Oroborus, you speak your opinions as if they were absolute objective truth, lol.
I agree that the long layoff doesn't work in OSU's favor. But remember, it was the Buckeyes who shocked the world by beating the heavily-favored Hurricanes back in '02 (another spectacular game, though the pass interference call against Miami near the end of regulation was a bad one, but some bad calls had gone their way too). I would never bet against Jim Tressel or Troy Smith in a big game. They've come through every time. I doubt that Troy will be a big-time NFL player, but in the college game he's clearly the best out there.
I haven't seen any of USC this year, but I'll definitely be tuning in to the ND game. Should be a good one.