Crane, Dufner face off over BCS National Championship game

Editor's note: Two PGA TOUR veterans have more than a passing interest in tonight's Tostitos BCS National Championship game between Oregon and Auburn. Ben Crane graduated from Oregon in 1999 with a degree in sociology. His wife Heather was a cheerleader there. Dufner, on the other hand, is a 2000 graduate of Auburn with a degree in economics. He still makes his home in Auburn, too. Small wonder, then, that Crane, who will be in the stands in Phoenix tonight, and Dufner have different views on who will win in this Point-Counterpoint. Join the discussion on Facebook.
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I like being a 3-point underdog. We've got a lot of speed and they're very big, so we'll see how the matchup looks. I think it's going to be a high-scoring game and super fun to watch.

Auburn won't be able to substitute the way it's used to because we run such a hurry-up offense. They normally substitute 3-5 players each down, so they're not going to be able to substitute like that. The players they do have on the field -- if anybody's listening, you better get in good shape because we're going to run you. They're going to be winded, so we'll see how that pans out. I know they're going to tire in the second half, which would give us an open door.

I think it's going to be a very interesting game and I don't expect anyone to really run away with it. I think it's a matchup everyone wants to see because we really don't know what's going to happen.

We finished second (in the BCS) five or six years ago. We've been knocking on the door for a long time, so I kind of saw this coming. I've seen the program building. I've seen what Phil Knight has done to support the program. The program has been getting better and better.
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I think Auburn has a big advantage in size on both sides of the ball. I don't see how Oregon will be able to stop the running game of Auburn, either.

Granted, Oregon has a lot of speed on the outside, which could give Auburn some problems. But I think Cam Newton is a huge problem for Oregon and if they want to win, they will have to figure a way to control what he does running and throwing.

It should be a good game. Both teams are in the mix for a national title for the first time in a while so both teams should be ready to play.

I think it will be a close game with Auburn pulling away later in the game. I'd say the final score will be Auburn, 37-24.