USC Trojans V Ohio State Buckeyes this Saturday

Yep, we have the first BIG BIG BIG game of the season.

Arguably two of the top programs in college football history collide in Week 3 of the 2008 NCAA college football season as the Ohio State Buckeyes visit the USC Trojans on Saturday.

The Ohio State Buckeyes are on a roll, starting the season with a clean 2-0 slate, beating Ohio 26-14 after stomping on Youngstown State 43-0. They come to Trojans' territory gunning for a third straight win, looking to prove that they still are the team to beat on the college gridiron.

The only area of concern for the visiting Buckeyes is the status of tailback Chris ''Beanie'' Wells who was sidelined with an injured foot in their last game. Wells ran for 115 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries in a season-opening 43-0 win over Youngstown State before getting hurt against Ohio.

He was ninth in the nation last season with 1,609 rushing yards.

STILL, Buckeyes head coach Jim Tressel said he expects Wells will be able to play. The junior told Tressel that he's ''ready to carry 45 times on Saturday'' and like the naïve coach that he is, he believes every word his star tailback says. Hey, he doesn't have any choice but to.

''The only way we can be successful on the road at Southern Cal is be at our best, I mean, there's no way that we can do it if we're not at our best,'' Buckeyes coach Jim Tressel said. ''So I think all of us in the whole locker room recognized after the (Ohio) game that we weren't at our best.''

As for the USC Trojans, they will be led by quarterback Mark Sanchez, who is hoping to get USC back into the BCS national title game this season after quarterback John David Booty was unable to do so the past two years.

The USC Trojans have played in the last three Rose Bowls, including a loss to Texas for the 2006 national championship after beating Oklahoma for the BCS title the previous year.

Both teams have met in the Rose Bowl seven times and are squaring off for the first time in 18 years in the first game of the season between a pair of top-10 teams. USC has won 11 national championships while the Buckeyes have claimed seven.

This should get even Patriots fans excited about football again after watching Tom Brady walk out on them for the rest of the football year.

Can the USC Trojans beat the Ohio State Buckeyes? Visit Bodog Sportsbook for this huge college football game this Saturday.

Ohio State Buckeyes +11 (1.87)

USC Trojans -11 (1.95)

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Ohio State Buckeyes USC Trojans