I'm not good at predicting New Englanders. While I admire and am in a certain sense envious of the New Englanders long roots to our nation, I am a rural midwesterner who has had to grind out a survival, and look at things in that way.

But I do know that the New Hampshire primary is a big deal in presidential politics. If Romney wins it substantially and without a lot of slip in the polls over what was shown a week ago, then he is in without much trouble. But, if he stumbles and either loses, or wins by a lot less than the media was predicting, and there is a lot of negative buzz about him in the media, then he could be in trouble and in for a fight.

I do think that there will be a surprise tomorrow. Not exactly sure what it will be. I suspect it will be Huntsman doing better than even his poll upswing indicates, but it may be something else. I had heard a year or more ago that Obama's worst fear was facing Huntsman. Most of the pundits haven't necessarily completely ruled him out, but he hasn't been getting a lot of airplay. That worked for Santorum in Iowa.

Huntsman's rebuttal on the Meet the Press debate to Romney's criticism of him for serving as Obama's ambassador to China struck a chord. It was a fastball on the outside corner by Romney, and Huntsman knocked it into the right field stands. But people might be struck by how feisty Gingrich turned out to be.

Or maybe the republicans are just scared that they don't have anyone to take on Obama, and are going with Romney as a hail Mary? I don't know. But I will be very interested in any genuine surprises that come out of New Hampshire.