Happy trails to defensive lineman Chris Carter and offensive lineman Antonio Underwood, the last linemen in the program recruited by Jim Bollman. You two will forever be Buckeyes.
MICHIGAN: NOT PLAYING FOR A WHOLE LOT. I wrote yesterday about how the chosen method of coping among Michigan Men this year seems to be "emotional detachment."
Only older siblings will feel this, but they remember the first time they messed around and lost some menial competition to a younger brother/sister. Physical violence might be the first card pulled in some cases, but in a lot of others it's the "emotional detachment" card.
And even though I've pulled that card in my day, it's absolute chickenshit.
I traveled to Ann Arbor last year. "Oh," they'd say, "let me guess, Ohio, right?" (I was wearing all Ohio swag.) "You must be in town for that football game or whatever. I don't really follow it, to be honest."
Lol. LOL. LOOOOOOOL. If I ever get to that point, I will just log off and quit typing. At least I'd like to think that, but I'm not on scholarship.
From Mark Snyder via The Marion Star (emphasis mine):
The end is coming for Michigan in every meaningful way. For Ryan and quarterback Devin Gardner, the faces of the offense and defense, a loss means the end of their careers. For Hoke and his staff, who will be evaluated by interim athletic director Jim Hackett after the game, there are no promises about the future.
[...]
"No, we're not playing for a whole lot, like they are; they're trying to get a bid into the playoff, but games are what this rivalry's built on, when one team's probably going to be a big underdog going in," U-M center Jack Miller said. "All three kids (speaking postgame) in here are Ohio kids, and it would be pretty sweet to go in their backyard and get a win."
Granted, I was born in '86 and was really into Goldeneye 007 for the N64 (come see me in the Complex with proximity mines), but it's hard for me to envision a world in which a hand-picked-for-the-media Ohio State player admits Ohio State isn't "playing for a whole lot" against Michigan.
And granted, this could be some hellacious "rope-a-dope" con, but off the top my OSU-loving brain, here are some things Michigan could play for on Saturday:
- Pride
- A bowl trip
- A chance to spoil a blood rival's season.
- A chance at, uh, immortality.
- Its coach's job (okay, maybe a stretch).
Not playing for "a whole lot" in The Game? That's a culture failure; that's why pop psychology tricks like calling Ohio State "Ohio" and cheap words aren't worth their weight in stale McDonald's "meat."
NO CANNED MUSIC REQUESTS FROM MEYER. Last month, I traveled to Nashville to watch the Almighty Cleveland Browns play the Titans. Within 10 minutes of kickoff, I was accosted by a BROWNS FAN behind me about sitting down.
I don't understand fans that come to a football game — literally, a game centered around controlled violence — and demand a sense of decorum from anybody involved. I go to football games to put the burdens and expectations of being a human aside for a few flickering moments of my inevitably unremarkable, insignificant blip on this intergalactic pebble sprinting through space. It's not 1996; I don't need to leave my living room to wilt in the wind from my seat on a key third down.
And while I haven't attended an Ohio State game Pryor's fumble against Penn State twenty years ago in 2008, I couldn't help but notice how awful not only the amount of piped in music against Indiana, but the selection of it. I understand music tastes are subjective, but seriously, I didn't know if I was listening to an Ohio State game or a 2008 teen's breakup/workout hybrid mixtape.
But, at least it looks like the amount of piped-in music was an anomaly against Indiana.
From Lori Schmidt of 97.1 The Fan:
So to be clear: OSU says neither coach Urban Meyer nor president Michael Drake requested that happen.
There apparently was a concern that with the weather and late-arriving crowd, there wouldn’t be as much excitement early on vs. the Hoosiers as there normally is on a game day. Therefore, they went with the prerecorded music to try to introduce some volume.
Around halftime, they realized they needed a little bit of a course correction, so the Marching Band played more after the intermission.
This doesn't change Ohio Stadium's playlist, which is almost literally a chaperon's burned CD from a 2008 high school homecoming dance.
I tweeted last Saturday, but the offer still stands: I will be the Ohio Stadium DJ. I will play the bangers that will turn Ohio State's 105k+ from a Master's Gallery to a bloodthirsty band of hooligans willing to act problematic for security.
Forget the the already-played-out "Third Down for What" or that church bell chorus or whatever. Just crank the volume, drop this record, and go outside for a cigarette break.
Today's NSFW ANTI-MICHIGAN #BANGER:
(That sound you hear is everybody over 30 heading for the exit.)
#WAYBACKWEDNESDAY. Here's a look, via OSU's excellent archives, of the first time Ohio State and Michigan squared up on Ohio Field (November 1901):
Boy, do I love the old Armory building. The demolishing of a building that looks that cool was indefensible.
TYVIS POWELL IS NO FAN OF MICHIGAN. Tyvis Powell, who despite what some may say about the angles he takes against runners, seems to be a spiritual talisman of the secondary. He is also no fan of Michigan:
Thought I'd change my Avi for this week. I think it's a good fit. What you think?
— Tyvis Powell (@1Tyvis) November 23, 2014
I'll let the reader do his/her own investigation into Tyvis' new avatar, but I thought this tweet about the hero from last year's Game was humorous:
@BenAxelrod You hear Joshua Perry say Tyvis didn't put ball down after he picked it till he got back to Cbus? Showered with it & everything.
— Lori Schmidt (@LoriSchmidt) November 24, 2014
Not playing for "a whole lot," indeed.
LEGGO WRESTLEBUCKS. The fourth-ranked Ohio State wrestling team dropped a match to Virginia Tech, but rebounded yesterday with a 30-7 defeat of No. 9 Virginia.
It's like I always say: "If you can't beat them, beat their estranged cousin."
THOSE WMDs. Sir... Via @TomOrr4: Herbie was just a bit off in his Michigan prediction... Joe Haden is a ridiculous athlete... Grantland's Zach Lowe on Kobe/Lakers... From @Propllrhead: Underwater monster on camera for first time... Czech President: "American beer is just filthy water."
