Huskies, Buckeyes Begin Rose Bowl Festivities

LOS ANGELES, CA — The Ohio State and Washington football teams, which will meet in the 105th Rose Bowl on New Year's Day, were welcomed Wednesday to the Disney California Adventure Park.

Both teams arrived in the Southland on Christmas Day.

Ohio State will participate in the Lawry's Beef Bowl in Beverly Hills on Thursday, one day before Washington.

The teams will practice at StubHub Center in Carson. Practices are closed to the public.

A "very limited" number of tickets for the game remain on Ticketmaster from the Tournament of Roses' public sale, Karen Linhart, the Rose Bowl's media director, told City News Service. Prices begin at $245.

Tickets priced between $146 and $800 are available at Primesport.com, the game's official ticket exchange.

"It's estimated that 60 percent of the Rose Bowl game attendees are from outside of Southern California," Linhart said.

An estimated 30,000 to 35,000 Washington fans are expected to come to Southern California for the game, according to Jeff Bechthold, Washington's assistant athletic director for athletic communications.

The Huskies sold out their allotment of 27,000 tickets in about two days, he said.

Jerry Emig, an associate director of communications for Ohio State's athletic department, said he had "no idea" how many Buckeyes fans were coming, but added, "We typically travel very, very well to away games."

The Buckeyes sold out their ticket allotment of around 22,000, Emig said.

Ohio State will be making its 15th Rose Bowl appearance and first since the 2009 season, when it defeated Oregon, 26-17, evening its Rose Bowl record at 7-7.

The Buckeyes won the Big Ten Conference championship in 2014 but did not play in the Rose Bowl as they were selected for the College Football Playoff and won the national championship. Ohio State also won the Big Ten championship in 2017, a season when the Rose Bowl was a playoff semifinal. Instead, the Buckeyes played in the Cotton Bowl, defeating USC, 24-7.

Washington will be playing in the Rose Bowl for the first time since the 2000 season. The Huskies will also be playing in their 15th Rose Bowl, tying Ohio State and Stanford for third on the all-time list behind USC, which has made 34 appearances, and Michigan, which has made 20.

Washington improved to 7-6-1 in the Rose Bowl with a 34-24 victory over Purdue in its most recent appearance on New Year's Day, in 2001.

The Huskies would have played in the Rose Bowl for the 2016 season as the Pac-12 Conference champion, but were selected for the playoff, losing to Alabama, 24-7 in a semifinal.

This will be the first meeting between the Buckeyes and Washington in the Rose Bowl. Ohio State leads the series 8-3, including a 33-14 victory in the most recent game in 2007.

Ohio State has had a season filled with turbulence. Coach Urban Meyer was placed on paid administrative leave Aug. 1 while the university investigated claims that his wife knew about allegations of domestic violence against an assistant coach.

Meyer was suspended for the first three games of the season by the Ohio State Board of Trustees after the investigation determined he mishandled domestic assault allegations against former assistant coach Zach Smith.

The 54-year-old Meyer announced on Dec. 4 that he would retire from coaching. The announcement came three days after the Buckeyes defeated Northwestern 45-24 in the Big Ten Conference title game to assure themselves at least a berth in the Rose Bowl.

Ryan Day, the Ohio State offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach who led the team to a 3-0 record at the start of this season, will take over as head coach on Jan. 2.

The Buckeyes (12-1) won their first seven games, suffered their only loss Oct. 20 against Purdue, and have won their past five games, scoring 159 points in their last three games.

The Huskies (10-3) lost their season opener to Auburn, 21-16, won their next five games, then lost two of three, losing to Oregon, 30-27, in overtime and California, 12-10. Washington has won its four most recent games.

City News Service; , Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer and wide receiver Terry McLaurin (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)