The Rivalry. The Game.

Next season, I swear to god, I will have these things written ahead of time. On with the Game!

Is this rivalry a real thing?

Yes, obviously. Next question.

Can you give us something more than that?

Ugh. Do I have to?

You did an opener for every other rivalry! It's only fair.

Alright, let's do this. Yes, Ohio State-Michigan is a legit thing. It's arguably the most intense and impactful rivalry in college football. It's there or thereabouts across all of sports. Years are defined by that one game in late November. Just the thought of 13-10 is enough to make a Wolverine blush scarlet. Ohio State won the damn title that year and probably would have traded it for a win over Michigan.

The hatred is real, but there is consequence too. The winner of this game tends to win the conference title. They usually go to the Rose Bowl. They'll often win the national championship. It's a spiteful thing, but it's one of import and of history. It's a feud that extends into the deep lore. It's a through-line back into college football history, threading its way past Harbaugh and Urban and Tressel and Schembechler and Woody Hayes, all the way to the black and white photo days. Michigan dedicated the Big House with Ohio State in attendance in 1927; Ohio State had done the same with the Shoe in 1922. They are inextricably bound together in their hatred.

They first played in 1897; Michigan won 34-0. Ohio State would not score its first point in the series for another five games. Michigan either won or tied every game until Ohio State would finally win the 16th matchup in 1919. It wasn't an even rivalry at the time, but it was spirited and spiteful.

There are legends that the origin of this hatred spurred from the Toledo War. It's unlikely and apocryphal, but I choose to believe the legend. It's infinitely more entertaining to imagine that this rivalry began over a little-known boundary dispute in which the winner received, of all prizes possible, Toledo. (Wisconsin lost so badly in a war that they weren't a belligerent that they were stripped of the Upper Peninsula.)

Where'd you two come from again?

We think of these two as original conference members, but only Michigan was there at the jump (although they later left and came back because, well, Michigan.) Ohio State was actually part of the earliest B1G expansion, joining in 1912 while the Wolverines were still in the wilderness. But since UM came back in 1918, it's been a century of only-occasional threats to leave the club.

You folks got a trophy or some hardware?

Nope. No need. Hate is bigger than any traveling trophy or tchotchke.

Let's get to some numbers. What's the series win-total look like?

121 meetings, Michigan leads 62-52-6, although that belies some serious streaks in the numbers. Michigan dominated in its early history, while Ohio State has generally kicked the crap out of the Wolverines in this century. It's been the tentpole of the season for generations of fans; it will continue to do so for as long as this sport still exists.