Five reasons No. 10 Ohio State football will surprise No. 4 Michigan

3. The underdog still has a good shot to win this game regardless of how each team’s season has turned out

Everything changes when The Game is set. It’s not like any other game as its meaning goes way further than conference titles or even the College Football Playoff for that matter. This game is singular and is the absolute difference between a successful season and a total waste. Projections based on season statistics can only go so far as they cannot possibly measure the heart that goes into every down played in this match up.

This will be the game that each of these current players and coaches alike will remember. Yes, winning a conference title or national championship is great but it would mean almost nothing at all if blemished by a loss to their bitter rival. Although, it does make things that much more interesting considering a Big Ten title game appearance determination has ran through this game in just about every season.

A good example of this would be the match up of last season. The Buckeyes ended up going into halftime tied up with the Wolverines even though they were just 8-3 on the season and had several injuries they were dealing with. J.T. Barrett was also injured and couldn’t play for most of that game either but it was still close nonetheless.

A similar case happened just a few years earlier in 2014 when the sixth ranked Buckeyes hosted the Wolverines who were just 5-7 on the season. The game was tied going into halftime even though it was supposed to be an easy home win for the Bucks. The Buckeyes eventually ended up winning but it was not easy at any extent as the Wolverines were in position to win during most of the game regardless of their total wins on the season.

Both teams will be entering this game with identical records but different stories. The Wolverines haven’t lost since week one when they fell to Notre Dame who is currently ranked third in the nation. The Buckeyes lost in week eight which was just four games ago. They lost to unranked Purdue in an ugly game where they got beat in every facet of the game. Since the Wolverines lost, they’ve been dominant ever since. Since the Buckeyes lost, they have looked worse in every game.

The truth is painful but it’s become a reality that the Buckeyes haven’t been playing at a high level or close to that. However, their postseason hopes remain intact as they still have just one loss to show for it. The Buckeyes have the potential to put it all together but everyone is still left wondering when it will happen if it hasn’t already. Expect the Buckeyes to keep this one close as they will play at a higher level to stick it to the fourth ranked Wolverines.