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Home , Brady Hoke, Braxton Miller, Jim Tressel, Luke Fickell, Urban Meyer

eblade special

Winner of the 2004 Pulitzer for Investigative Reporting

E E DI T ION TOLEDO, Friday, November 25, 2011 OHIO STATE VS. MICHIGAN When: Noon on Saturday Where: The Big House, Ann Arbor TV: Channel 13 Radio: 106.5 FM, 1470 AM, 950 AM THE RIVALRY f the Ohio State-Michigan ri- We live and breathe this rival- valry were a crop, it would be ry because it’s important to the bountiful and high-yielding fabric of our community. Many I of countless moments and of us are defined by Scarlet and memories to savor. Gray, and Maize and Blue, colors Once chosen the greatest ri- we take seriously. valry in sports in an ESPN Entering Saturday’s contest voters poll, the game be- in which OSU has taken sev- comes a beacon in your life. en consecutive wins, the You remember where you Columbus security blanket were in 1969 when first-year of ’s 8-1 mark UM coach and against Michigan has been his Wolverines defied all odds to tossed aside since his resigna- upset an OSU squad that Woody tion last spring. Former Buckeye Hayes would later acknowledge , in his first season as as his best-ever team. And Hayes a , knows what the ri- was coming off a national cham- valry is like — a season in just pionship in the previous season. one game. For those who have been There is hope and optimism in around longer, perhaps the Ann Arbor in the form of Brady “Snow Bowl” of 1950 stirs a mem- Hoke, an Ohioan who is now an ory. The game, played in Colum- adopted “Michigan Man.” Mich- bus during a full-blown blizzard, igan (9-2) enters the game as ended in a 9-3 Michigan victory. more than a touchdown favorite Ohio State’s Dan ‘Boom’ Herron Michigan’s More recently, who can forget against the Buckeyes (6-5). the high-scoring showdown be- So, in honor of meeting No. tween the top-ranked Buckeyes 108, with UM leading the series and the No. 2 Wolverines in 2006, 57-43-6 (last year’s OSU victory 5 reasons when eventual was vacated), we asked our beat 5 reasons winner led OSU to a writers to give us five reasons 42-39 win. why each team will win.

Buckeyes THE FIELD OF BATTLE: MICHIGAN STADIUM, AKA THE BIG HOUSE Wolverines will win will win By Matt Markey By Ryan Autullo Blade Sports Writer Blade Sports Writer When the band plays the national Filling this space the past three anthem and close to 115,000 fill years with reasons why Michigan Michigan Stadium just before noon would beat Ohio State would have on Saturday, it will have been 2,924 been as difficult as pushing away days since the Wolverines last beat from a second helping of mom’s Ohio State on the football field. The broccoli and cheese casserole at Buckeyes will be underdogs in the Thanksgiving dinner. game for the first time since 2004 as The Wolverines’ chances from they seek to add another 365 days to 2008 to 2010 were slim. You knew it. I Michigan’s calendar of misery. knew it. And unless they were oblivi- Here’s a list of five reasons why ous to the ineptitude of their de- Ohio State will beat Michigan … fense, they did too. Carrying out the again: task this year is more manageable. The clock is about to strike mid- Both teams have pulled u-turns night on the most chaotic and un- since the end of last season, and settled Ohio State season in memo- their transformations should be ry, and the best way to restore order 1and put the program back on track is to punctuated by mid-afternoon Satur- beat Michigan, on the field, for the eighth day. Here is a list of five reasons why straight time. With no Big Ten title for the UM will beat OSU: first time in seven years, no place in the Ohio State is inept offensively and conference’s first championship game, won’t be able to score enough and the likelihood of a bowl trip that in- points to stick around until the end. volves none of the luxuries they are accus- The defense the Buckeyes will face tomed to, this is the and the 1is sixth nationally in scoring, avoids big championship game for this group of plays, and has a propensity for devouring Buckeyes. who possess a below-aver- Senior running back Dan “Boom” age arm. It’s difficult to foresee freshman Herron will continue to inflict ma- making jor damage on the Wolverines. THE BLADE enough plays to produce long, sustained Herron had 175 yards rushing on Since The Rivalry began in 1897, the Wolverines have defeated the Buck- scoring drives. 222 carries last season, and has 358 yards eyes 30 times in Ann Arbor while losing 20 games and tying four times. Jim Tressel isn’t walking out of that and three touchdowns in his three games tunnel, and for that matter, neither against Michigan. If Herron has a big role, is . How many points the Buckeyes grind away at Michigan and is a coach worth on game day? keep Denard Robinson as a spectator on 2That’s an impossible question to accurate- the sidelines. ly answer, but just know this: Ohio State’s Freshman linebacker former leader made a real difference in will shadow Robinson’s every this rivalry. In winning nine of 10 games, move and prevent the Michigan Tressel always made sure his teams were quarterback from breaking any prepared. This year, OSU’s players will 3long runs. In his first start last week rally around a substitute teacher in Luke against Penn State, Shazier had 15 tackles. Fickell, who eliminated himself from The 15 tackles are the most by a Buckeye long-term employment because of a shaky since linebacker Ross Homan recorded 15 semester and an unimaginative offensive in 2009 against Wisconsin. The last Buck- coordinator. Given the magnitude of this eye to top 15 tackles was linebacker James game, the Buckeyes will play passionately. Laurinaitis when he had 17 in a 2007 game That’s a given. But I question their pre- against the Badgers. Shazier is fast, athlet- paredness. ic, and an instinctive player. He might be Michigan couldn’t have picked a christened the next great Ohio State line- better time to be performing at its backer if he has a big game here. highest level of the season. Two The Fickell factor will turn out to weeks ago, defensive coordinator be a big motivator. With all of the 3Greg Mattison fought back tears at Illinois, CLASH OF FIRST-YEAR COACHES detailed speculation about OSU proclaiming his unit a “Michigan de- courting Urban Meyer, Ohio the blade fense” for the first time this season. A 4State’s Luke Fickell is likely coaching his Leading the Buckeyes into Ann Arbor on Saturday will be Luke Fickell, week later, they performed even better in a final game, and that could rally the troops left, who took the helm at OSU after Jim Tressel resigned last spring. The See OSU, Page 2 See UM, Page 2 Wolverines are led by , who replaced .

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