Eric Boggs
Ohio State closed the door on its first 11 opponents with another emphatic performance, rolling Rutgers 42-9 in the final home game of the season and securing an 11-0 record along with an assured College Football Playoff berth. It was the same formula that has guided the Buckeyes all fall — suffocating defense, efficient offense, and complete control from kickoff to the final whistle — yet everything that comes next will define this team far more than any of the dominant Saturdays behind them.
Even without star receivers Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith, the Buckeyes nearly tripled Rutgers’ yardage output, 430 to 147, and never allowed the Scarlet Knights to threaten. Bo Jackson delivered his best performance yet with 19 carries for 110 yards and two touchdowns, while Max Klare stepped up in the depleted receiving corps with seven catches for 105 yards and a score. Caden Curry set the tone defensively, piling up six tackles, two sacks and a strip-sack that set up an easy touchdown from the 1-yard line.
The victory was Ohio State’s 1oth straight by double digits. Since edging then-No. 1 Texas 14-7 in the opener, the Buckeyes have rarely been challenged and have not trailed in the second half of a single game. Their schedule has not been demanding, with only one ranked opponent since September, but they have never once played down to their competition.
Now comes the test that matters.
The clock striking zero on Saturday marked the unofficial start of Hate Week, and the Buckeyes’ eyes immediately turned north. “It doesn’t take long in the fourth quarter once the game was in hand for everybody to start figuring out this thing is coming fast,” Ryan Day said. “There was just a good look in everybody’s eye in the locker room. We’re excited about this one.”
For the first time all year, Ohio State will face a rival with the talent to hit back — a rival that has tormented the Buckeyes for four straight seasons. Michigan, boosted by five-star freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood, enters the final week 9-2 after a 45-20 win at Maryland, though the Wolverines have shown major flaws. They’ve lost to both ranked teams they’ve faced, barely escaped matchups with Nebraska, Purdue and Northwestern, and may be without their best player in running back Justice Haynes.
Still, history looms large. Ohio State hasn’t beaten Michigan since 2019, a drought extended through controversy and frustration. Between blowout losses, a COVID cancellation in 2020, and the years-long sign-stealing scandal that resulted in heavy NCAA penalties for Jim Harbaugh, Sherrone Moore and Connor Stalions — but no vacated wins — the rivalry has grown only more bitter.
Outside Columbus, Michigan fans have built a reputation that fuels the rivalry’s intensity even further. Critics point to a long-standing perception of elitism and arrogance, highlighted by Paul Finebaum’s labeling them “the most obnoxious fanbase in America.” Opposing fanbases cite hypocrisy after the 2023 cheating scandal, with some describing Michigan supporters as an “angry mob” for the aggressive defense of Harbaugh and their hostility toward reporters covering the investigation. The Wolverines’ in-stadium behavior has drawn complaints for years, with a 2021 survey ranking their fans among the worst-behaved in college football.
For Ohio State, none of that matters next Saturday — except that it underscores just how desperately the Buckeyes want to reclaim control of the rivalry.
They’ll head to Ann Arbor believing they’re capable of not only winning The Game but also repeating as national champions. The nation’s best defense anchors that optimism, leading the country in points allowed (7.6), yards allowed (206.6) and yards per play (3.75). Offensively, the run game has ignited with 476 yards and eight touchdowns in the last two weeks, while the passing attack has been elite when fully healthy. Smith and Tate are both considered day-to-day, and their availability will matter significantly after Julian Sayin threw for fewer than 200 yards in each of their absences.
The Buckeyes know their goals — Gold Pants, a trip to Indy, and another national title push — can only be accessed through Ann Arbor. Every lesson from last season’s playoff run and every ounce of preparation built over the last 11 weeks has been aimed at this moment.
“This week has gotta be the best,” Day said. “We’ve been working toward this all year, and we want it. We know what’s at stake. But at the end of the day, it’s still about us.”
Center Carson Hinzman put it more simply: “We’re going to need everything we’ve got.”
The most intense rivalry in sports renews next Saturday at noon at Michigan Stadium, live on FOX. Ohio State enters unbeaten, untested in crunch time, and fully aware that everything they’ve accomplished so far only sets the stage for what comes next.
It’s time for The Game — and time to find out just how good these Buckeyes truly are.
