jhayes1189

October 18th, 2021 at 6:11 PM ^

I agree this feels like the reverse of those years. Feels like we are solid, well coached, and more physical across the board and don’t rely on one or 2 super athletes to make miracle type plays or to continually produce at a high level to win. It seems like one skill guy can have a somewhat slow day and someone else picks up the slack, when all skill players are playing near their potential we are going to blow out the other team, and the line play is consistently showing up as units on both sides of the ball are assignment sound and very physical at the point of attack. This team is built to win in games like MSU who is, as you said, a team that relies on its receivers and Kareem Walker to constantly have big games, not sustainable to me it seems in the meat of a Big Ten schedule, and their defense seems average, not of a Dantonio/Narduzzi vintage.
 

Of course, saying all this, I’m sure they have plenty of bush league disrespketed players that might still make the game unwatchable somehow for Michigan fans even if we do win by 2+ scores. 

Joined: 10/04/2021

MGoPoints: 6568

MH20

October 18th, 2021 at 1:09 PM ^

I think this was the most likely outcome based on history (fourth straight year of FOX Big Noon), the overall schedule that day, and FOX's World Series evening broadcast.

Interesting that Disney is going to put up PSU/OSU against said World Series game. Will be curious to see what the viewership numbers are from that time slot.

Joined: 10/30/2008

MGoPoints: 40990

WorldwideTJRob

October 18th, 2021 at 2:05 PM ^

It think it will rate higher than the World Series! I get we don't like OSU/PSU, but America as a whole just watches College Football more than baseball. For example the Astros/Red Sox game Friday Night on Fox drew a 1.1 rating. A game nobody cared about (TCU/Oklahoma) did a .8 rating on Saturday Night. Throw in two of the most recognizable programs in the country in a top 10 matchup and it will do numbers. If it’s Braves/Astros I would almost bet OSU/PSU pulls in a higher number.

Joined: 07/05/2010

MGoPoints: 31150

Sione For Prez

October 18th, 2021 at 2:55 PM ^

Astros and Nationals in 2019 were watched by an average of 14.1M viewers. The 2018 Ohio State at Penn State game, which was a top 10 game at 730 on ABC between two undefeated teams had an average of 9.14M viewers (there were really no other alternatives for a neutral fan either).

College football does great numbers but only the true historic rivalries pull in numbers that would eclipse the world series. Even the Alabama loss last weekend only got to 12M or so at it's peak. 

Joined: 11/16/2015

MGoPoints: 10717

Richard75

October 18th, 2021 at 4:00 PM ^

That’s a little misleading. Astros-Nationals got that average because it went to a Game 7 (which drew 24 million).

The Saturday night HOU-WSH Game 4–the relevant issue here—drew 10.2 million, which at the time was the second-least watched World Series game on record. Notre Dame-Michigan (which was concurrent) got 6.7M. So baseball handily won, although it might be different if you had a top-5 matchup. (ND/U-M was No. 8 vs. No. 19.)

Joined: 09/23/2008

MGoPoints: 5329

stephenrjking

October 18th, 2021 at 1:25 PM ^

Happens every year, I think? In 2019 Game 4 of the World Series (which was Astros-Nationals) faced off against LSU-Auburn and, interestingly, Michigan-Notre Dame. The Series drew 10 million viewers per wikipedia, while the college games split their audience; Tigers-Tigers (a good game, 23-20, between #9 and #2 at the time) drew 7.15 million, with middling Michigan and Notre Dame teams netting 6.75. 

So college football overall does better, even if the individual games don't beat the series on their own. 

Joined: 03/15/2012

MGoPoints: 20144178

oriental andrew

October 18th, 2021 at 1:54 PM ^

Agreed. With the AL, doesn't matter who wins, really - Houston and BoSox will have a lot of eyeballs. 

Same for NL. LA is a huge market and while ATL itself isn't a big market, they pretty much have the entire Southeastern US (outside of FL) rooting for them. Ted Turner was a genius when he marketed the Braves on the SuperStation (TBS) across the southeast in the late 70s/early 80s. 

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 56727

MH20

October 18th, 2021 at 1:44 PM ^

Someone opined (believe it was NittanyFan) that ABC might "punt" and offer up a Pac-12 game to be crushed, as they are required to air at least one primetime night Pac-12 game. Looking at Pac-12 matchups that day, though, don't yield anything earth-shattering (UCLA/Utah is probably the best), so yeah, I don't think they could remotely justify not choosing PSU/OSU.

Joined: 10/30/2008

MGoPoints: 40990

Perkis-Size Me

October 18th, 2021 at 1:13 PM ^

I'm very okay with this. Should mean less of a home-field advantage, even if just for the first quarter, with students still rolling in from pregaming. I also really don't drink before 5pm whether its a weekend or not, and if the game happens to go sideways I'd much rather it happen while I'm still sober. That used to not be the case, but with a one year old running around the house that changes things a bit. 

For a game like this I'd rather just get it out of the way first thing, and then if the football gods deem it prudent to give Michigan a victory, I can sit back and enjoy the UF-UGA game in peace with the wife right afterwards. 

 

Joined: 11/30/2011

MGoPoints: 106380

Midukman

October 18th, 2021 at 1:24 PM ^

I try to adhere to the no drinking before 5, which is usually 6 as my company is central time and I’m eastern working remote. Unfortunately many a Michigan games have had me being out cold by 4pm when I had no intentions of drinking….at all. Let’s hope my beers that day are celebratory and not crushing the can as I shotgun them. 

Joined: 09/13/2018

MGoPoints: 15931

Perkis-Size Me

October 18th, 2021 at 2:56 PM ^

Wish in one hand.....

Michigan might have the better team, but every Michigan fan and their mother knows how Sparty gets up for this game. Add in the fact that stakes are high not just for us, but for them, and its going to dial up their intensity even more. Michigan had better be ready to match it and then some, but you would hope after being embarrassed last year the way that they were, they'd already have all the motivation they need. 

This is going to be a nailbiter down to the end, and in all likelihood the most physical game Michigan plays all year. 

Joined: 11/30/2011

MGoPoints: 106380

skatin@the_palace

October 18th, 2021 at 1:15 PM ^

I was really hoping we'd get a prime time night game on ABC with Herbie and Fowler. I'm soooo tired of Gus Johnson, this will be another muted broadcast. On the plus side my Saturday night will be clear! 

Joined: 09/07/2019

MGoPoints: 3078

CompleteLunacy

October 18th, 2021 at 2:03 PM ^

I'd like Gus more if he wasn't so much of an idiot too when it comes to the actual sport. And he has some regressive views about unnecessary hard hits that rules like targeting (flawed as it is) are trying to remove from the game.

Also he keeps calling OSU the "world-famous" Ohio State Buckeyes. It's so cringy...fucking nobody calls them that. Stop it. 

 

Joined: 11/13/2010

MGoPoints: 12910