Jim Harbaugh was asked at his press conference earlier this week if he respects Ryan Day and his staff. Harbaugh, as he often does when asked something that bothers him, hesitated before avoiding the question.
“It’s about our preparation for Ohio,” Harbaugh said. “The days, the minutes, the hours, everything leading up to this game, that’s where our focus is. By preparing and planning, we will practice and then execute. “Anything else is irrelevant when you get to this kind of big game.”
Ryan Day was asked a similar question a day later. He wasn’t interested in giving an honest answer either.
“With everything that’s going on and things that are out there, we’ve just stayed away from all the distractions and focused on our team,” he said. “I think our guys have done a good job. …I’ve talked to them a couple of times about what happened this season, before the game, but they’re focused on this game. “They are focused on this season.”
I’m writing a column right now and I have a question: Is this the best, most hyped Ohio State-Michigan game… of all time?
—Ari Wasserman (@AriWasserman) November 22, 2023
Four years ago, after Ohio State’s 56-27 victory over Michigan in Ann Arbor in Day’s first year as the Buckeyes’ coach, the rivalry seemed dead because Urban Meyer killed it. Meyer was no longer the coach at Ohio State, but the foundation of what he built carried over into the Day era and the Buckeyes ran roughshod over the Wolverines. The game was lopsided, the recruiting results were lopsided, and Ohio State was more worried about Clemson than its bitterest rival.
But the rivalry was not dead. It turns out that you can’t kill him.
And if you’re looking for something to be thankful for on Thursday, how about this? The greatest rivalry in sports, one that was on life support less than five years ago, has not only returned. It’s better than ever.
After Harbaugh beat Ohio State for the first time, in 2021, he said in the postgame press conference that “some people are born on third base and act like they hit a triple,” referring to Day’s status as a coach. of the Buckeyes. A public shot at your rival’s coach and everything he has accomplished in his career? There is no going back from that.
Of course, Harbaugh then went on to say that the comment was a backlash to Day, who reportedly said he would “hang 100” on Michigan during a discussion on a Big Ten coaches teleconference. Unfortunately, the motivation for this is no longer really important. That’s not a comment you can ignore.
GO DEEPER
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But this year’s game is about much more than public trash talk. On Ohio State’s side, you have an elite-level program hoping to win national titles living in a reality where it is no longer even perceived as the best program in the Big Ten East. Day has lost consecutive games to Michigan after the Buckeyes lost just once in this rivalry from 2004 to 2019.
Day has an impeccable record and came close to winning a national title last year, but many Ohio State fans are wondering if he is the right man for the job. He calls it the ghost of John Cooper.
Michigan is looking for its third straight win in the series, which would have been an unthinkable idea in December 2019. But the Wolverines are currently under investigation for an alleged in-person scouting scheme and people are using the word “cheating.” Harbaugh is coaching his team during the week, preparing the game plan and fulfilling his media obligations as usual, but he is serving a three-game suspension from the Big Ten and will not be at Michigan Stadium on Saturday.
Many Michigan fans believe wholeheartedly that Day hired a private investigation firm to investigate the Wolverines and attribute all of the program’s problems to the Ohio State head coach. Day’s brothers have been involved in accusations that have proliferated on X (formerly known as Twitter) and college football message boards.
You have real-life animosity between two coaches as an appetizer for a game that will most likely determine who wins the Big Ten and advances to the College Football Playoff.
The 2006 edition featured two undefeated teams in what was called “The Game of the Century.” Legendary Michigan coach Bo Schembechler died the day before the game due to cardiovascular disease. Doctors said all the excitement leading up to the Game probably contributed to his death.
It’s not supposed to weigh more than that. Many will tell you that nothing can compare to 2006. This may not be the case. But it feels bigger in a different way.
This year we have two programs and two coaches that legitimately hate each other. Rivalries exist at all levels of the sport and hatred is probably more common in the stands than on the field. But this? This is natural.
Even Schembechler and legendary Ohio State coach Woody Hayes, the two men who presided over the Ten Year War from 1969 to 1978, loved and admired each other. The two were close friends, even though they spent the entire year trying to figure out how to beat each other. Woody visited Bo in the hospital after he suffered a heart attack. Bo gave a eulogy at Woody’s funeral.
Those are the maximum signs of respect. The two current coaches can’t even muster the energy to say the word.
The outcome of this game will impact, regardless of the outcome.
• Michigan wins: The Wolverines remain on top. They also maintain that the sign-stealing scandal has been completely exaggerated and that the victory over Ohio State is proof that they were always the better team. Even without Harbaugh on the sidelines, Michigan is superior to its bitter rival. The victory also legitimizes the results of the previous two seasons. Day, in turn, has to return to Columbus with his tail between his legs before a fan base that may have already turned against him.
• Ohio State wins: Day evens his record at 2-2 against Michigan and all is forgiven. His record against his biggest rival might not match Meyer’s (7-0) or Jim Tressel’s (9-1), but he gets extra credit for winning the most important edition of this bitter rivalry. Ohio State reasserts itself as a Big Ten class and will likely return to the College Football Playoff to try to finish the job after coming close a year ago. Meanwhile, Michigan is eliminated from the CFP and begins to face even more pressing questions about Connor Stalions, the cheating scandal and how much advanced scouting helped the program turn the tables in the first place.
When has a game been most attractive? Championship trophies are at stake on the field and self-esteem is at stake off of it. For both teams.
If you’re an Ohio State or Michigan fan, you can probably agree on one thing: that this is the best rivalry in college football and, perhaps, sports. And the anticipation and genuine hatred that exists makes this Thanksgiving week sweeter than usual.
This is the nirvana of rivalry.
This is the epitome of what makes college football great.
Who isn’t grateful that this rivalry is back… and better than ever?
(Photo by Jim Harbaugh and Ryan Day: Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images)
