Michigan-Ohio State Football: This Is Why They Play "The Game"
With each passing day, the rhetoric heats up. Ohio fans brag about their six-game winning streak. Michigan fans cling to past records that proclaim them “Champions and Best.”
When the two teams break bread at noon tomorrow, a few things are for sure. Ohio State is favored by 17 points, Denard Robinson will add to his NCAA records and more than 100,000 fans will pack the Horseshoe.
The weatherman promises winter-like conditions with temperatures in the mid 30s and the wind chill 10 degrees below that.
It won’t take long for the “unknown” to cast a shadow of doubt over the confident Buckeye faithful. The first sight of the Michigan Marching Band will fuel Michigan’s optimism.
This is why they play the game. This is why a fumble here, a pick-six there will cast Tressel as a mere mortal. Chants of "Cooper, Cooper" will echo throughout the small but boisterous Michigan contingent.
Of course, Buckeye fans will unveil the “Love RichRod” banner if Denard fumbles, tosses a wounded-duck interception or re-injures his shoulder.
The real script is far from written, as many of these guaranteed victories have instead caused distraught Buckeye fans from regretting their ceremonial leap into Mirror Lake.
Michigan fans have grown accustomed to losing, so they won’t cry for long. Final exams and term papers are waiting.
We’ve picked out a few of these shockers just for our amusement. If the first slide makes you happy, some say there’s one that definitely won’t.
1950 (Snow Bowl): Michigan 9, No. 8 Ohio State 3.
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The game was originally called the Blizzard Bowl for good reason. Winds of 28 mph and a temperature of 10 degrees accompanied some 50,000 brave Buckeye fans to Ohio Stadium, just so Michigan and Ohio State could decide the Big Ten title.
The biggest decision was whether to play the game at all. By not playing, Ohio State would have nothing to lose. They would have been awarded the title by default and that, obviously, wouldn’t have sit well with either Michigan or Wisconsin.
The Buckeyes came into the game at 6-2, 5-1 in the Big Ten. Unranked Michigan came in 4-3-1, 3-1-1. The favored Buckeyes were led by eventual Heisman Trophy winner Vic Janowicz, who played several positions, including single-wing tailback, placekicker, safety and as we find out later, punter.
Ohio State, Michigan and Big Ten officials decided the game was on. And what a game it was.
The two teams punted a total of 45 times, with Michigan scoring its only touchdown when, you guessed it, Janowicz had a punt blocked on third down with 47 seconds left in the first half.
Pundits thought the Buckeyes could have run out the clock, and Coach Wes Fesler became the Cooper of his day. Woody Hayes replaced Fesler three months later.
1969: No. 12 Michigan 24, No. 1 Ohio State 12
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The Buckeyes were the defending 1968 national champions and went undefeated in 1969. In fact, they had accumulated a 22-game winning streak going back to 1967.
The offense revolved around slight-of-hand option quarterback Rex Kern, running backs Larry Zelina, Jim Otis and John Brockington.
While the offense was awesome, the defense was even better. “The only defense better than this,” people said, “was the Minnesota Vikings.”
Many said this Ohio State team was the best in the history of college football. The Buckeyes were heading into Ann Arbor as 17-point favorites—precisely the same spread as Saturday in Columbus.
Not that the 1969 Michigan team was a group of patsies. The No. 12 Wolverines (7-2, 5-1) had put together a five-game winning streak after losing a pair of early season games to Missouri and Michigan State.
The major difference was Michigan’s new coach Bo Schembechler, a former player and assistant under OSU’s Woody Hayes.
Schembechler’s familiarity with Ohio State’s tendencies helped Michigan’s defense play its best game of the season.
Once Michigan frustrated Ohio State’s awesome ground attack, they were in waiting for the Buckeye’s ineffective passing game. Six interceptions later, Michigan had a 24-12 upset and a trip to the Rose Bowl.
2001: Ohio State 26, No. 11 Michigan 20
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When Ohio State took the field for the 2001 game in Ann Arbor, the Buckeyes had a new coach and a new quarterback.
Jim Tressel had hoped to bring new meaning to the old rivalry when he spoke to the media soon after replacing John Cooper.
"I can assure you that you will be proud of your young people in the classroom, in the community, and most especially in 310 days in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on the football field," Tressel promised.
He was also forced to replace the troubled Steve Bellisari at quarterback.
Ironically, a Michigan man took the controls for underdog Ohio State and did rather well. Utica, Michigan’s Craig Krenzel completed 11 of 18 passes for 118 yards, while running back Jonathan Wells provided most of the offense with three touchdowns and 129 yards rushing.
Surprisingly, Ohio State held Michigan scoreless in the first half, mounting a 23-0 lead. The Buckeyes, who aided their cause by forcing five Michigan turnovers, won at the Big House for the first time since 1987.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
2004: Ohio State 37, No. 7 Michigan 21
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The Wolverines, who had just clinched a share of their 42nd Big Ten championship, faced another relatively new Ohio State quarterback.
Troy Smith picked this day in Columbus to give Michigan a glimpse of the future.
Before the game was two minutes old, Smith hit Tony Gonzalez with a 68-yard touchdown pass and by the time OSU completed its 37-21 victory, he had thrown for 247 yards and two touchdowns.
Smith also ran for another 150 yards, including a two-yard touchdown dive.
Michigan had come into the game with a 13-game Big Ten winning streak and seven straight wins overall.
But a resurgent Buckeye defense put the clamps on Michigan freshman running back Michael Hart, thus forcing Chad Henne to throw 54 times.
Michigan represented the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl, losing a thriller to Texas 38-37, while Ohio State bested Oklahoma State 33-7 in the Alamo Bowl.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
