Matt Tamanini
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You’re Nuts: Which Wolverine do you secretly wish was a Buckeye?
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Barbara J. Perenic/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about Ohio State’s rivals. Michigan is the defending national champion, but there has been a lot of change in Ann Arbor. What does that mean for the season, the Big Ten, and the Buckeyes? You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”That Team Up North” articles here.
Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25549457/1918230425.jpg "2024 CFP National Championship - Michigan v Washington")
Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
I know the rules: We don’t give a damn for the whole state of Michigan, but I make an exception for former Michigan running back Blake Corum (despite knowing full well that he does not give a damn about me or the Ohio State Buckeyes).
On one hand, Ohio State was doing just fine at running back during Corum’s years at Michigan (2020-2023), with names likeTreVeyon Henderson, Miyan Williams, Dallen Hayden, and Chip Trayanum carrying the ball for the Buckeyes. Adding Corum to the roster wouldn’t have necessarily filled a major positional gap for Ohio State.
On the other hand, Corum is a leader, a class act, and a spectacular talent, and having a guy like him on your roster never hurts, either. There’s an added factor with Corum too—if we’re going to stomach a former Wolverine in a Buckeye uniform, it’s got to be someone who is genuinely likable.
There’s not much to dislike about Corum.
On the field, Corum’s talent was apparent even in his first year. He started in the season opener as a true freshman and played in all six games of that truncated 2020 season. In 2021, he rushed for more than 100 yards in three consecutive games, the first Wolverine to do so since Denard Robinson a decade prior.
By the time he was a junior, he was in Heisman contention. His star season included feats such as five rushing touchdowns against UConn (four of which came in the first half), tying Michigan’s modern-era record.
Over the next several games, he put up absolutely insane numbers: a career-high 243 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries over Maryland (earning him Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors), 133 yards and a touchdown against Iowa, 124 yards and a touchdown against Indiana, 166 yards and two touchdowns against Penn State, and 177 yards and a touchdown against Michigan State (earning him Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors for the second time that season). He also tacked on 109 yards and two touchdowns against Rutgers and 162 yards and a touchdown against Nebraska.
He was largely considered a top contender for the Heisman, having the third-best odds of anyone to win, before he tore his meniscus and sprained his MCL in the game against Illinois, just one week before The Game. And while he played sparingly against Illinois and attempted to play in The Game, he ultimately only participated in the first drive. The Wolverines announced a few days later that Corum’s season was over as he was to undergo knee surgery.
While injuries usually spell a death knell for Heisman campaigns, at the time, I wrote about how his astonishing statistics up to that point still warranted Heisman recognition. After all, he finished the year with 1,463 rushing yards, 18 rushing touchdowns, and one receiving touchdown, and those numbers surely would have been higher had he been able to play the full season.
He was unanimously named to the All-American team, earned Big Ten Most Valuable Player honors, and ultimately finished seventh in Heisman voting (I still contend it should have been higher).
And then he came back for a final year, capping his career at Michigan with a third-consecutive victory over Ohio State (booo) and a National Championship (boooo).
He was not a guy you wanted your team to face, so in terms of sheer talent, it certainly would have been better for Ohio State if he had been on our side of the field (though I have to respect that he probably would throw up if he read this, as he respects the rivalry in a way that only makes it better. Another point for Corum, I suppose).
Even more impressive is who Corum is off the field. He’s the kind of standup guy you want representing your program. When Corum wasn’t dominating on the field, he was often found serving his community, using his NIL money to give back.
For three consecutive years, he hosted “Giving Back 2 Give Thanks” events around his community, donating hundreds of Thanksgiving turkeys and meals to people in Ypsilanti, Michigan.
He also used his status as one of the most successful players in college football. According to a Sports Illustrated article from 2021, Corum understood right away that as a guy scoring touchdowns, his role was likely flashier than, say, his offensive linemen, but he couldn’t do his job without them.
When companies would approach him about sponsorships, he made sure that if he wasn’t going to take one, he recommended one of his less-famous teammates to replace him. He picked up the tab for his guys when they would go out. And one time, he even left cash gifts for his linemen, a thank-you for their part in making him look good on the field.
So, Blake Corum, I’m sorry to suggest I wish you’d been a Buckeye because I know that is probably the most repulsive thought in the world to you. Trust that I don’t really want a former Wolverine to suit up in Scarlet and Gray either.
But for the sake of this hypothetical exercise, of all the Wolverines I could most stomach as a Buckeye, it’s one like Corum—a star on the field and a person of upstanding character off of it.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25549459/81692917.jpg "University of Michigan Barry Larkin")
Set Number: X31375
Look, there was no chance that I was picking a Michigan football player, and even though I considered a men’s basketball player, I just couldn't find a single TTUN player that I would want to don the scarlet and gray. So, instead, I thought about other sports, and almost immediately, there was one player who popped to the top of my mind.
Not only is he an Ohio native, but he is also an Ohio legend, and he played his entire Hall of Fame professional career in the state of Ohio. I am talking about the legendary Cincinnati Reds’ shortstop No. 11 Barry Larkin.
As a lifelong Reds fan, of course I am partial to Lark, but there is another, very legitimate rivalry reason to root for this particular Wolverine. While Barry went from Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati to Ann Arbor on a football scholarship, during his freshman year, he quit Bo Schembechler’s team to focus exclusively on baseball. So, any Michigan player who quits on the football team can’t be all bad, right?
Of course, Larkin helped lead the Wolverine baseball team to incredible heights. He was a two-time All-American, two-time Big Ten Player of the Year, and twice he took his team to the men’s College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. His No. 16 has been retired for the TTUN baseball team since 2010.
So, Larkin is a legitimate Michigan star, but something about the fact that he made his name in a sport other than football makes it feel less offensive to suggest that I would want him to be a Buckeye. But, when you consider what he has done for the state of Ohio, I think there is ample reason to overlook his maize and blue past.
Lark is a 12-time Major League Baseball All-Star, three-time Gold Glove winner, nine-time Silver Slugger Award winner, an NL MVP, a World Series champion, a Reds Hall of Famer, and a 2012 inductee to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
Barry has also been an incredible member of the Cincinnati, baseball, and sports communities. He continues to work with the Reds as a spring training coach and television broadcaster, but he also has worked throughout the years with the SportsUnited Sports Envoy program for the U.S. Department of State, bringing sports to countries around the world as a way to bridge gaps between nations.
In every imaginable way other than the fact that he went to Michigan, Barry Larkin is a model Ohioan and someone that I would be proud to call a Buckeye.
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Barbara J. Perenic/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about Ohio State’s rivals. Michigan is the defending national champion, but there has been a lot of change in Ann Arbor. What does that mean for the season, the Big Ten, and the Buckeyes? You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”That Team Up North” articles here.
Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
Today’s Question: Which Wolverine do you secretly wish was a Buckeye?
Jami’s Take: Blake Corum
I know the rules: We don’t give a damn for the whole state of Michigan, but I make an exception for former Michigan running back Blake Corum (despite knowing full well that he does not give a damn about me or the Ohio State Buckeyes).
On one hand, Ohio State was doing just fine at running back during Corum’s years at Michigan (2020-2023), with names likeTreVeyon Henderson, Miyan Williams, Dallen Hayden, and Chip Trayanum carrying the ball for the Buckeyes. Adding Corum to the roster wouldn’t have necessarily filled a major positional gap for Ohio State.
On the other hand, Corum is a leader, a class act, and a spectacular talent, and having a guy like him on your roster never hurts, either. There’s an added factor with Corum too—if we’re going to stomach a former Wolverine in a Buckeye uniform, it’s got to be someone who is genuinely likable.
There’s not much to dislike about Corum.
On the field, Corum’s talent was apparent even in his first year. He started in the season opener as a true freshman and played in all six games of that truncated 2020 season. In 2021, he rushed for more than 100 yards in three consecutive games, the first Wolverine to do so since Denard Robinson a decade prior.
By the time he was a junior, he was in Heisman contention. His star season included feats such as five rushing touchdowns against UConn (four of which came in the first half), tying Michigan’s modern-era record.
Over the next several games, he put up absolutely insane numbers: a career-high 243 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries over Maryland (earning him Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors), 133 yards and a touchdown against Iowa, 124 yards and a touchdown against Indiana, 166 yards and two touchdowns against Penn State, and 177 yards and a touchdown against Michigan State (earning him Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors for the second time that season). He also tacked on 109 yards and two touchdowns against Rutgers and 162 yards and a touchdown against Nebraska.
He was largely considered a top contender for the Heisman, having the third-best odds of anyone to win, before he tore his meniscus and sprained his MCL in the game against Illinois, just one week before The Game. And while he played sparingly against Illinois and attempted to play in The Game, he ultimately only participated in the first drive. The Wolverines announced a few days later that Corum’s season was over as he was to undergo knee surgery.
While injuries usually spell a death knell for Heisman campaigns, at the time, I wrote about how his astonishing statistics up to that point still warranted Heisman recognition. After all, he finished the year with 1,463 rushing yards, 18 rushing touchdowns, and one receiving touchdown, and those numbers surely would have been higher had he been able to play the full season.
He was unanimously named to the All-American team, earned Big Ten Most Valuable Player honors, and ultimately finished seventh in Heisman voting (I still contend it should have been higher).
And then he came back for a final year, capping his career at Michigan with a third-consecutive victory over Ohio State (booo) and a National Championship (boooo).
He was not a guy you wanted your team to face, so in terms of sheer talent, it certainly would have been better for Ohio State if he had been on our side of the field (though I have to respect that he probably would throw up if he read this, as he respects the rivalry in a way that only makes it better. Another point for Corum, I suppose).
Even more impressive is who Corum is off the field. He’s the kind of standup guy you want representing your program. When Corum wasn’t dominating on the field, he was often found serving his community, using his NIL money to give back.
For three consecutive years, he hosted “Giving Back 2 Give Thanks” events around his community, donating hundreds of Thanksgiving turkeys and meals to people in Ypsilanti, Michigan.
He also used his status as one of the most successful players in college football. According to a Sports Illustrated article from 2021, Corum understood right away that as a guy scoring touchdowns, his role was likely flashier than, say, his offensive linemen, but he couldn’t do his job without them.
When companies would approach him about sponsorships, he made sure that if he wasn’t going to take one, he recommended one of his less-famous teammates to replace him. He picked up the tab for his guys when they would go out. And one time, he even left cash gifts for his linemen, a thank-you for their part in making him look good on the field.
So, Blake Corum, I’m sorry to suggest I wish you’d been a Buckeye because I know that is probably the most repulsive thought in the world to you. Trust that I don’t really want a former Wolverine to suit up in Scarlet and Gray either.
But for the sake of this hypothetical exercise, of all the Wolverines I could most stomach as a Buckeye, it’s one like Corum—a star on the field and a person of upstanding character off of it.
Matt’s Take: Barry Larkin
Look, there was no chance that I was picking a Michigan football player, and even though I considered a men’s basketball player, I just couldn't find a single TTUN player that I would want to don the scarlet and gray. So, instead, I thought about other sports, and almost immediately, there was one player who popped to the top of my mind.
Not only is he an Ohio native, but he is also an Ohio legend, and he played his entire Hall of Fame professional career in the state of Ohio. I am talking about the legendary Cincinnati Reds’ shortstop No. 11 Barry Larkin.
As a lifelong Reds fan, of course I am partial to Lark, but there is another, very legitimate rivalry reason to root for this particular Wolverine. While Barry went from Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati to Ann Arbor on a football scholarship, during his freshman year, he quit Bo Schembechler’s team to focus exclusively on baseball. So, any Michigan player who quits on the football team can’t be all bad, right?
Of course, Larkin helped lead the Wolverine baseball team to incredible heights. He was a two-time All-American, two-time Big Ten Player of the Year, and twice he took his team to the men’s College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. His No. 16 has been retired for the TTUN baseball team since 2010.
So, Larkin is a legitimate Michigan star, but something about the fact that he made his name in a sport other than football makes it feel less offensive to suggest that I would want him to be a Buckeye. But, when you consider what he has done for the state of Ohio, I think there is ample reason to overlook his maize and blue past.
Lark is a 12-time Major League Baseball All-Star, three-time Gold Glove winner, nine-time Silver Slugger Award winner, an NL MVP, a World Series champion, a Reds Hall of Famer, and a 2012 inductee to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
Barry has also been an incredible member of the Cincinnati, baseball, and sports communities. He continues to work with the Reds as a spring training coach and television broadcaster, but he also has worked throughout the years with the SportsUnited Sports Envoy program for the U.S. Department of State, bringing sports to countries around the world as a way to bridge gaps between nations.
In every imaginable way other than the fact that he went to Michigan, Barry Larkin is a model Ohioan and someone that I would be proud to call a Buckeye.
Let us know who you are agreeing with:
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