Jim
Tressel kept his promise upon taking over the football program at Ohio
State in 2001. Tressel vowed to beat Michigan and Tressel’s Buckeyes
only lost to The Wolverines once during his tenure. The Wolverines fell
on hard times in the last three seasons under head coach Rich Rodriguez
which was his undoing in Ann Arbor. Brady Hoke was hired in January to
take over at Michigan. Without even coaching a game Hoke has brought his
own “Tressel like” enthusiasm to Michigan. A few days after Hoke was
hired he was introduced at a Michigan basketball game. It didn’t take
Hoke long to win over the home crowd as he emphasized defeating Ohio
State.
The Wolverines have a proud football heritage that dates back to the
early 1900’s under Fielding Yost and The Wolverines have made more Rose
Bowl appearances (20) than any other Big Ten school. The Wolverines are
not accustomed to losing this often to The Buckeyes. The Buckeyes have a
seven game winning streak against Michigan and that is the longest
losing streak that The Wolverines have had versus The Buckeyes.
The three seasons under Rodriguez were tumultuous as The Wolverines only
had one winning season and The Buckeyes used The Michigan game as a
scrimmage before their bowl game. In those three games The Wolverines
were outscored 100-24. Tressel and his sweater vest seemed invincible
against the maize and blue as he loomed over Michigan.
This season is being looked at as a rebuilding year under Hoke as he
looks to bring Michigan back to national prominence. If The Wolverines
make a bowl game it will be a good start to Hoke’s tenure. Now that
Tressel is gone this is Michigan’s best shot to defeat The Buckeyes. The
Buckeyes are vulnerable this year. Not only did Tressel have to resign
after lying about his players giving away football memorabilia for
tattoos, but now reports are surfacing about other perks that included
receiving free cars. The Buckeyes will not have quarterback Terrelle
Pryor, running back Dan Herron, wide receiver Devier Posey, offensive
tackle Mike Adams, and defensive end Solomon Thomas for the first five
games of the season due to their involvement in “tattoo gate”. Like all
other Big Ten teams, The Wolverines are licking their chops as The
Buckeyes who are always a favorite in the conference are taking a step
back. The scandal in Columbus is only going to get worse once the season
starts and once the suspended players return to action. They will have
to travel to road games in Lincoln, Nebraska and more importantly Ann
Arbor at the end of the season. Sometimes to get the momentum turned in
your favor you need a break. As unfortunate as it is for Ohio State and
former head coach Jim Tressel it is indeed a break for Michigan and
Brady Hoke. Now Hoke and his Wolverines will look to seize the moment.
If The Wolverines can defeat The Buckeyes this season it will be a huge
shot in the arm for Hoke.
Hoke was brought in because he is a “Michigan Man” as he was an
assistant under Lloyd Carr. Hoke knows the importance of Michigan
football and the importance of defeating Ohio State. Nobody except
Tressel and his players expected to go to Ann Arbor and defeat The
Wolverines on that cold November day in 2001. The Buckeyes won 26-20 and
the next season they won a national title. The Buckeyes were back in
the national spotlight. Prior to Tressel Ohio State was 2-10-1 versus
The Wolverines under John Cooper which led to his departure. Tressel fed
on that struggle the same way Hoke will look to feed on it now. Hoke is
preaching beating Ohio State to his squad night and day. Hoke’s dream
can become a reality in November when these two titans clash. One
program in The Wolverines is looking to go back up while Ohio State is
spiraling down.
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