SAN FRANCISCO - When Worrell Williams was a star high school linebacker in Sacramento, his college choice came down to nearby California or exotic Miami, where his older brother was a star.
Although he decided to stay close to home, Williams knows more than most of his fellow Golden Bears about the unique Miami mystique they'll face in the Emerald Bowl.
"That's an amazing program," Williams said. "With the history they have there, and just the whole atmosphere around the University of Miami, it's an honor to be on the same field with them. But still, we also think we can beat them. We're going in expecting to win."
A baseball stadium packed with shivering Cal fans will have much the same thoughts Saturday night when the Golden Bears (8-4) essentially host Miami (7-5) in the seventh edition of the game, but the first featuring one of the Bay Area's two Pac-10 schools.
The Bears traversed the Bay Bridge repeatedly this week, going from a hotel in the city to their regular practice fields in Berkeley to prepare for their sixth straight bowl appearance under coach Jeff Tedford. Yet Tedford doesn't see a huge advantage in being home, aside from a free trip to Alcatraz and the support of Cal's fans, who snapped up every available ticket - including roughly half of Miami's allotment.
"These are two very evenly matched teams, actually," said Tedford, who's 4-1 in bowl games. "Both of them have a lot of speed. All the speed that's on the field is going to be very exciting for our fans."
After missing the postseason in 2007 in head coach Randy Shannon's debut campaign, Miami was eager to get back into bowl action, even if it meant traveling across the country for the holidays and practicing at City College of San Francisco in the bone-chilling rainy weather for which the city is known.
The Hurricanes lost their last two games and missed the chance to play for the ACC championship, but Cal's mix of speed and experience - along with its 3-4 defense - provides plenty of challenges to a program hoping to take its biggest step forward in Shannon's rebuilding project.
"I watch football late at night, and I see a lot of Pac-10 games," Shannon said. "We know about Cal. They're a very run-oriented team, but they can take shots downfield as well. There's going to be a lot of speed on both sides, but you'll also see two tough teams. I know it's going to be a great TV game, that's for sure."
Miami hasn't played in California since the 2002 Rose Bowl victory that completed its national championship run in the 2001 season, and the Hurricanes haven't faced Cal since 1990. Yet the Bears know all about them, with linebacker Zack Follett clearly remembering Clinton Portis, Jeremy Shockey, Ed Reed and various other stars of that title team.
"They signify college football, basically," Follett said. "I remember when they won that championship, I had my Miami sweat shirt on. I'm sure every kid did at that time, even out here in California. They're just cool."
The current Hurricanes' biggest concern might be at quarterback, where baby-faced freshman Jacory Harris will make his second career start. Harris played extensively this season behind Robert Marve, who was suspended for the Emerald Bowl for missing classes and is believed to be weighing his transfer options since it's probable he wouldn't be Miami's starter next season.
But it's tough to rattle Harris, who hasn't lost a start in his last three years of high school and college ball.
"I'm not worried about the game, not having any butterflies," Harris said. "There's a standard to live up to, but it's also just a game, and it's going to be fun."
Cal also made a change in its never-ending quarterback competition when Nate Longshore was promoted past Kevin Riley for the final time this week. Longshore, the often-booed senior, spent most of the regular season behind Riley, although Longshore started three games and played most of the finale against Washington.
With Tedford unable to settle on a quarterback this season, the Bears' offense has excelled because of running back Jahvid Best, the fleet-footed sophomore who hopes to nail down the Pac-10 rushing title with one last big game. Best averages 8.0 yards per carry after inflating his stats a bit with 311 yards during the blowout finale against the Huskies, but his speed and elusiveness are entirely real.
Miami might be better equipped than most defenses to slow down Best. Team speed is among the Hurricanes' greatest assets.
Mash versus dash: If the Champs Sports Bowl were a horse race, Florida State thinks it would be easy to handicap.
"It's kind of the thoroughbreds against Clydesdales," said Florida State defensive end Everette Brown, leaving no doubt he's sure it's the Seminoles with the pure speed in their Saturday matchup against Wisconsin in Orlando.
The Badgers aren't buying the stereotype.
"Which one are we?" Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema asked, sounding miffed. "We have speed, too."
Badger linebacker DeAndre Levy simply laughed at the comparison.
"It's all good," he said. "We'll just send them to the glue factory."
Game on.
There's more to this matchup than debating brawn vs. speed, though, including how some players perform in a game that means plenty to both teams.
Wisconsin wants to finish strong after an 8-5 season that saw the Badgers drop from a No. 8 national ranking to out of the AP poll after losing their first four Big Ten games.
Florida State is trying to win nine games for the first time in four seasons and give Bobby Bowden redemption. With a win, Bowden may retire and turn the job over to offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher, though the 79-year-old legend has shown no indication of doing so. FSU signed Fisher to an extension this season, with the stipulation that he will succeed Bowden by 2010.
"It's been a while since Florida State won nine games," Florida State quarterback Christian Ponder said. "A win would be a great way to head into the offseason."
Both quarterbacks figure to be under scrutiny.
Ponder, a sophomore, returns from injury to direct a Seminoles attack predicated on his ability to run and spread the field.
Bowden said he expects the time off since the Seminoles fell to Florida in late November to lead to a crisper attack.
"There've been too many dropped passes, too much of not being on the same page," he said.
FSU's passing attack ranks 87th in the nation with a 192-yard-per-game average. Ponder is 89th in pass efficiency, completing 55 percent of his passes with 13 INTs and 12 TDs.
Wisconsin junior Dustin Sherer didn't throw his first TD pass until mid-October, a month after replacing injured starter Allen Evridge. He's completed 55 percent of his passes, with five TDs and five INTs.
Ohio State aware of lack of respect: Ohio State coach Jim Tressel is aware of all the snickering taking place behind his back, directed at his team's miserable failures in recent big games.
It seems most college football fans and media observers consider the Buckeyes a bunch of overrated chokers who cannot compete with the nation's best teams. They've come to that conclusion because the Buckeyes have played poorly in four nationally televised games over the past three seasons.
But Tressel said he doesn't feel any personal pressure to deliver a win when the Buckeyes take on Texas in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 5.
"If we do, that will be wonderful. It won't change my life," he said during the team's bowl preparations. "If we don't, that will be disappointing, but it won't change my life. You might write some bad things about me, but I'll get over it. So, no, I don't feel a pressure."
The players are well aware that most of America has little respect for them.
"We're always a great program and we have great talent," safety Kurt Coleman said of the public perception of the Buckeyes. "The last two years, we haven't shown up the way we needed to. I think this year it's a whole new team, we're out there playing Texas on the 5th and it'll be a great game. I think we'll be able to change the perception then."
The case against the Buckeyes begins with the 2006 national title game, when Florida dominated in every dimension while pounding Ohio State 41-14. With a cocky, talented lineup that included Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Troy Smith, the Buckeyes were actually favored going into that landslide loss.
Then came last year, when the Buckeyes muddled through a mediocre schedule, losing their final home game to Illinois. They were No. 8 in the Bowl Championship Series rankings after that setback, but then all the tumblers started to fall into place for them. As one team after another in front of them lost, they climbed until they were No. 1 in the final BCS rankings, earning a spot opposite a two-loss LSU team in the national championship game.
However, the Buckeyes fell to 0-9 against Southeastern Conference teams in the BCS title game, losing 38-24 in a game that wasn't nearly as close as the final score might indicate. They led 10-0 and scored the final touchdown, meaning they were outscored 38-7 the rest of the game.
The disappointments kept coming this season.
Ohio State faced only two teams comparable in talent, and lost both times. The fifth-ranked Buckeyes were humiliated 35-3 in a much anticipated showdown in Los Angeles against then-No. 1 Southern California on Sept. 13. They were without top rusher Chris "Beanie" Wells, who was out with a foot injury, but were badly beaten in every facet after taking a 3-0 lead.
They came back to win their next five games to get back to No. 10 in The Associated Press Top 25, only to lose at home to then-No. 3 Penn State, 13-6. In that game, Ohio State had great difficulty moving the ball because of the inefficiency of freshman quarterback Terrelle Pryor and a stilted game plan, while Penn State lost its starting quarterback (Daryll Clark) but backup Pat Devlin (who has since announced he's transferring) led the Nittany Lions to 10 points in the final 6:25.
So the Buckeyes enter the Fiesta Bowl as an afterthought. Their opponent is a team that many consider the best in the country but which was deprived of a shot at the national title because of the vagaries of the BCS.
No wonder oddsmakers have tabbed the Longhorns as an 8 1/2-point favorite.
The Buckeyes say they are tired of all the putdowns and slights.
"If you have enough people saying negative things and they're trying to back you down in a corner or make you feel small, I think that is when animals or people alike are dangerous," Ohio State punter A.J. Trapasso said. "They're saying that this Fiesta Bowl is the final time for us to get blown out and how it will not be much of a game, but I think people will be surprised how hard we will come out."
Tight end Rory Nicol recognizes the only one way to end all the Buckeye bashing is to win a game that means something.
"In the eye of the public, I am sure that we do (have to win) or they are really just going to flip the script," he said.