OSU-UM Football Rivalry

[ThornWithin81]

Originally Posted by paintmered

What's the first non-OSU thing you think about when it comes to Columbus? I'm still trying to think of something... Chain restaurants, maybe?

Oh, and OSU and Michigan need to play every year.

The Columbus Blue Jackets!

[guttle11]

Originally Posted by LoganBuck

Penn State has to be in the East. They have been upset over travel costs, and the next wave of conference expansion will be done with them in mind.

No they don't. Ohio State and Michigan are Big Ten football. Penn State is going nowhere regardless of division. They will not walk away from more than $25 million a year. Put them with Nebraska and be done with it.

[WVRed]

Originally Posted by ThornWithin81

Sorry, wrong. "College Atmosphere" goes beyond sunny weather and beach access. If you play football at Ohio State you are a god in the city of Columbus, especially on that campus.

Same could be said for USC and all the other powerhouses. You are a god if you play basketball at UK all throughout the state. In some powerhouse states (Tennessee and Florida), college football is more prevalent than the NFL.

That goes a long way, as does the fact that most of OSU's players grow up wearing OSU gear from the crib onward

No surprise, as Ohio is a hotbed of football talent. With Tressel, its a matter of keeping that talent in-state.

[Chip R]

Originally Posted by paintmered

What's the first non-OSU thing you think about when it comes to Columbus? I'm still trying to think of something... Chain restaurants, maybe?

Burning couches? Oh, wait, that's tOSU related.

[ThornWithin81]

Originally Posted by Chip R

Burning couches? Oh, wait, that's tOSU related.

After the win against Michigan in 2005 I watched a guy drag his couch onto Lane Avenue and light it up.

I also watched him get arrested.

[WVRed]

Originally Posted by Chip R

Burning couches? Oh, wait, that's tOSU related.

I thought that was WVU.

[Slyder]

Originally Posted by WVRed

I thought that was WVU.

We've burned our fair share of couches in Morgantown but Ohio St. and others do it too.

[LoganBuck]

Originally Posted by guttle11

No they don't. Ohio State and Michigan are Big Ten football. Penn State is going nowhere regardless of division. They will not walk away from more than $25 million a year. Put them with Nebraska and be done with it.

Penn State isn't walking away from anything, what I was saying is that you can't put them into a division of all teams in the western part of the conference. They will object to that.

[cincrazy]

Originally Posted by westofyou

Stats are stats, and Columbus is still Columbus.

Columbus is a beautiful city. You have your opinion, and that's fine. I realize it supports your general argument. But I don't see the point in making it seem like a bum city. Ann Arbor and Columbus are different. They both are unique, and they both have a charm about them.

[Chip R]

It appears they are going to a 9 game schedule and Iowa and Wisconsin will be in different divisions,

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5498692

[KronoRed]

If Michigan and OSU are split up I foresee it working out just as well as the ACC's foolish idea of splitting Miami South and fsu up in an attempt to have them meet every year in their title game.

[Redsfaithful]

Originally Posted by westofyou

Stats are stats, and Columbus is still Columbus.

It's gotten a lot nicer in the last ten years. For whatever that's worth.

[Hoosier Red]

Originally Posted by Chip R

I would think, if tOSU and UM wind up in different divisions, that each team will be allowed to select another school in the other division that they will play every year. In this case UM and tOSU would play every season.

With a championship game, it takes a bit of the shine off the rivalry if they end up playing in the championship game. It might end up somewhat anti-climatic.

I imagine they'd still find a way to protect that rivalry, but as you said the championship game cheapens it a bit.
A good comparison is the Texas-Oklahoma game, they're in the same division, which means that only one will get to play for the Big 12 championship, and it's usually decided by the middle of October who that south champion will be.

The Ohio State-Michigan rivalry would be even better because it would be the last game of the "regular" season. Even in years where one is down, the chance to play spoiler would be huge.

In my opinion I could live with these divisions;

West
Nebraska
Wisconsin
Iowa
Minnesota
Northwestern
Illinois

East
tOSU
tPSU
Michigan
tMSU
Indiana
Purdue

While it's true the Big 3 are bigger names in the East than in the West, the only time East vs. West really matters is in the Championship game, and Nebraska(most likely) or Iowa or Wisconsin would be no pushover.

[Sea Ray]

If OSU and Mich meet a second time in championship game I only see problems coming out of that. What if the losing team (in their first meeting) wins the championship game? How will that play?

If you put them in the same division and play their last game in late Nov it makes that one game huge. What can be better than that?

[Chip R]

Originally Posted by Sea Ray

If OSU and Mich meet a second time in championship game I only see problems coming out of that. What if the losing team (in their first meeting) wins the championship game? How will that play?

Hence the problem.

If you put them in the same division and play their last game in late Nov it makes that one game huge. What can be better than that?

If - like a few years ago - both are top rated teams, the loser gets screwed. Maybe a last second FG turns the tide or someone sprained an ankle. The losing team can say that if that player was healthy they would have won.

We have to remember that there is no law that says UM and OSU are always going to be the best two teams in the Big T(welv)en. It doesn't diminish the rivalry any when either or both teams have fallen on tough times. You think Florida kids (and fans) don't have the same intensity for the Georgia game if Georgia isn't a top 25 team? The OSU-UM rivalry will survive whether they are in different divisions or not.