Eric Boggs
It’s Texas week in Columbus, but the rivalry with Michigan never sleeps — and Tony Alford is making sure of it. The former Ohio State running backs coach, who bolted for Michigan in 2024 after nine seasons under Urban Meyer and Ryan Day, is back in the headlines again, and this time it’s not for pulling in elite recruits or developing future NFL stars. It’s for his words — and those words make one thing very clear: Alford still hasn’t moved on from Ohio State.
During a press conference in Ann Arbor ahead of Michigan’s season opener, Alford was asked about the Wolverines’ recent recruiting success, particularly the commitment of highly coveted 2026 running back Savion Hiter. What followed wasn’t just an answer — it was a subtle shot across the border.
“This place, this block M, is amazing. It’s different,” Alford said, hammering the word “different” eight times in one response. “Our head coach damn sure is different. There’s not the pretentiousness and the cliques … this place is just different.”
Anyone who’s followed this rivalry — or Alford’s history — knows exactly who he was talking about. When you spend nine years inside Ohio State’s program, recruit top-five classes, coach elite backs like TreVeyon Henderson, and then start throwing around words like “pretentiousness” and “cliques,” it’s hard not to read between the lines.
Alford’s comments didn’t stop there. At the end of his response, he couldn’t resist firing one more jab at the Buckeyes.
“You wanted me to say something really bad about that other place,” Alford said with a smirk. “I’ll say it — yeah, we’re better.”
That’s not exactly the “respectful gratitude” Alford showed when he first left Ohio State for Michigan, when he thanked Buckeye Nation and called leaving “the hardest decision of his professional life.” Somewhere along the way, though, his tune changed — and it’s not hard to see why.
Alford left Columbus expecting to make an immediate splash on the recruiting trail for Michigan. The Wolverines brought him in with the hope that his ties to elite running back prospects would translate north. But after two cycles in Ann Arbor, recruiting analysts like The Athletic’s Austin Meek are already questioning his impact. Aside from Hiter, Alford hasn’t landed a “blockbuster” running back commitment since joining Michigan’s staff, and he has exactly one other running back locked in for 2026 — three-star Jonathan Brown.
Meanwhile, back in Columbus, Ohio State hasn’t skipped a beat. Ryan Day and Carlos Locklyn, Tony Alford’s replacement, have kept the Buckeyes firmly in the mix for elite backs, and the program continues to pull top-ranked recruiting classes while competing for national titles. That success seems to sting, and Alford’s repeated need to explain why “Michigan is different” feels more like justification than celebration.
And then there’s his relationship with Buckeye fans — which, let’s be honest, hasn’t been warm since his final years in Columbus. Alford struggled to close on several high-profile recruits before leaving, and Ohio State fans weren’t shy about holding him accountable. Instead of owning those misses, Alford has used his new platform in Ann Arbor to take thinly veiled shots at the very fanbase that once supported him.
Last season, after Michigan’s win over Ohio State, Alford couldn’t help himself again — posting a picture on social media of him smiling with a lit cigar, captioned “GO BLUE!!!” Buckeye Nation noticed.
Now, with another matchup against Michigan looming on November 29 in Ann Arbor, the rivalry between Ohio State and Tony Alford has become its own subplot. It’s one thing for a coach to move on. It’s another to repeatedly poke the program and fanbase you left behind while your own recruiting results and player development lag behind expectations.
Ohio State fans see it for what it is: bitterness, maybe even jealousy. Alford can talk all he wants about how “different” Michigan is, but if you need to say it eight times in one answer, it sounds a lot more like convincing yourself than anyone else.
The scoreboard will settle it soon enough. FanDuel has the Buckeyes as 5.5-point favorites heading into November’s clash, and Ryan Day’s team looks loaded with talent on both sides of the ball. If Ohio State comes out on top in The Game this year, Alford might want to keep the cigars packed away.
Because while Tony Alford is busy talking about how “different” Michigan is, Ohio State is busy chasing championships.
