Still not enough emphasis on the rivalry and it shows
Now to the point where their players are calling us out on it.
“I just think that we take it more seriously than they do, I think,” Fields said. “We prepare for it all year. Like (Director of Football Mickey Marotti) said, we’re preparing for them next year right now.
“I think it just means more at Ohio State. That’s pretty much the bigger reason we have more success than they do.”
I don't care if you have to start calling them ohio again. I don't care if you have to use osu branded toilet paper. DO SOMETHING TO SHOW IT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT GAME!!!!!!!!!!
November 30th, 2019 at 6:29 PM ^
Stop.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:32 PM ^
This is dumb... Justin Fields is a transfer from Georgia. You think he understands the rivalry more than the seniors who have suffered against OSU???
They are just better than us, get all the breaks, and win.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:32 PM ^
Lol fuck off man. Osu is just the better team this year, and it showed. They also had a few good breaks, which helped.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:34 PM ^
Until Michigan lowers academic standards so players like Chase Young and Dobbins gain entry there is no chance. They can easily get in low rung schools like Alabama and OSU.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:56 PM ^
I'd bet my life that if Young and/or Dobbins had called Harbaugh saying they want to come to Michigan they would have been admitted...is there any top players who Harbaugh was recruiting that did not meet football academic standards?
November 30th, 2019 at 9:08 PM ^
Fuck you. Fuck you with that stupid, pedantic, inherently racist bullshit.
You know NOTHING about any player from Ohio State other than to come on this blog and pretend you and Michigan are somehow above it all.
Go change your diaper you freaking crybaby.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:34 PM ^
I think there is some merit to this. It would seem impossible for a Mattison to OSU scenario to occur the other way around. They just wouldn't let it happen, in terms of their culture it'd be unspeakable. The fact at Michigan it's not just speakable, but doable and the result is a pat on the back and 'good luck' because after all it's just a job at the end of the day, right, indicates that indeed at Michigan these things are seen as less dramatically important and more 'in perspective'.
In truth, the "noble loser" pose probably suits many folks around the program quite well.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:35 PM ^
#thisissad
this is how low we’ve stooped. Ah well
November 30th, 2019 at 6:35 PM ^
November 30th, 2019 at 6:36 PM ^
I don't give a flying fuck what Justin Fields thinks. He's just a mercenary. He doesn't give a shit about OSU or Michigan or anyone but himself.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:10 PM ^
Exactly. This guy committed to Penn State, check cleared and went to UGA. Couldn’t beat out Jake Fromm so he called the university racist and transferred to OSU. He will leave tomorrow if there was a chance his millions in the NFL would be impacted.
November 30th, 2019 at 10:09 PM ^
Right, and he's forced to play amateur football rather than make millions. What an asshole. Especially because he made us look bad.
November 30th, 2019 at 10:09 PM ^
Right, and he's forced to play amateur football rather than make millions. What an asshole. Especially because he made us look bad.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:37 PM ^
it's really fucking easy to say that after you win.
and the "we" shit from a guy who has been there for about four months is a colossal load of shit. fuck off.
although...now that i say that, if there's one thing a one-and-done pay-for-play loser like justin fields would understand, it's the ohio state culture.
November 30th, 2019 at 9:13 PM ^
I think we know who the real "losers" are: The message board guy who presumes to judge a young man playing a game he loves and is whining because said young man walks in and is better than any player on the team we love after five years of the Savior.
December 1st, 2019 at 1:15 AM ^
Or maybe it's the guy who spends all his free time on a rival message board pretending not to be an MSU fan.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:38 PM ^
Its all about our Ohio footprint... of 22 starters, not one is from Ohio. Compare that to the Bo and Mo years, where it'd be 70%. Compare it to Dantonio's winning years of 60%. Even take a look at Dantonio's record vs OSU... not a coincidence here. The recruits from Ohio just have so much on the line that they just have to win that game.... for out of staters, its not as big a deal, just another big game. If they lose, they won't get mocked by everyone at home, or revered if they win. Don't discount this. Not saying Ohio recruits are better overall, but for this game, they are, without question. The familial contact points, the friends, etc, their entire world, relies on the outcome of this game.... I was very disappointed when Harbaugh didn't hire Ohio area coaches for the recruiting, and didn't go after more Ohio recruits.....
November 30th, 2019 at 6:39 PM ^
You can’t even get the fans to care enough to not let the Buckeyes fill the stands with red.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:44 PM ^
Worse than that, I didn't see a single OSU fan at the Big House today even bother to talk trash. It was over before it even started. They knew it, we knew it, all the players knew it. Harbaugh is a joke.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:41 PM ^
There's plenty of emphasis on the "rivalry", it's just that the coaches and players fucking suck so they can't actually win it.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:45 PM ^
This is not true at all. They have better talent than us across the board. That is the bottom line. They have NFL guys at every position. This idea that the rivalry is more important to them is BS. They have better players. It is pretty simple. Look at the 2020 NFL draft Big Board and you can see it with your own eyes.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:48 PM ^
Although Michigan never wins the East, they will be planning another overseas team trip, which provides education for the student athletes, so give them some slack, they don't have as much time for emphasis on the rivalry.
November 30th, 2019 at 6:55 PM ^
WD, you’re better than this. I don’t care what Fields, a guy who has been there less than a year, thinks.
1. Michigan had a great offensive gameplan. They’ve been prepping for this.
2. The lack of discipline in certain areas such as late hits and the offsides penalty on the punt suggests the team was too keyed up, too ready, too excited, too emphasized, rather than not enough.
3. There is not some magical intensity switch that makes up for the talent deficit.
It was abundantly clear from quotes to t-shirts to excess enthusiasm that the team takes this seriously. This is feelingsball stuff, and this assertion is ridiculous. It’s beneath you.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:22 PM ^
Stevenrjking, how do you explain nearly every single other big rivalry being more competitive than this one, then?
The only one more lopsided that I can think of is Tennessee and Alabama.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:47 PM ^
That lopsidedness stretches through four coaches. The incompetence of two of them contributed to OSU’s recruiting lead, IMO (and Hoke’s bad OL management hurt us against OSU in 16) but I don’t think anyone believes that Michigan would be even with OSU if Carr or Hoke just took it more seriously.
OSU’s program is playing at the apex of its historical performance right now, per Bill Connolly. We had a couple of close games where we didn’t get over the hump, and I hold Harbaugh generally responsible for that, but it’s not because he’s ignoring it.
If anything, Michigan’s sustained good-not-greatness keeps OSU from taking us lightly. We all see Iowa and Purdue beating them occasionally, but we also know that OSU isn’t focused on them the same way they are on us.
Remember, until this year, LSU had just as much trouble against Bama as Michigan does against OSU, often with better teams. Mike Leach can’t beat Washington. Florida State hasn’t been close to Clemson in years.
Its not because they’re taking the games lightly. It’s because the better teams generally win.
The problem is that OSU has been clearly the better team in all but, perhaps, four or five (depending on how you feel about last years team, I’m calling this 04, 06, 11, 16, YMMV on 18)) seasons since our win in 2003. Michigan won one of those games (2011) and the other seasons were losses in Columbus, 2006 and 2016 being epic games that literally could not have been closer. Additionally Michigan had a chance to steal games at home in 05, 13, and 17 and came up short.
So we’re 1-3 or 1-4 in games in which we were as good as OSU (though they had good teams in those losses too!) with the losses all coming in Columbus and the win being the lone down year OSU has had during a stretch in which we had two bad coaches back-to-back.
It stinks. The answer is clearly not feelingsball.
November 30th, 2019 at 8:26 PM ^
In general I agree with this. Where I have a problem is that our team played without discipline, we underachieve for the talent we do have, turnovers, and all the other attributes of a POORLY COACHED team. If you told me what I am seeing on Saturdays, not just today, is the best our players are capable of, I’d be considerably less frustrated.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:24 PM ^
and this assertion is ridiculous. It’s beneath you.
Actually... it's not beneath WD, it's par for the course. People just get fooled by the non-revenue sports updates and MDen posts.
WD is who he is... go check out the recent "brake checking" posts for more evidence.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:03 PM ^
He’s not wrong.
Say what you will about Brady Hoke, but he emphasized the OSU game from Day 1. He took that game personally, and his players showed up for that game every single time.
I obviously don’t know what happens behind closed doors, but from my limited vantage point, it sure seems like this game is treated by the staff as any other game. Meanwhile, OSU plays and prepares for this game as if winning and losing is the difference between living and dying.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:04 PM ^
I dont think Auburn gives a fuck about the talent despariry between themselves and Alabama. Yet somehow they are up in the 4th quarter and if nothing else...competitive. Stop making excuses. Coach the players to be mentally tough. That's the difference.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:52 PM ^
To be fair, with Tua, Bama probably turns them into mincemeat. But you're right, Auburn does get into these games more than we do - no matter the odds. But here's the difference between us and Auburn. Auburn is decidedly the little brother in that rivalry and has been for as long as anyone can remember. Bama is the 'blue blood', they're the underdog.
Michigan can't play as the underdog. We suck as the underdog. Michigan can't face up to the fact that Ohio State is at a higher level and probably for good. Michigan thinks too highly of itself, so that's also why OSU can't ever get enough of kicking our teeth in. It stays fun because no matter how often they do it, Michigan will get right up again and think they're better than Ohio State.
Michigan plays three types of games. One, the games where they play a much weaker opponent. Michigan wins these, usually by some margin. Easy. Then there's the games vs teams with comparable talent. In those, Michigan plays like a champ in Ann Arbor, and insecure and sloppy, surprised by the opposition's ability away from Ann Arbor. Finally theres the games against teams better than us. In those games we go under like a British unit in Afghanistan in the 19th century or General Custer at Little Big Horn. Why? Because it'd require a level of desperation and intensity to hang in there and stay in those games that folks signing up to play and coach for Michigan don't think they ever have to show. Michigan is a flat track bully.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:08 PM ^
You're confounding your variables, WD. You're talking about how much Michigan cares, how much coaches talk about the game. . . you don't think talent, game plan, and recruiting likely play bigger roles? What I do with toilet paper, meanwhile, has no bearing whatsoever.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:10 PM ^
Under Meyer OSU dedicated a portion of every practice to the Michigan game. I'm betting Day has continued that. Maybe we should take a page from their book.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:25 PM ^
We're too prideful for that... thus the last 2 decades of results.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:12 PM ^
What the hell is wrong with most people on this board..they must be 25..this is why osu wins
1. They do have more talent
2. They have better coaching
3. This is most important..they have a system..it works..and they know it works..michigan has no identity..why do you think michigan bball is successful..they have a system that works..players know their goal..their identity..and they are a team..until Harbaugh defines what that is for football then it's never going to change
November 30th, 2019 at 7:13 PM ^
When you watch Michigan talk about and prepare for Michigan St, you can tell how jacked up the players are to win that game. Look at how Bush stomped the field after their antics last year. Look how we run around with the PB trophy. Still talking about that game Thursday of Indiana week. How there are fights on the field. Waving bye to their players, etc etc. Until Michigan rekindles the hate towards Ohio St that MSU has for us, this wont be a rivalry anymore.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:25 PM ^
Sorry for whatever reason under Harbaugh the Michigan State game seems more emotional for this team and program. It feels like Ohio state is treated like any other NFL Week 8 game and it shows in the results each and every year
November 30th, 2019 at 7:29 PM ^
Michigan and Harbaugh have become SOFT...
DOWNY SOFT!!!
November 30th, 2019 at 7:44 PM ^
Michigan did not lose today because they wanted it any less. They lost because of a talent and speed disparity. When has Michigan had a Chase Young that you have to gameplan for like that (and don't forget, they're coming off having the Bosas as well)? OSU has DBs going in the top 10 all the time it seems. They've had Zeke, Dobbins, etc. They have better players.
Did the coaches make some head scratching calls? Yes, but if they run some trickeration on 4th and 1 from the 29 and it doesn't work, then we're all screaming to just run it for a damn yard.
And why does OSU get housed by Iowa or Purdue every once in a while? Because 20 year old kids see social media and ESPN favoring them by 20 and mentally take things for granted, and because OSU is most BIG10 teams playoff game.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:48 PM ^
A few points (my opinion only):
1. OSU has more talent.....period. That doesn't guarantee them the win, it just makes the win more likely for them. I came into today thinking Michigan could win, IF they played a near flawless game. In the first half alone, Michigan missed an extra point on a rushed play, jumped offsides on a 4th and 4 punt, fumbled a snap in the red zone, and didn't hang onto a touchdown catch when hit in the endzone. That's either a 15 or 19 point swing in the first half alone. OSU didn't have any such mistakes in the first half. The result was a 12 point OSU lead, and OSU receiving the second half kickoff.
2. continuing from point 1.....OSU did make some mistakes in the second half, but Michigan made just as many, probably more. You're not going to win that way.
3. I really liked the offensive game plan in the first half (except that trick play on the first play of second possession). Receivers were working themselves open all over the field.
4. The lack of depth at DT was a killer in trying to stop Dobbins.
5. Harbaugh isn't going anywhere. But it's probably time for him to let Don Brown go and bring in a fresh face at DC. OSU clearly has figured out Brown, and it seems clear that's not going to change. We can only hope a fresh face, with new ideas and schemes, will bring improvement.
6. Fields is full of shit. I get it....OSU emphasizes this rivalry year-round, but to say they have already started preparing for Michigan for next year is asinine and only a talking point. Having said that, there's no question Tressel changed everything for OSU in this game, and Meyer and Day have continued that, if not taken it to the next level. While I find the TTUN and crossing out M's to be childish and stupid, it clearly works for them. Harbaugh and staff need to find something like that to use to their advantage. And maybe Harbaugh and staff need to have some plays and formations that they don't run until The Game. When they ran wildcat with Haskins on that 4th down play, I was somewhat hoping they would have a pass option/play off it as a new wrinkle and possible big play.
7. It's going to take a Michigan team at some point to rise up and pull off the upset, to attempt to get some confidence back in this rivalry, and to attempt to shrink that recruiting edge OSU has. It will probably also take a few Michigan players who could leave for the NFL to decide to return for their senior years in a given year to help neutralize the talent gap.
8. Let's face it.....OSU is the best team in the country this year. 2016 is the year that killed Harbaugh.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:53 PM ^
This is not something that can be objectively measured. It's just something easy to say when you win.
We just need better lines and a RB with as much speed, shiftiness and power as Dobbins.
November 30th, 2019 at 7:53 PM ^
This is not something that can be objectively measured. It's just something easy to say when you win.
We just need better lines and a RB with as much speed, shiftiness and power as Dobbins.
November 30th, 2019 at 9:38 PM ^
This is not why we lost now or in the past. It's all about talent and always will be into the far future. Get used to it because it ain't changing in your lifetime.
November 30th, 2019 at 10:35 PM ^
That assertion by Fields is nonsense. OSU has won the vast majority of these games by putting more talent on the field than Michigan. The Buckeyes maybe had less talent in '04 and '05, and I'll admit that they were the inferior team in '01. Otherwise they've been a superior collection of players.
November 30th, 2019 at 10:44 PM ^
No question we lose to OSU mainly because they are the more talented team every year. Specifically, they have had the better QB every year since 2004 (maybe not 2011). However, it's also very clear that they have the superior football culture and that culture is an enabler that helps to breed excellence year in and year out starting with their recruiting and through their on field play.