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Game Thread THE GAME: #1 Ohio State 42, #2 Michigan 39 (11/18/06)

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ytownbuckeye;634558; said:
forget all this michigan is good crap and their players are talented crap. we have five weeks for our hatred to build. the shoe will be rocking like never before on nov 18th. let's go for two cuz we can't go for three. let that team from up north get back on the bus wishing they never heard of columbus, ohio. :oh:
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as bad as it may sound. going for two instead of one while cruising to a blowout victory would be the ONLY way I could possibly like Jim Tressel anymore than I already do.

Imagine the scenario. 4th quarter. We're up 37-10. Troy Smith brings the troops out for a 2pt conversion and we punch that star studded Michigan Defense right in their fucking mouth. After the game, reporter asks Tressel why the 2pt conversion and he responds with "If you knew the history of this rivalry, you'd already know my answer, but incase you dont, its because we couldn't go for three."

I think the entire state of Michigan would then implode and numerous death threats would be thrown Jim's way. Then Carr would hide away in some 3rd world country.
 
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Percent chance we are 11-0 going into the game?

What do you think the chances are we go 11-0 going into playing scUM on Nov 18th. I say there is a 95 percent chance baring any major injuries to key players. We play IU and Minny at home which i think is the hardest games for the Buckeyes. Then we finish with Illinois and Northwestern both with first year Qb's.
 
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To not worry about this game is foolish. I don't care if Michigan is #2 or not ranked, to not worry about this game is foolish. Michigan's D-line looks unstoppable, but so does Ohio State's. Well in The Game, what the teams looked like all season doesn't matter. 0-11 or 11-0...it doesn't matter. How many times has an undefeated team left this game with a loss? If vegas was smart, this game would always be a pick 'em. So screw what happened in the season.

This game isn't just The Game...it's The Season. This game seperates men from boys. Troy Smith was nothing special until his first Ohio State/Michigan game...then all of a sudden he blows up for a record amount of total yards. All of a sudden he becomes an amazing QB and our season looks like a great one. Last year he repeats the performance, saving his best game of the year for last.

The Game never plays out as it would on paper. So who cares if their defense is putting up great stats or our offense is putting up great numbers. It doesn't matter. This game isn't about which team looked best during the season, it's about who wants it more. Who can play smashmouth, grind out yards, mistake free, leave it all on the field football for 60 minutes. Remember the speed and agility Gonzo and Ginn showed...AS FRESHMAN, in The Game. Remember 2001? Jonathan Wells exploding and Michigan imploding. How good did Michigan look in 2004 before The Game? How good was Edwards all year? How good was Henne all year? How good was Hart all year? How good were they in The Game that year? They stunk. While guys like Gonzo and Smith and Ginn had a game that made them look like men among boys. They knew what The Game meant. They knew what it was about. How did they know? Because...

We have Jim Tressel, a man who understands what rivalry is about. Tressel knows it isn't about what you've done so far in the season. It is realizing that THIS GAME is the season and this is where you play your best football if you want to win. Thank God we have a coach who understands that. This is the reason Jim Tressel is 4-1 in this rivalry. It isn't because he's always had the better players, it's because he had the better approach.

It's about heart. And that's something the Buckeyes have and honestly something, unlike years past, it looks like the Wolverines have this year too. Both of these teams are playing some really inspired football. Michigan hasn't had any heart in this game the past two seasons. They did in 2002, we just had more. They did in 2003 and that year they wanted it more. But the past two years, we've played inspired football and they haven't. But don't expect that this year. Expect this game to be much like 2002. That was one of the hardest fought games i've ever seen. 11 defenders going after the ball, hard hitting, inspring football. But you know why Ohio State had more heart in 2002? It wasn't just Tressel, Tressel prepared them as much as he could, and he did a damn good job of it, but he wasn't the only reason why Ohio State played with more passion in 2002...

It's about the fans. You could feel the will of the stadium push that team to victory and push our defense into never allowing Michigan into the end zone. Well this year's game is obviously in our house, and that same will, that same feeling, that same crowd taking over the game intensity needs to be there. This will be the biggest Ohio State-Michigan game in the history of the rivalry. This may be THE BIGGEST COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAME IN HISTORY. We need to make sure that we take full advantage of being lucky enough to have this game be at home by showing the Wolverines that Ohio Stadium is the toughest place to play in the country.

If you have a ticket to this game, don't sell it...no matter how much you get for it, you'll regret it for the rest of your life. If you must sell it though, then MAKE SURE YOU SELL IT TO A BUCKEYE FAN! Do not let any more of those damn michigan fans into our stadium than their university sold them tickets. And if you have a pair of tickets and don't know who to take to the game, FOR GOD'S SAKE...DON'T TAKE A MICHIGAN FAN! I know a lot of students are going to sell thier tickets...just get the word out that they need to sell them to Ohio State fans. Who cares if a Michigan fan is offering a few dollars more. ITS NOT WORTH IT. If you don't respect this rivalry enough to go to the game, at least respect it enough to keep a Buckeye in your seat. Every scummy person I see in that stadium just makes me puke. They don't deserve to set foot into The Shoe. But some, hopefully as few as possible, will find a way in.

Respect this rivalry. For those Michigan fans that are able to get in though, treat them with respect. It's about MUCH MUCH more than just hating the other team. As Tressel always mentions, this is a CLEAN rivalry on the field. Keep it that way off the field. Booo them and scream GO BUCKS to them. Make them uncomfortable for coming into OUR HOME because THEY ARE NOT WELCOME. Show them how much you love the Buckeyes...but at the same time respect their right to watch the game without being threatend or abused. Not that this is usually a big problem, but this game will be intense with emotions high. So no matter what happens, treat fellow college football fans with the same respect that you'd hope to get if you went to their home. I'd expect to get booed, and i'd expect to have people screaming for their team. But I've had things thrown at me, been threatened, and been assulted before at road games. That's not right. As much as it hurts to admit it, it is true that without Michigan, there would be no Ohio State...and the same goes for them too. Embrace and respect that. Jim Tressel has...the players have...if us Buckeye fans do our part too, then this will be one of the greatest days in college football history, with THE FANS once more willing Ohio State past Michigan to Arizona.

GO BUCKS!!!
BEAT MICHIGAN!!!
 
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Annother possible oddity that you have never seen before:

This could be the first game ever between Ohio State and Michigan where the winner (regardless of who wins) elimininates himself from Rose Bowl consideration and the loser (regardless of who loses) ends up going to the Rose Bowl.

Isn't the BCS wonderful!!!:biggrin:
 
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Magua;634666; said:
as bad as it may sound. going for two instead of one while cruising to a blowout victory would be the ONLY way I could possibly like Jim Tressel anymore than I already do.

Imagine the scenario. 4th quarter. We're up 37-10. Troy Smith brings the troops out for a 2pt conversion and we punch that star studded Michigan Defense right in their fucking mouth. After the game, reporter asks Tressel why the 2pt conversion and he responds with "If you knew the history of this rivalry, you'd already know my answer, but incase you dont, its because we couldn't go for three."

I think the entire state of Michigan would then implode and numerous death threats would be thrown Jim's way. Then Carr would hide away in some 3rd world country.
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i don't want to see that AT ALL.

the last time, we ended up with 34 years of bad karma...
 
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scarletngrey11;634454; said:
The Michigan DL this year is the best I have seen since our DL in '02.

Woodley, Biggs, Branch, and Taylor.

Woodley and Branch are All-Americans, and Biggs and Taylor are both locks for the All-Big-Ten team.
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I stopped reading the rest of the posts when I saw this. So, The Michigan DL takes all four spots as all Big Ten? :roll1:
 
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Link

Wolverines

MARK SNYDER: Undefeated Michigan is running on all cylinders

October 16, 2006
BY MARK SNYDER
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER

Michigan safety Brandon Harrison, left, breaks up a pass intended for Penn State's Derrick Williams. The Wolverines' defense is ranked seventh in the nation. (CAROLYN KASTER/Associated Press)
Saturday's game
  • What: No. 2 Michigan (7-0, 4-0) vs. Iowa (5-2, 2-2).

    When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor.

    TV: ABC (Channel 7 in Detroit).

    Line: Michigan by 13 1/2 .

    RESULTS/SCHEDULE

    DATE OPPONENT RESULT Sept. 2 Vanderbilt W, 27-7 Sept. 9 Central Michigan W, 41-17 Sept. 16 at Notre Dame W, 47-21 Sept. 23 Wisconsin W, 27-13 Sept. 30 at Minnesota W, 28-14 Oct. 7 Michigan State W, 31-13 Oct. 14 at Penn State W, 17-10
    DATE OPPONENT TIME TV Saturday Iowa 3:30 ABC Oct. 28 Northwestern Noon TBA Nov. 4 Ball State TBA TBA Nov. 11 at Indiana TBA TBA Nov. 18 at Ohio State 3:30 ABC
A year ago, the scene wouldn't have worked.
The Michigan football team, flying in and out of a hostile Big Ten city, wouldn't have seemed appropriate on Champion Air.
But that was the charter plane sitting at University Park (Pa.) airport on Saturday evening, waiting to fly the Wolverines home.
And now, at 7-0 and a Big Ten-best 4-0 in conference play, Michigan seems worthy of the tie-in.
If the first six games hadn't shown enough, Saturday's 17-10 win at Penn State proved Michigan is a focused, determined machine.
OFFENSE: Top receiver Mario Manningham was not there after minor knee surgery earlier in the week yet Michigan still was committed to throwing the ball, using Adrian Arrington and Steve Breaston for tough catches and opening up the tight end, Carson Butler, on Saturday.
Though U-M coach Lloyd Carr said Manningham's swelling was down, it's hard to imagine the Wolverines would chance him before he was ready, meaning probably at least another week out, if not more.
Yet against what Carr called one of the two toughest defenses U-M has faced -- Wisconsin being the other -- Michigan still compiled 312 yards of offense. The Michigan offensive line handled Penn State's aggressive front eight and only allowed Chad Henne to be sacked twice.
And for those who saw a running game with one of its season-low outputs, the yards were there when necessary, as Mike Hart continued to grind.
The environment was hostile yet Henne looked more mature than ever. He handled the game just enough, made a few throws few collegians could -- like on the 25-yard, thread-the-needle score to Arrington -- and kept moving. That's what Carr told Henne to focus on, the game and none of the periphery about his Pennsylvania homecoming.
"Did you take your team and get them in the end zone? Did you find a way to help your team win this game? Because that's what's going to be remembered," Carr said.
DEFENSE: Certain games stamp a title season and, regardless how this year finishes, Saturday will remain the signature. Knocking out two quarterbacks with ferocious hits, making seven sacks for 65 yards, those will be etched memories for U-M fans.
Though the Wolverines showed how fragile defense is with a bit of trouble on screen passes and with a critical pass interference penalty, those became incidentals once the game was over.
A shining defensive show -- Penn State finished with minus-14 yards rushing, 186 yards of offense and just 10 points -- was dulled by Tony Hunt's 43-yard scamper. But the rankings say this is the nation's No. 7 total defense, and, unlike repeatedly last year, Michigan proved it again in the final minute, holding off the Lions' desperate rally.
Even seven weeks in, Carr's defense is still driven by the five-loss pain of 2005.
"The one thing that probably is the difference, all those guys played a year ago," Carr said. "A lot of them were hurt, a lot of them missed time, a lot of them suffered through the disappointment that comes with a season where you lose five games at Michigan. That motivated them. All the experiences they had proved to be invaluable. You can't buy disappointment."
Now the Wolverines get to deal with unfamiliar praise. Every week will be a chariot ride to the Nov. 18 showdown against Ohio State in Columbus.
Nine years ago, an undefeated Michigan team went to Happy Valley for a nationally televised win and left with the nation's No. 1 Associated Press ranking. Over the weekend, after another memorable nationally televised performance, they rose to No. 2.
We're convinced now this is a title-caliber team. All that's left over the next five weeks is waiting for the chance to prove it.
 
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Blade

Ohio State vs. Michigan: Talk of the towns, but not players


By MATT MARKEY
BLADE SPORTS WRITER

Sometime just after their sign their scholarship papers, and just before they get the keys to their dormitory rooms, college football players take a solemn oath to never, ever discuss any game but the next one.
They have the "one game at a time" credo implanted in their brains long before learning the school fight song, the periodic table of the elements, or which pizza place near campus delivers after midnight. Violators of this gag order won't be shot - they'll be forced to play for Indiana State. (The Sycamores have lost 24 straight.) So, given that code of silence about anything more than six days away, nobody in the Ohio State or Michigan camps wants to talk about the possibility - now the likelihood - that come Nov. 18, the No. 1 team in the nation will meet the No. 2 team in the nation and they will be playing that game in Columbus. Following this past weekend's developments - No. 1 Ohio State thrashing Michigan State and then No. 4 Michigan beating Penn State in Happy Valley - enough voters in the Associated Press poll were convinced that the two best teams in the country are in the same league, and only about 150 miles apart. The gate opened for Michigan to move up when last week's No. 2 team, Florida, going through a Murderer's Row of a schedule, lost on Saturday at Auburn. The coaches poll still has ho-hum Southern Cal No. 2 after another ho-hum win, but Michigan leaped over the Trojans on the AP ballot. If the Wolverines manage an impressive win over Iowa this week, the polls could agree on their 1-2 configuration, and a prenational championship "Game of the Century" could come off next month in Ohio Stadium. One of the teams will be wearing scarlet and gray, and the other maize and blue, and the winner will be chartering a flight to Phoenix for the actual national championship game in early January. Ohio State started the preseason No. 1, and Michigan has climbed week by week after beginning the year No. 14. While both have gone through seven games unscathed, plenty of other teams left the unbeaten ranks, setting the stage for a colossal No. 1 vs. No. 2 final game of the Big Ten schedule. They can't talk about it, won't talk about it, won't smile, won't frown or react in any manner to the mere suggestion. But it is a tantalizing teaser for Ohio State and Michigan fans. The two factions that make up the greatest rivalry in sports have met 102 times - but never as the No. 1 and No. 2 teams. The scenario that gets them to such a clash of the titans at Ohio Stadium is not far-fetched at all. Ohio State has Indiana, Minnesota, Illinois, and Northwestern left on the schedule before it sees the Wolverines. Those teams are 3-13 in the Big Ten this season. Michigan has Iowa, Northwestern, Ball State, and Indiana before it plays the Buckeyes. Only Iowa (5-2) and Indiana (4-3) have winning records. Ohio State coach Jim Tressel was asked recently about the difficulty of staying focused on the interim games, when the murmurs about Michigan, a potential National Championship, and the Heisman Trophy candidacies of quarterback Troy Smith and receiver/return man Ted Ginn, Jr., seem to drown out the current agenda. Tressel said it is one of the thorniest tasks his team faces. "The hardest thing to do is to keep your mind on what's going on this second," Tressel said. "I don't care if there's hard things, easy things, or perceived things, or whatever - it's keeping your mind on what's going on right now." Michigan coach Lloyd Carr is just as strident. He won't discuss next week's weather, next week's stock market, or next week's training table menu. "Some mountains are higher than others," Carr said earlier this year when asked about his schedule that included the top-ranked Buckeyes, and Central Michigan. Ohio State senior safety Brandon Mitchell said the Buckeyes are getting used to the buzz that goes with being No. 1. Not comfortable with it, just accustomed to it. "Everyone keeps saying that the championship is ours to lose - both the Big Ten and the national championship," Mitchell said. "Great teams go out and take the championship. We have to stay focused and not go into cruise control." Michigan junior defensive lineman Alan Branch indicated he treats every opponent the same - as potential spoilers. "My motivation is I want to win the Big Ten Championship and the national championship," Branch said. "Every team that goes on the field against us is my motivation because they're trying to stop us from getting what we want as a team." Michigan's move up to No. 2 spot gives the Big Ten the top two teams in the AP poll for the first time since Iowa was No. 1 and Michigan was No. 2 back in 1985. The Wolverines were ranked No. 1 and Ohio State No. 2 in September of 1976. The final chapter in the "what-if" scenario has this year's Buckeyes potentially taking part in three No. 1 vs. No. 2 games - in the same college football season. Top-ranked Ohio State beat No. 2 Texas in September, and if Michigan comes to Columbus as No. 2 and Ohio State wins that game, the Buckeyes would then move into the national title game for a third 1-2 matchup against a new challenger.
 
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According to Rivals Radio, these two teams have never been ranked #1 and #2 going into The Game. Of course, both teams need to win out, and USC and maybe West Virginy (and maybe someone else - I haven't seen the polls) need to each lose a game. The last time the two teams were undefeated going into The Game was 1973. Oddly enough, both teams remained undefeated after The Game.

My wife said she's glad I'm going to the game, because my nervousness spills over to make her nervous during normal football games. Michigan games are even worse for her. And she already knows that this one is going to be worse for her than last year's Michigan game was.
 
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