USA Today article on how Michigan-Ohio State is the most interesting rivalry in sports again
January 14th, 2015 at 3:18 PM ^
Well, it won't be until we start beating them more often.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:36 PM ^
It doesn't matter on the field, but it would help if we all went to the article and took part in the poll which asks which coach you would hire if you were an AD: Harbaugh, Meyer or Saban. Currently, Harbaugh is behind Meyer, 49.04% to 40.34%. Maybe a little bit of MGoVoting can close the gap.
January 14th, 2015 at 4:04 PM ^
My one vote has put him in the lead!!!
Recruiting will pick up now!
January 14th, 2015 at 4:51 PM ^
What does Harbaugh win if he gets the most votes?
January 14th, 2015 at 4:08 PM ^
Why is his first name spelled with a lowercase "j" instead of "J"?
January 15th, 2015 at 1:29 AM ^
Because until he is in the same class as Urban Meyer, he will be "little jimmy" - kind of like being "little brother" to Mark Dantonio.
January 15th, 2015 at 1:02 AM ^
January 14th, 2015 at 3:20 PM ^
WILL be the GAME again!
January 14th, 2015 at 3:21 PM ^
Competitive? Remains to be seen, but I have high hopes
January 14th, 2015 at 3:23 PM ^
We are just a year removed from a two point conversion . . .
January 14th, 2015 at 3:29 PM ^
Competitive game /= competitive rivalry. We can play competitive games against osu every year, but as long as osu is out there going to BCS bowl games, winning national championships and averaging 11 wins/season, while Michigan is averaging barely 6 wins a season since Carr retired, it's a lopsided rivalry.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:45 PM ^
Agree to disagree. If one team is 0-10 but only loses by 1 point 10 years in a row. I would still call it a competitive rivalry.
Given records will be closer and games less close but I think my point is made(even if not agreed with by many).
January 14th, 2015 at 4:21 PM ^
If you lose 10 straight games, even if all by 1 point, that is not a competitive rivarly. UM/OSU during the 10 Year War was as competitive as it ever was, even though multiple games were decided by 10+ points.
January 14th, 2015 at 4:49 PM ^
The Game should mean something more than just pride on an annual basis. It should decide which team gets to the Big Ten Championship game, which team gets to the Rose Bowl, potentially which team makes the playoffs. If it's all about bragging rights and not much else, then we may as well be Purdue or Illinois.
January 14th, 2015 at 5:11 PM ^
...competitive, but meaningless?
January 14th, 2015 at 5:34 PM ^
My definition of a competitive rivalry (which I should probably have spelled out earlier) is one in which the two programs are on a relatively even level over an extended period of time, and ideally both at or near the top of the sport.
Michigan-osu is NOT a competitive rivalry when one is hobknobbing with college football's elite and the other is largely indistinguishable from Purdue and Illinois, based on the results, even if some of the games themselves are close.
January 14th, 2015 at 4:59 PM ^
What about the Army Navy game then?
January 14th, 2015 at 5:30 PM ^
Army has lost the last 13 games by an average of 21 points, and only 3 of those games ended within a TD. In that same time frame, Army has averaged only 3 wins per season (and only once had a winning record) compared to 8 wins per season for Navy (with only one <.500 season).
Incredible historic rivalry, but I would be hesitant to be able to call it "competitive" from an objective standpoint.
January 14th, 2015 at 5:46 PM ^
The point is, record notwithstanding, it's still a rivalry -- it's not diminished.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:21 PM ^
January 14th, 2015 at 3:28 PM ^
we win this year, not if.
And The Game has been pretty close almost every year lately. I'd go so far as to say that Michigan played OSU closer than Wisconsin or Alabama did this year. Hell, if Harbaugh was coaching two months ago, we would have won that game.
January 14th, 2015 at 9:05 PM ^
Yeah it was sorta close, I'll give you that.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:22 PM ^
January 14th, 2015 at 3:24 PM ^
You're on MGoBlog. You can say fuck if you want to. FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK, FUCK. Fuck.
January 14th, 2015 at 4:57 PM ^
shit, piss, fuck, c*nt, cocksucker (you need OSU to spell that last one), motherfucker, and tits
January 14th, 2015 at 5:54 PM ^
Fuck. Fickity Fuck. Fickity Fuck fuck fuh fuh fuh fuh fuh fuh fuh fuck
January 14th, 2015 at 7:41 PM ^
Ah yes, the Seven Words . . . that comprise the majority of a Buckeye's vocabulary (with apologies to George Carlin).
January 14th, 2015 at 9:39 PM ^
January 14th, 2015 at 3:23 PM ^
It never stopped being interesting, mainly because its such a good rivalry, records are irrelevant. Take the 2013 game as an example. UM, not very good, one 2-pt conversion away from winning. This year, a bit different, but at least it was interesting for the most part. PLUS, Michigan helped osu find their starting QB for the NCG...
January 14th, 2015 at 4:06 PM ^
January 14th, 2015 at 3:25 PM ^
January 14th, 2015 at 3:25 PM ^
The media are getting as tired of the SEC as we are. I still detest OSU, but it is great to see the media's almost giddy joy at having a better angle than "SEC superiority" for future stories. The best rivalry in the history of college football is back.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:26 PM ^
January 14th, 2015 at 3:27 PM ^
This rivalry was more interesting when...
January 14th, 2015 at 3:35 PM ^
but make sure you scroll down when reading the article. Oregon cheerleaders are smoking hot.
January 14th, 2015 at 4:00 PM ^
Her costume is interesting, but I couldn't help but notice the OSU fan next to her wearing a jacket that appears to be made of money. Chutzpah!
January 14th, 2015 at 4:26 PM ^
Nice find! And not even a little surprising.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:40 PM ^
January 14th, 2015 at 4:52 PM ^
That'll do it.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:49 PM ^
He’s found refuge in Michigan, where others will have little input in the program. It will be a reflection of him, wholly. It will be big, brash, screaming, wearing cheap khakis and not caring what you think. And, eventually, winning.
We talked about this a lot right after the presser really, about how the atmosphere around the program seemed to instantly change and very quickly we began to see what I think are the foundations for what is being described - perhaps inelegantly - here. It might take a bit of time, but it seems like Harbaugh simply has a personality which by itself translates to movitation, achievement and by extension, winning. As for "interesting", I would say it has renewed intrigue - it never really stopped being interesting to me.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:53 PM ^
to hear more about the Winter conditioning program and how things look at the Spring game.
January 14th, 2015 at 7:55 PM ^
I remember the day after we hired Harbaugh, one of the Ohio State fans in my building actually said that Michigan would fire Harbaugh (lol) after 4 or 5 years because Harbaugh won't be able to beat OSU. I replied, "Dude, you already that Jim Harbaugh will not tolerate losing OSU like that, don't you?" He smiled, nodded his head and said, "Yeah, I know." Harbaugh v. Carroll was intense but Harbaugh v.Meyer will make Harbaugh/Carroll seem like afternoon tea between high society ladies.
January 14th, 2015 at 3:59 PM ^
The premise of the article is okay, but I don't like how they buy the 49er front office party line about Harbaugh "wearing down players" even though that's pretty clearly been disproven. Also, the part about Harbaugh not winning a bowl until his fourth year at Stanford, while factually accurate, is misleading.
As for the Big Ten "suddenly" having the best rivalry in football, where has USA Today been for the last century?
January 14th, 2015 at 7:35 PM ^
Why is it misleading, the next sentence says "although he inherited a 1-11 team."
January 14th, 2015 at 4:04 PM ^
We also have to, you know, be coming into that game playing for something more than just pride. OSU has held up its end of the bargain. Time for us to hold up ours.
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January 14th, 2015 at 4:20 PM ^
Sometimes I think there's still a part of football-watching America that loves to see two heavyweights strap up and go at it.
The OSU-Alabama game felt like one of those games. A renewed Michigan-Ohio State game will definitely be that.
"Three yards and a cloud of dust" is dead. Speed and strength are not mutually exclusive.
Bring it.
January 14th, 2015 at 4:25 PM ^
I agree completely. A relevant Michigan (in terms of ranking and winning, irrelevant programs don't get the coverage during a coaching search we did) taking on Ohio State will be huge. ESPN will be tripping over themselves to cover that.
Also, in regards to your sig, that is part of why I would love to see the playoffs expand to 8 teams, with homefield advantage for the higher seed. Imagine if Baylor had to travel to Columbus in December to play a game.