Listen to Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh and Penn State coach James Franklin talk about the other team, and you almost can’t tell the difference.
No. 5 Michigan (6-0) and No. 10 Penn State (5-0) get the Big Noon stage to themselves in a battle of Big Ten unbeaten teams at Michigan Stadium on Saturday. Harbaugh and Franklin, of course, were pouring on the platitudes in their respective press conferences this week.
“They always win a lot of games, always good on all sides of the ball, always well-coached,” Harbaugh said at his press conference. “Great shape, tough, physical, sound football team and exceptional in many areas.”
“Got a ton of respect for Coach Harbaugh, for the university, for the program, for the venue, and obviously they’ve got a lot of things planned for the game as well,” Franklin said at his press conference. “It should be a great atmosphere.”
That’s when the realization hits. These programs aren’t just uneasy siblings who were introduced when Penn State joined the Big Ten in 1993. When looking at the last 30 years – especially the College Football Playoff era – they are more like twins. Identical twins, even.
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Look at the overall record since 1993. Michigan is 251-114; one game better than Penn State at 250-115. The Nittany Lions and Wolverines have maintained similar records through the years, too.
Saturday’s matchup is the first time this rivalry feels like the opening phase from 1993-97.
| Period | Michigan | Penn State |
| 1993-present | 251-114 | 250-115 |
| 2003-present | 159-83 | 161-82 |
| 2014-present | 72-31 | 72-34 |
No. 3 Penn State beat No. 5 Michigan 31-24 at the Big House on Oct. 15, 1994. The Nittany Lions finished 12-0. No. 4 Michigan beat No. 2 Penn State 34-8 on Nov. 8, 1997, and that team won the AP national championship with a 12-0 record. Michigan will honor that team on its 25th-year anniversary this weekend – which Franklin referenced in his press conference.
Franklin and Harbaugh aren’t that different either. They have polarizing personalities. They were hired with the intent to reach that national championship standard. They have been on and off the hot seat and linked to other jobs depending on the year. They have one Big Ten championship apiece in the College Football Playoff era.
Harbaugh has a 4-3 advantage in the head-to-head series, and this is the first top-10 matchup between the coaches, and that has the coaches saying those things you would expect to hear.
“This is why you come to Penn State to play in these types of games,” Franklin said.
“Biggest challenge of the year so far,” Harbaugh said.
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It’s the big-game challenge for both coaches, who have struggled against top-10 opponents throughout their tenure. Harbaugh is 3-14 and Franklin is 2-13 against top-10 teams. No. 6 Michigan beat Penn State 21-17 last season in a game in which the Wolverines had seven sacks.
“I think we’re better equipped (this year), but I also think they’ve done a good job of making people one-dimensional,” Franklin said.
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This year’s teams both are searching for that validation victory despite early-season success. The Nittany Lions won at Purdue and Auburn, and sixth-year senior quarterback Sean Clifford has help from freshman running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. They meet a defense that ranks in the top-10 in scoring defense with 22 sacks.
Michigan made the switch to quarterback J.J. McCarthy, and running back Blake Corum has emerged as a Heisman sleeper. Penn State has a talented defense led by defensive tackle P.J. Mustipher and All-American cornerback Joey Porter Jr. There is more talent-through-recruiting in this matchup now, and both programs are chasing the same thing.
Michigan might be the defending Big Ten champion, but in 2022 it’s clear No. 2 Ohio State is the team to beat. That has been the target for Michigan and Penn State most years since 1993, and Ohio State is 311-64 since 1993, 214-37 since 2003 and 99-11 in the College Football Playoff era. Penn State welcomes the Buckeyes on Oct. 29 and Michigan travels to The Shoe on Nov. 26.
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Saturday’s winner will be lined up for that top-10 showdown later, and that is the stage set in Ann Arbor this weekend. It’s not quite 1994 or 1997 – and nobody could recreate this pregame monologue by Keith Jackson anyway – but it’s two programs who are close enough that it feels like a game fit for “Big Ten Classics” for years to come.
“If you are going to reach the promised land, you need games where the team has shown what it is capable of doing,” Harbaugh said. “Defining moments in the second half of ball games. There is a lot to keep us humble.”
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