For only the 12th time in 118 meetings, Saturday’s game between Michigan and Ohio State will be a matchup between two top-five programs.
The game will decide the winner of the Big Ten East and likely a bid to the College Football Playoff.
Head coach Ryan Day of the Ohio State Buckeyes leads his team onto the field before the game against the Maryland Terrapins at SECU Stadium on November 19, 2022 in College Park, Maryland.
(Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
It’s a rivalry that, until last year, had been dominated by Ohio State in recent memory.
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Heading into the 2021 version of “The Game,” Ohio State had won eight straight with Michigan last winning in 2011.
But the Wolverines snapped the losing streak last season, securing Jim Harbaugh’s first win as head coach in the storied rivalry and sending Michigan to the CFP.
Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh watches in the first half of an NCAA college football game against Maryland in Ann Arbor, Mich., Saturday, Sept. 24, 2022.
(AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
The wound is still fresh for head coach Ryan Day and the Buckeyes.
“I think you’re shaped by whatever’s happened in your past, and we have scars and it motivated us all offseason,” Day said, according to ESPN. “So we’ve worked very hard to get to this moment right here, and now it’s time to go prepare the best we can and that’s what we’re going to focus on physically, mentally and emotionally to go play the hardest game we’ve ever played. And we’ll find out where we’re at on Saturday.”
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Last season’s loss to Michigan knocked the Buckeyes out of playoff contention and gave the fanbase an entire year to think about the loss.
Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day on the sideline during the fourth quarter of the college football game between the Indiana Hoosiers and Ohio State Buckeyes on November 12, 2022, at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, OH.
(Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
“Our guys know they felt the pain last year and let it simmer,” Day said. “And we had to chew on that for a whole year, and it’s a long time. So we’ll see the corrections we made, we’ll see about the growth that we’ve made and find out who we are on Saturday.”
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Both teams are coming off of tight wins, with Michigan winning on a 35-yard field goal with nine seconds remaining against Illinois, and Ohio State beating Maryland 43-30.
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