The last time MSU played Ohio State, then-true freshman Terrell Pryor looked like a combination of Randall Cunningham and Doug Williams, as the Buckeyes had their way with the Spartans on their way to a 42-7 smashing.

After several prayers, somehow, Ohio State came off MSU's schedule for two years. That will prove to be crucial this season and is one of four reasons I see the Spartans playing in the 2011 Rose Bowl.

No Ohio State on the schedule is good for MSU

The Spartans for the second straight year avoid the Big Ten’s Team of the Decade: the Ohio State Buckeyes.

How this happened, I don’t know. But I’m as thankful for it as washed-up stars are for reality show checks. Had OSU been on MSU’s schedule last season instead of, say, Purdue, the Spartans go 5-7 and don’t get those extra practices leading up to the Alamo Bowl.

Not playing the Bucks this season is a Godsend for an entirely different reason — its the difference between finishing 9-3 and having a good season and going 10-2 and possibly having a special season.

Make no mistake: Ohio State will win its record sixth straight Big Ten title this season. But the No. 2-ranked Buckeyes will be playing for a much bigger prize than the Rose Bowl trophy. I see Ohio State going undefeated and winning the BCS National Title — partly because I think they’re that good and partly because I don’t think they’ face off with an SEC team in the title game. The Bucks return all their playmakers on offense and feature one of the best, most experienced offensive lines in the country. Add that to a defense littered with NFL prospects and you have the recipe for a national title win.

OSU getting to the title game leaves the door open for the Rose Bowl to select a second Big Ten team, which I believe (Seriously, I do. Stop laughing!) will be the Spartans. That would send MSU to its first Rose Bowl game since 1988, where it beat USC, 20-17. How long ago was that? Michael Jackson bought the “Neverland” ranch that year; “Rain Man” was the top grossing film at the box office; Nintendo released “Super Mario Bros. 3,” which I still have yet to beat; and Milli Vanilli was formed.

One thing not in MSU’s, or any other Big Ten team’s favor, is a new BCS rule going into effect this season that states the Rose Bowl must take a non-BCS team this year (most likely, preseason No. 3 Boise State) if one is eligible and the Rose loses one of its conference anchors. For that to happen, one or both of the anchors (Pac-10/Big Ten) would have to play in the BCS championship game.

I don’t see that happening, though. I think Boise State will lose its marquee game Monday against Virginia Tech. That loss would likely knock the Broncos out of the top 10. With its schedule, it would be next to impossible for Boise to end up in the top two at the end of the season.

With that, I'm picking MSU and Oregon State to meet in Pasadena on New Year's Day.

It’s our turn. We're next in line.

Since State’s last Rose Bowl appearance, eight Big Ten teams have appeared in the “Granddaddy of them All” — Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin.

That says a lot more about how awful MSU has been over the last 20-plus seasons than it does about the depth of the Big Ten.

But it’s our time. It has to happen this year.

One of the reasons I’m so confident about this prediction is because of one of the most undervalued units in college football.

Part III coming tomorrow