Ohio State: Will Saturday's "The Game" Be The Best In Recent Memory?

The game we all have been wait for all season is finally here: Michigan vs Ohio State. Could this week’s game reach a new level of importance and be even more impactful than those in the past?

The Ohio State/Michigan rivalry is the best in college sports, especially in football. For generations the two universities have competed against one another, but lately it has been one-sided in favor the Buckeyes.

This year’s game has a lot at stake. However, so has many others in the past. That said, will the 2016 version be the best game of this historic rivalry in recent memory? Members of the FoS team weighed in.

Ric McElroy

I’m not sure if “The Game” will be the best one in a long time, but it’s one of the most important in a long time. It will shape the landscape for not only bowl game appearances, but also who is in the College Football Playoff system.

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That team up north is stronger than they have been for years under Jim Harbaugh. They are going to be without their starting quarterback Wilton Speight. Yet, that didn’t stop them from beating a good Indiana team that took the Buckeyes to the brink when they played earlier in the year.

If the Ohio State offense and quarterback J.T. Barrett and the offensive line don’t look markedly better than they did against the Spartans last week they are in trouble.

It’s going to be the strength of the Wolverines against the speed of the Buckeyes. Don’t think that Harbaugh and company won’t have a few surprises for Ohio State and Urban Meyer; Especially on their zone read options.

They will be ready for those as the Buckeyes use that as their bread and butter. All in all, it should prove to be an interesting affair weather permitting. Go Buckeyes!

Joe Russo

It’s tough to say if the 2016 version of the match up will beat the 2006 match up. After all, how can you top a #1 vs #2 showdown settled by three points? I was lucky enough to be at that game.

The atmosphere, as much as I write and talk about the Buckeyes, is impossible to put into words. This year’s game does look like it could be just as good as the 2006 version.

If forced to pick, 2006 still is likely to win out. There was simply more immediately on the line that year which made the anxiousness and nervousness too much to handle while standing in The Shoe.

A trip to the BCS Title Game was on the line, not just one of four spots in the playoffs. The stakes of that game are likely to keep the 2016 game from topping it.

Torrelle Howard

This is definitely the second best game there has been between the two schools in recent history. You don’t get a top three match up often and I’m extremely excited to watch it there live.

The hype surrounding Ohio State in the the city of Columbus is already through the roof, so I can only imagine what Saturday will be like.

Unfortunately, I can not put this game over the ’06 game. #1 vs. #2 with a guaranteed trip to the National Championship game on the line?! You just can’t beat that, not to mention how the game played out itself.

Ryan Rosko

It is a unanimous belief. This year’s game is going to be very impressive. However, top two teams don’t play each others every day like Ohio State and Michigan did in 2006. That said, if this question was asked five years from now, the 2006 game could be considered past the point of recent memory.

If that were the case, this year’s game will end up being the best in recent memory. In terms of the overall play, the 2016 version has the potential to be an overall better played game, but the 2006 version had more on the line.

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So, that game wins out in this debate. Had Michigan remained in the top two and/or been undefeated this weekend perhaps that could have changed things. Highly unlikely though, and although ’16 may not be pound for pound ’06, but another intense, promising game is something we can all rely on and expect.

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Ohio State: Will Saturday’s “The Game” Be The Best In Recent Memory?

By Ryan Rosko | Nov 26, 2016