared Buckeye teams in BCS games ends here.  Ohio State 31, Oregon 28

Phil Harrison: I really think that Ohio State is going to show up big time in this one.  Oregon's flashy offense will get a rude awakening when they realize that the defense that they are going against is the best they have faced all year long. I say this, but realize that Oregon is too good not to move the ball a little.  Oregon will not score as much as they normally do, but their up-tempo tactics will make the game a little higher scoring and fall somewhere in the range of the Pac-10 and Big 10 type of game. Ohio State gets the monkey off its back and wins this one: Ohio State 27 Oregon 23

Ryan Kennedy: This game should be fun. Ohio State and their great defense vs Oregon and their unique offense. Although OSU has not faced an offense quite like Oregon's I see OSU ending its BCS bowl losing streak. Oregon has not seen a defense as stout as OSU. It will probably be a close one but the Buckeyse will prevail. Ohio State 20 Oregon 16