They wanted us to care

Submitted by Wolverine Devotee on November 17th, 2019 at 11:23 PM

Be careful what you wish for.

ppToilet

November 18th, 2019 at 6:25 AM ^

I was shocked they didn't call that targeting. In the "old days" you didn't run guys across the middle like that because they'd get their heads taken off. A lot of teams are running these routes again because of the new rules. I'm glad the refs let the play stand without throwing a flag.

Stinky McStinkerton

November 17th, 2019 at 11:37 PM ^

I love how people here try and act like they're too good to care about this rivalry.

Thank the Football Godz the players and coaches absolutely do and always will care.

Bo Harbaugh

November 17th, 2019 at 11:42 PM ^

We take it for granted when winning 4 out of every 5 like under Bo and Lloyd.  Hard to care when you keep steam rolling a team and expect to win every year.

Mork starting beating us under RR and Hoke and of course we cared...it was a departure from the norm for those 30 and older.  Now that order has been restored, and their program is in a free fall, we will inevitably care less.  It's human nature.

If we go on a run and beat OSU 3 or 4 times in the next 5 years, trust me, they will start caring a lot more about the game than they do now -and not because we want them to care- but because we will become an existential threat to their football glory.  Right now, OSU expects to beat us much like we expect to beat Staee

Stinky McStinkerton

November 17th, 2019 at 11:45 PM ^

Ohio State absolutely and always cares about the Michigan game. To state otherwise is blatant stupidity.

They CARE. They have no other rivals but Michigan. Geez--did you really imply you think they don't care about the UM game?????

And please speak for yourself--no matter how much Bo/Mo/Lloyd beat MSU--most fans cared about that game.

Message board tripe does not have its finger on the pulse of the typical fan.

Bill Brasky

November 18th, 2019 at 6:48 AM ^

This the OSU case is interesting. I always believed they CARED so much about this game. But have they/can they get to a point where they win so often that it doesn’t feel like a rivalry and their primary concern becomes playoff? Maybe that’s when we can hit them back, shock them, and restore order to this world?

Gucci Mane

November 17th, 2019 at 11:47 PM ^

What you say has some truth. But I will never not despise MSU and enjoy beating them. Don’t care if Harbuagh stays at Uofm for 10-15 more years and loses only 1-3 more. I will never forgive how they acted for the small time they were on top. Never forget. 

UgLi Eric

November 18th, 2019 at 12:19 AM ^

This is so true. 90s who cared. Early to mid 2000s we begin to care. Late 2000s denial. 2010s disbelief and eventually mutual hatred. 

They always wanted us to take them seriously. Congratulations. You have our attention for the next 10 or so years. 

Jonesy

November 18th, 2019 at 1:20 AM ^

I was born in 79 to a family of michigan grads in california so i've been a fan since day one but been nowhere near the state of Michigan. I considered ND and OSU to be our rivals, MSU was that shitty team that upset us every once in a while, like iowa, but usually with shenanigans like tripping desmond.

GET OFF YOUR H…

November 18th, 2019 at 9:03 AM ^

Don't get it twisted.  OSU fans care.  OSU players care.  OSU coaches care.  Some would say that is part of the reason the rivalry has been slanted so far over the past couple of decades.  OSU has cared more.  PSU and MSU have been trying to get OSU to acknowledge them as rivals for a very long time.  OSU won't give them the time of day.  Even when TTUN was struggling badly under Hoke and Rod, the notions of PSU or MSU being a rival were ignored.  A rivalry isn't born out of a team being a good team in the same division for 10 years.  A rivalry is born from history, from generations passing down the hatred for a rival.  We OSU fans could beat TTUN the next 20 years straight and still be ready to fight come the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

MichiganTeacher

November 18th, 2019 at 10:36 AM ^

Accurate. Not necessarily a point of pride as this poster seems to take it, but accurate.

Sometimes I miscalculate and actually have to stop to eat or get my kids a non-cooler bathroom in Ohio when driving through. On a couple of those occasions, I've walked into the McDonald's in March/April/deep off-season, and the TV isn't playing news or basketball or anything current, it's replaying OSU-Michigan games. They don't just care. They're obsessed.

 

Heptarch

November 17th, 2019 at 11:44 PM ^

I didn't care all that much until Michigan took a downturn and MSU started beating us regularly.

Now that they're back to where they've always been, I can go back to not caring all that much again.

It's the sort of benign, paternalistic neglect I feel for my little brother.

Stinky McStinkerton

November 18th, 2019 at 7:28 AM ^

Again, these are all great anecdotal shots from guys who come here for validation.

Our fanbase has cared about this game--I am old enough to remember it from way back in the 70s and MSU voting to keep UM out of the Rose Bowl a couple times, something many believed went way back to when Michigan voted against allowing MSU into the Big Ten--so the rivalry has been there.

For example--did you all just shrug your shoulders when the Clock guy allowed that pass? When Desmond Howard was tripped? Or did you all just laugh and go, Oh, Little Brother--no big deal.

This is and always has been a heated rivalry. At least between the players and coaches. When Michigan was dominating it--that was because they DID take it seriously (Bo always did). Maybe message board guys try to shrug it off to look cool and act as if Sparty is no big deal, BUT WHATEVER. Go on with your pretentiously bad selves.

MGoGrendel

November 18th, 2019 at 8:00 AM ^

Totally agree with you.  My older brother went to Michigan in the early 70’s and I followed him a few years later.  My cousins were Sparty fans because they couldn’t get into Michigan.  The hatred between schools has always been there.  They would win once and awhile, but remind us “yeah, but we destroyed you three years ago”.  Total little brother 

Maize and Blue AF

November 18th, 2019 at 12:14 AM ^

Recent history (the last 11 years) has made us hate the Spartans as much as they've hated us for decades.  MD pissed us off with his snarky comments because we couldn't do anything about it under RR/Hoke.  Now that the balance of power has shifted back to us, we won't be white knuckling it through that game as much anymore.  They will always be a rival to us, so it's silly to say we won't continue to care about the game.  The problem is they want to be our main rival, and that just won't ever happen.  If anything, the last 11 years have served as proof of that.

lostwages

November 18th, 2019 at 11:15 AM ^

STFU... seriously...

I think there's a certain amount of ambivalence due to the slow painful death that MSU is going through. However, it wasn't too long ago they pwnd us in the series; we'll call it a mental crutch.

However, I wouldn't say that M Fans "don't care", what I do think is that we're on the upswing on this rivalry so we've started to set our goals and priorities elsewhere.

Lastly this is an MSU team that was destined for a losing season, they started off getting beat by AZ and really haven't recovered. They have a similar problem as Michigan, when they see adversity they turtle and cave.

This was a solid win against a rival... but NOT a solid win vs a "good team". They were beaten before they even rolled into Ann Arbor. Their program is in dire straits... worse than when Dick Rod was in A2.

We are back

November 18th, 2019 at 12:31 AM ^

I have a couple of sparky cousins, one of them posted on Facebook that Dantonio canceled his Sunday presser. There seems to be a growing feel he’s about to retire. 

DrunkOnHiggins

November 18th, 2019 at 7:28 AM ^

I was in section 35 row 4 so nice and close to the field. I took a video of Sparty's last 3rd down right in front of me at the goal line. I watched it again last night and only then did I realize I got a perfect shot of McGrone waving goodbye to their sideline. I will treasure this video forever.

saveferris

November 18th, 2019 at 7:48 AM ^

There was and Harbaugh gave Dantonio the condescending shoulder pat.  Tremendous.

Also, to all of Spartan Nation, if this indeed turns out to be Mark Dantonio's swan song season, then never forget, he may have won you some battles, but Jim Harbaugh won the war.  You rise, you fall when we decide you do.

JTP

November 18th, 2019 at 10:32 AM ^

I’ve always cared. I go back a ways in this rivalry I know of the stretch from 1968-2007 where State didn’t win back to back game and we held a 31-9 advantage but the occasional season they did win you would have swore they won for the 10th year in a row. Then we made bad decisions on head coaches and they had a 7-1 run, that is over, so now my Spartan friends are acting like they did in the past like the game never happened but it did 44-10. So if my math is correct even with their little run our record against theirs is 36-17 in the last 53 not to shabby and things are heavily leaning towards Blue in the future.  GO BLUE!