Rose Bowl 2012: 5 Keys to Victory for Oregon and Wisconsin

The Rose Bowl this season has the makings of being another classic coming off the TCU and Wisconsin thriller.

The Ducks and Badgers feature two of the most explosive offenses in the country with the ability to score on any given play.

So, what are the five biggest keys to the Rose Bowl, and who will walk away as the winners in Pasadena?

Third-Down Efficiency

The Badgers are currently third in the country when it comes down to a third-down and roll up your sleeves time.

Wisconsin is also converting 54 percent of the time while Oregon allows 37 percent conversions on defense (40th).

Russell Wilson has been Houdini in the pocket all season long, and it will be up to Nick Alliotti and the Ducks to confuse him with several different looks throughout the game.

The Ducks defensively better be ready for Montee Ball and Russell Wilson because they have not been limited this season, yet.

Fourth-Down Efficiency

The Oregon Ducks are an explosive offense, but they go for it on fourth nearly every game when it is less than three or four yards.

We have seen the Ducks go for it on fourth-down 30 times this season, but they converted only 13 times (43 percent).

Darron Thomas will often throw it down the field to his tight ends and speedy receivers, but it is nearly impossible to stop the Ducks when DeAnthony Thomas, LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner are all on the field at once.

The Ducks Pressure on Defense

The Oregon Ducks may not be known for their defense, but they are actually tied for the most sacks in the entire country ( 3.31 per game).

They better find a way to get to Russell Wilson or Nick Toon, Jacob Pedersen, Jeff Duckworth and Jared Abbrederis will torch them.

If Oregon can dominate the line of scrimmage, they will not even have to worry about covering the stars.

Turnovers

This game will be insane and the points could be at an all-time high between the Badgers and the Ducks. So, any type of turnover will arguably be the difference in winning and losing.

LaMichael James had a key fumble against the Trojans, and they ended up losing that game so I would not bank on the Ducks being a lock to win this game because they have coughed it up 18 times (28th) compared to Wisconsin's 8 turnovers (tied for 1st with LSU). 

Special Teams

The Ducks already lost a game this season thanks to a missed field goal, and don't forget that the Badgers have been prone to missing clutch field goals before (see Rose Bowl last year).

DeAnthony Thomas and Jared Abbrederis are two of the best punt returners in the country and though the Ducks do not kick many field goals, they offset that by their speed demons that they are surrounded with.

This ball game all comes down to the Ducks willingness to throw the kitchen sink at Russell Wilson. The Big Ten has seemingly let us down in these types of ball games because of the way their defenses have not played particularly well.

This will be a back and forth shootout that will go into overtime and I for one may change my score prediction, but will stay with the same team. QUACK, QUACK!

Oregon 45, Wisconsin 38 (1 OT)