First up, the link, so everyone can read for themselves: https://www.dispatch.com/story/sports/columns/2024/12/10/ohio-state-football-fans-want-nothing-but-perfection-and-that-is-sad-ryan-day-michigan/76859249007/

Second up, must say that I really hate columns like this that paint an entire fanbase with a broad brush. Our fanbase is not a monolith. We have our homers, our crazies, our more even-keeled brethren, young folks, old folks, and everyone in between. Some are more unhinged than others; that's just what you get with a group this big.

But more importantly, this "sportswriter" does not seem to understand the rivalry with the Team up North at all.

Take this:

Welcome to Columbus, where babies are swaddled in Buckeye blankets the day they are born. ... The day before The Game, they are ordered to wear scarlet and gray outfits to school and sing “I don’t give a damn about the whole state of Michigan,” in assembly

Honestly? That's pretty awesome, and you can't convince me otherwise.

Then there's this: 

They are taught to hate Michigan because their lives lose worth if their team does not beat Michigan. Their parents, their teachers and THE Ohio State University teach them this.

That's nuts. I don't know any fans that actually believe this. I don't understand why you would write this. It's just a game, for crying out loud! Nobody's lives are devalued as a result of the game!

Then there's this:

Just three weeks before The Game, during a halftime show at Ohio Stadium, Ohio State’s marching band (aka The Best Damn Band in the Land, aka TBDBITL) riffed on a theme of “A day at the zoo.” During the climax, so to speak, TBDBITL formed in the shape of a bear, and the bear tipped into squatting position and defecated (a poop emoji unfurled from its bum) on a Block M flag. 

Was this a lesson in in digestive physiology and the importance of fiber in one’s diet – public education! – or it was a bold statement of anti-wokeness that set a new standard for stylized crap? Whatever it was, adults signed off on it

Uhh, it's a rivalry, dude. Of course, the adults signed off on it, because it's funny! Seriously, does this guy even understand the rivalry at all?

In addition, he takes aim at fans that expect a certain level of excellence: 

When a mid-major opponent is served up for slaughter in Columbus – think Akron, Western Michigan, Marshall and so forth – the Buckeyes must be ahead by 35 points at the half and win by 10 touchdowns. Anything less, and the fans are angry. And maybe the defensive coordinator should be fired before the start of the third quarter.

I mean, isn't this partly a fair expectation? We are Ohio State! We pay our coaches (and now players) millions of dollars every year, and we expect that our superior players will win handily. It's like this guy reads the 11W game threads and thinks that they are representative of the entire fanbase's mentality 100% of the time.

Then this:

One more proviso: If Ohio State is 14-0 heading into the quarterfinal round of the College Football Playoff and loses to, say, Arizona State, then the whole season is a total loss, the fans are angry, everyone should be fired, the offensive line should have all of its NIL contracts torn to shreds and the quarterback should be doxed.

Now we're just riding the slippery slope all the way down. A total loss? I mean, maybe. Fire everyone? Probably not. Doxing QBs? Who in the heck has ever even called for this? I mean, really? This is what passes as professional writing in newspapers these days? Give me a break.

Look, some in our fanbase are genuinely crazy, but it's a very small percentage. Yes, we as a fanbase expect a lot. There's nothing wrong with that. And yes, we must beat TTUN every year, because it's a rivalry, and that's what a rivalry means. 

But I guess that's too much nuance for this professional writer™ to delve into.