How big is this game?

Submitted by MichFan1997 on

I have tried arguing with people, that this is the BIGGEST game we have had since OSU in the 1 v 2 showdown in 2006. So much is at stake in this game. Agree, disagree? Thoughts?....

Syyk

October 5th, 2010 at 11:07 PM ^

I will agree with you that this isn't the biggest game since '06, but I disagree that it is "just another step" [ed. emphasis mine].   First, it is an important rivalry game and thus is more important than games against other Big Ten foes all else being equal.  Secondly, it would probably be the best team a Rich Rod coached Michigan squad has beaten (barring perhaps '08 Wisconsin and with the usual caveat that it is still early in the season).  However, I do think that winning or losing doesn't make or break the season and am more of the mindset that winning any combination of 2-4 of our next seven games is the goal, no matter who it is we beat, unless that team happens to be OSU, and then it's time to go bat shit insane.

CHI_BLU

October 6th, 2010 at 10:20 AM ^

Recruiting even though RR said a kid would not make up his mind based on 1 game I really think that recruits are looking at this game to confirm that RR is off the Hot seat in terms of perception weather true or false. Another reason I think this is a big game is because it is sold out and I cannot get tickets and will be forced to watch it in CHICAGO!

IPFW_Wolverines

October 5th, 2010 at 10:52 PM ^

it probably is. A loss by no means destroys Michigan's season but it is a big game for perception. If Michigan wins this week people are going to start talking about a lot bigger things than just a bowl game.

mgoSk

October 5th, 2010 at 10:56 PM ^

I think this game is important, but a loss will be more detrimental to MSU in my opinion, because the whole fan base will realize playtime's over, big brother's all healed up and ready to resume dominance.

If and when we lose a game this year, I have complete confidence that the team will rebound like the champs they are.

SysMark

October 5th, 2010 at 10:58 PM ^

I think it's pretty big - but pretty much all upside.  A loss would suck but would not be devastating.  A win makes us immediately bowl eligible and makes 9 wins very reachable.

zblueman2

October 5th, 2010 at 11:01 PM ^

MSU has won the past two years and knows that we are on the ropes here.  IMO we haven't proven anything yet this season, other than that we can beat inferior opponents.  This game is HUGE for us and a win for us proves that we are moving forward from the disasters that were the last two years.  State has nothing to lose.  If they win, we will never hear the end of it.  If they lose, they will say that their inability to stop Denard was the reason.

03 Blue 07

October 6th, 2010 at 2:15 AM ^

No, I think that 2007 game is what he was talking about, and I agree. OSU had a national championship game berth on the line in 2007, and we had the chance to not only spoil it, but win a piece of the Big Ten. I agree with FA: the 2007 game was far more important than this game between two 5-0 teams with nothing but a second Big Ten win at stake and a chance to become bowl eligible. It SEEMS super important right now, and believe me, it is to me too, but it's not really anywhere near as important as trying to win a piece of the Big Ten, stop OSU from going to the MNC game, and really end the regular season strong after The Horror and Oregon's pantsing of us to start the year.

Johnnybee123

October 6th, 2010 at 9:53 AM ^

Not to nitpick, but the National Championship game was not on the line for OSU at the time we played them in '07.  OSU had lost in the previous week, WVU was poised to get the second spot, not OSU.

'07 was huge, but at the time it was played, it was for a berth in the Rose Bowl and the Big Ten Championship.

MichFan1997

October 5th, 2010 at 11:07 PM ^

OSU was our big rival game (when isn't it) and with the B10 title on the line, I dunno. I just didn't get the "feel" for that game. Something was off (uh, Henne's injury was probably what did that to me). I dunno. I can't explain it. I just get that monster feel to this game. I know i'm being repetitive.

CRex

October 5th, 2010 at 10:59 PM ^

This game is a key step to putting up a respectable Big 10 schedule, but we've had bigger between now and 2006.  I'd argue every game from the point where we had 5 wins last year was bigger, since they all determined bowl eligibility.  

If we beat State we beat our second biggest rival and a ranked Big 10 team to boot.  That's a nice feather in our cap, but it alone does not determine our resume for the B10 season.  If we lose to MSU it would suck but we can make up for it by beating other ranked B10 teams (Iowa and Wisconsin are sure to be ranked when we play.  PSU may manage to sneak back in.  tOSU of course stands are the brass ring to reach for at the end of the season.).

Beating State is something we SHOULD do, but if we don't we can recover from it with other wins.  

Right now I'd say tOSU is our biggest game.  We were shockingly competitive with them until we decided to turn it over constantly.  It seems like Tresselball doesn't like the spread all that much.  If the offense goes into Columbus healthy and the defense can find some decent mojo for one game, a big win could happen.  

MichFan1997

October 5th, 2010 at 11:04 PM ^

I think this game has huge recruiting implications. That's the biggest reason I look at this as the biggest game since OSU 2006. You might disagree, but to me, this week already has that MASSIVE GAME feel to me. While a loss wouldn't completely criple us, a win would go a long, long, way to restoring us to what once was.

Six Zero

October 6th, 2010 at 8:39 AM ^

CRex is right-- There is no make or break here.  We can't go into this with the idea that the entire season is over if we don't get the win.  Sparty's not as good as their ranking alludes, probably very much like us.  It seems like beating ND early in the season is an eye-opener to voters-- I guess that's what playing a team with its own national TV contract gives you (yes, even though Sparty played them on ESPN).

The Wisconsin win was big, but time will tell over the course of the conference schedule just how good the Baaaadgers really are.

There's nothing King Sparty Cardiac and his lemming followers want more than to be our most feared, most loathed enemy.  They want us circling the date, coveting the lumberjack, being the make or break game on our schedule.

Dude, won't happen.  Even if you've won 2 straight, you're still just Sparty.

.ghost.

October 5th, 2010 at 11:06 PM ^

I am elated with how we have looked so far, but I am amazed at how (relatively) apathetic some people seem to be about this.  To me, this loss would blow terribly.  I think it would be worse than our worst loss last year, at least (Illinois, imo).

MichFan1997

October 5th, 2010 at 11:10 PM ^

I think people still sort of laugh at MSU even with the last 2 years. We need to end that crap now. 3 in a row is too much. Illinois was awful last year, just like Toledo in 2008 (i was there ugh). This would be more heartbreaking than either of those.

Tha Stunna

October 6th, 2010 at 1:35 AM ^

No way would this be worse than Illinois.  That was when Michigan showed it was not ready yet, and was the game that we should have won (in a vacuum).  It was not historically bad, like Toledo or App State, but it was bad.

We can bounce back from a loss as soon as next week by beating Iowa.

Also, I was there at the Illinois game, and that game was truly terrible.

funkywolve

October 5th, 2010 at 11:08 PM ^

It is huge.  While both teams have a lot riding on this game, if Sparty wins they've got a great shot at a BCS Bowl and possibly the big ten title.  Their remaining schedule sets up real nice:  Illinois, at Northwestern, at Iowa, Minnesota, Purdue, at PSU.  Obviously the biggest hurdle there is @Iowa, second is probably @Northwestern.  The other 4 are probably just speed bumps.

Without looking up the other 10 teams, that's probably the easiest schedule for a big ten team for the final 6 games.  You've got probably the 2 worst teams in the big ten (Purdue and Minnesota - to make it even easier at home), another team in Illinois that will probably finish in the bottom half of the big ten, a team in PSU that will probably be around 500 in conference play, one legit big ten contender in Iowa and a team that is hard to get a read on because they haven't really played anyone yet - Northwestern.

bronxblue

October 5th, 2010 at 11:18 PM ^

Not to be all coach-speak, but the biggest game is always the next game.  UM is no longer viewed as a dominant program, one that presumed bowl eligiblity from training camp and spent the season chasing a MNC birth.  The past two years have humbled many a fan and player, and so until this team returns to its place as an elite national team, every win, every game is as important as the last.  Hopefully soon beating MSU will be an expected outcome, and competing for Big 10 titles a given, but right now the team is 5-0, and will hopefully be 6-0.  Then the focus will turn to biggest game in their season against Iowa, and so on for the rest of the season.

StephenRKass

October 5th, 2010 at 11:34 PM ^

Ohio State is bigger. Always has been, always will be. The importance of Michigan State is distorted in the State of Michigan. Outside the state, it matters less. I would argue this game is much more important to MSU than to UM. I believe we will end up with four more wins this year, but I am unsure who we will lose to. A 9 - 3 season is more than successful enough for us, regardless of whether or not we beat State. Beating OSU, now that gets national attention, ends the streak of losses, and would be memorable. Ask yourself:  what win are you aware of from 1969? OSU. Where did Bo focus? OSU or MSU? What ends the season? OSU or MSU? Admittedly, those living in Michigan can't stand grief from Sparty, but it just isn't as big.

We beat State, and media will go "meh." We lose, they go "meh." We beat OSU, they take notice, and so does everyone else. It was the OSU game that sealed the Heisman for Howard and Woodson. If we beat OSU, and Denard has a killer game, it paves the way for a Heisman for him too.

03 Blue 07

October 6th, 2010 at 2:20 AM ^

I wish I could upvote you more than just one point for this, SRK. I wholeheartedly agree. Think nationally, not intrastate, people. MSU is still MSU. OSU is still OSU. Hell, they're a perrenial top-5 team now. MSU gets hot and bothered over 6-7.

Wendyk5

October 6th, 2010 at 8:25 AM ^

Which loss would be more devastating this year, MSU or OSU? I'm torn here, but really because of expectations. This weekend is a home game, unlike the one in November. It isn't against the "#2" team in the country, like it will be in November. The conditions are perfect for payback from the last two games. So is it more realistic to expect us to win this Saturday, and therefore a loss would be more devastating? Does anyone really expect us to win in November (and by this, I mean given our rankings, level of progress RR has made in his tenure vs. Tressel's already in place team, etc)? 

 

I think the OSU game in the big picture is bigger, always has been, but the conditions surrounding this one game , this year, make this one right up there, too. 

wordtoyourmother

October 5th, 2010 at 11:40 PM ^

Its big because Im sick of pride comes before the fall and all that gibberish, and I want MSU to die a slow painful death.  I think I want a last second win because then I want them to suffer.  I hate them and want them to be heartbroken (not literally, no heart attacks again).

the_big_house 500th

October 5th, 2010 at 11:43 PM ^

This is our chance to shut the mouths of the annoying fan base of Sparty for the entire year. This win means an end to their two year streak and puts the meaning of "little brother" back into effect. I'm sick of these green bastards talking shit on every Michigan fan board and website that they can spout their bull shit on. Michigan Stadium dons two colors. Maize and blue not green and white. I want to put these Spartan bastards in their place so bad that I have taken the liberty of getting a bonfire party ready before game night and burning a Spartan hockey jersey that I bought for 5 bucks at a garage sale and cook hotdogs over it's flames. I hate them, I hate them, I hate them. Do I need to say anymore?