It is that time of year when high school football has wound down. It gets dark much too early with the time change, and the wind that is whipping has a bite to it. You are thinking about Thanksgiving dinner and Aunt Betty’s secret stuffing which can be scary because you are never quite sure what is in it.
It is time for THE GAME. Ohio State vs. Michigan, to me, is the best football game played every year. It has little to do with the score at the end of the game. It is the build up. The entire week is fun. People wearing their team’s colors, conversations at work, at lunch and around the water cooler about whose team is going to win and why.
This year’s game should be a another tremendous match up.
Both teams come in undefeated, but they have very different styles. The Bucks throw the ball, the Wolverines run it. Styles make great games.
I have had the privilege for more than 20 years to interview many, many people on BCSN–about 10,000–and that includes a number of Buckeyes like Urban Meyer, Archie Griffin, Maurice Clarett and Jim Tressel.
For Michigan, I have talked with Brady Hoke, Rich Rodriguez and the oddest interview I have ever been involved in, Jim Harbaugh (that is a story for another day).
All the players and coaches involved in The Game think about it 365 days of the year. The OSU vs. UM game is truly the only game in town.
Most people don’t know that during the regular season, they each keep one eye on the score board all season long watching what the other team is doing.
The team up north and the team down south also hold out special plays and formations that they only use for that esoteric game at the end of the season.
This game is so unique, it brings people out who do not even like football that much. It transcends everything; that very special Saturday. It is just must watch TV.
The game brings families and neighbors together. The only thing that compares to it is the Super Bowl.
So get out your favorite jersey or T-shirt, decorate your house with a flag or your car with a sticker, this game is just plain fun.
Woody and Bo started it and made it a true classic game that has just grown through all these years.
Francis Schmidt was an OSU head football coach in 1934. At that time, Michigan held a very strong edge over OSU in this rivalry game.
A reporter asked Coach Schmidt if he really thought that his Buckeyes could beat the Wolverines. Coach said, “Sure, they put their pants on one leg at a time, just like us.” The Bucks went on to win four straight Michigan games at that point.
Today, when the OSU players beat Michigan, they receive a small pair of gold pants on a chain.
November 25, 1950 in Columbus, the game was called the Snow Bowl. It was 10 degrees with a 28-mile an hour wind, and snowing so hard, it looked like a blizzard. Both teams punted a combined 45 times.
Wes Fesler, the OSU coach was criticized so harshly for his play calling, he resigned and Woody Hayes became the new Buckeyes coach.
Let us hope this Saturday is not another Snow Bowl. Maybe this year the Bucks get another pair of gold pants, but the Wolverines are very physical with their offense line.
They can run the football while the Bucks can throw.
Plan your noon game day treats, put an extra log on the fire and have a truly Rockwellian experience that is THE GAME–Ohio State vs. Michigan.