This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Glendale, Ariz. • The Fiesta Bowl has just about everything you could ask for from a bowl game: two of the nation's best teams, most explosive offenses and underrated defenses, ready-for-the-NFL quarterbacks and this year's best case for changing the BCS.
OK, so maybe there's no national title on the line. LSU and Alabama get that honor under the current BCS format.
Still, when No. 3 Oklahoma State and No. 4 Stanford play Monday night at University of Phoenix Stadium, it figures to be one of those can't-miss shows, the kind that leaves fans asking, "Did you see that?" the next day.
"This is about as good as it gets right here," Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden. "I'm pretty sure everybody around the country will be watching."
Might as well start with the quarterbacks. They are, after all, two of the most intelligent, mature and prolific ones out there.
Stanford's Andrew Luck has been projected as the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft almost since his days at Stratford High in Houston. Last year's Heisman Trophy runner-up, he made it two straight just misses after returning for a stellar senior season.
Prototypically sized, deceptively agile and mature beyond his years, Luck tore through Stanford's record book almost as often as he did opposing defenses and improved his NFL-ready résumé by calling some of his own plays this season.
"There is a reason why he is going to be the first player picked in the draft, because he is very good at what he does and he's had a lot of success the last couple years," Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said.
Gundy's quarterback is no slouch.
Agile and accurate with a big right arm, Weeden came seemingly out of nowhere to pile up yards and touchdowns as a junior and continued it this season, putting together one of the most impressive two-year runs in Oklahoma State history.
Weeden isn't mature beyond his years like Luck, though. He's just mature — a 28-year-old former professional baseball player who's married and doesn't get caught up in trivialities that might slip up younger players.
"He is great. He has put up numbers. He has done it winning," Stanford co-defensive coordinator Derek Mason said. "Anytime you can do that, you put yourself in an elite category of quarterbacks. That's what he is."