Examining how games are won or lost is relatively easy to determine because the outcome is often in the player’s hands.
However this weekend is a different story when bowl announcements are revealed Sunday on. Although the Bobcats (7-5) can easily see their peaks and valleys of the season, a bowl bid is not guaranteed and is left up to the bowl committee.
This has been an up and down season for the Bobcats after losing to Louisville to christen the year, Ohio rebounded and won four games, before then dropping three games by a wide margin in November. Last Friday they ended the season on a good note with a win against UMass.
"We’re not assuming anything,” Ohio coach Frank Solich said. “When you’re 7-5, you can’t. Winning this last ballgame and scoring 51 points is doing what we needed to do to put our best foot forward at this point in time.”
ESPN predicts that Ohio will face Middle Tennessee or Rice in the Beef ’O’ Brady’s Bowl in St. Petersburg, Fla. There has also been some speculation that Ohio could also slip into the S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego.
Although the Bobcats need some help from Northern Illinois, which could qualify for a BCS game, a bowl game is not our of reach, especially because Ohio is at the very least being considered for the opportunity.
“I think the scenarios at hand are pretty reachable scenarios,” Ohio redshirt senior linebacker Keith Moore said. “It’s not like were going out on a limb here trying to make a bowl game. I think our chances are better than we thought they’d be so that’s a positive to it.”
As the Bobcats have been lifting weights and running to stay in shape this week, Moore said one the most frustrating aspects of the process is that the decision is out of their hands. Ohio had a similar slide towards the end of the season last year, but they won nine games and had a marquee victory to open the season against Penn State on ESPN.
“It’s kind of frustrating,” Moore said. “(It’s) kind of annoying, just because of the fact that you have to wait, there’s nothing you can do and it’s not really up to us if you go to a bowl game or not. (Its up to) the committee and really just how everything falls into place so we’re playing the waiting game.”
However, redshirt senior wide receiver Donte Foster said the team still has a positive mindset.
“(Sunday) seems like its far away but I believe that most of this team is confident we’ll make it to a bowl game,” Foster said. “If not we had a great run, we’re happy about the other three bowl game we were able to go to, but our spirits are still high, its not over yet.”
mk277809@ohiou.edu
@Brandon_Kors
