Illinois vs. Ohio State is the second most storied rivalry for us with both teams playing for the Illibuck trophy and Ohio State holding a 63-30-4 series lead. Given the change in conference realignment there is a chance Illinois won't be in our division and/or might not be a protected matchup for both teams. If for some odd reason Ohio State and Illinois didn't play for the Illibuck trophy would you be disappointed about this?
No.
Only if we go back to playing for a real turtle
I'd like to see it stay, but I am a big fan of keeping traditions alive.
No one has really talked about this and its always been about OSU vs. Michigan so I thought I bring this up. That being said, I can't really remember the 90's since I didn't follow OSU football at the time but I know Cooper struggled to beat this team. Moreover, freshman year Illinois came into Collumbus with Juice Williams, Zook and Co. and beat the #1 team ending our streak vs. B1G teams. That being said, I would love nothing more than to play Illini and keep the tradition alive.
Ohio State's band SLAUGHTERED Michigan's band. If this were a football game, it would have been Florida State vs. Savannah State. - SB Nation following OSU vs. UM 2012
If I had to rank the conference games that I look forward to the most each year, Illinois would be about 5th or 6th. I think the Illibuck trophy has some charm. The schools have had some good games over the years. However, it's just not as high of a priority as getting the divisions aligned correctly based on geography as much as possible.
Ya we have to keep traditions going. We don't have many true rivals. If you go down the list we beat the shot out of everyone in the conference
Wherever you are, there you be!
There's an Illibuck trophy?
I think a lot of games have surpassed the Ohio State-Illinois rivalry, namely Wisconsin and Penn State. Aside from the Illibuck and the storied history, the rivalry is a shell of its former self. Given the choice between conference realignment or keeping the annual fight for the Illibuck, I would choose conference realignment so OSU and TTUN can be in the same division.
This is a great post and I can tell it's a long time till kickoff.
My answer to your question ... LOL
No. Illinois sucks. I hope we don't play them on a yearly basis.
The 2012 National Champions.
While this is a trophy game, I'd really hesitate to call it a rivalry game by anything other than the strictest definition. I wouldn't be too sad to see it go, but I'd rather see it stay just for the...history...(yeah, much better word)...
"The revolution will be televised."
Forgive me for my heresy against tradition, but I wouldn't mind 1) renaming the Illibuck trophy, 2) including Maryland in the trophy matchup, and 3) making it a trophy awarded over a three-year period to whichever team (OSU, Illinois, or Maryland) beats the other two over the rolling three year period. If it ends up in a tie, the trophy stays with whichever team had it previously. Or maybe score differential comes into play.
This would add a little spice to the trophy game(s), create a new rivalry of sorts, and help integrate Maryland into the B1G by generating some excitement with the fan bases.
It's our only trophy game. It's the biggest game for Illinois. It means more to them than it does to us, and I'm a big fan of tradition, so LET'S KEEP IT GOING!
/Duff'd It
I personally get the impression that preserving the Illinois-Northwestern rivalry is more important for both of those schools than the Illibuck.
It was a bigger game when they were relevant. Those of you that don't see the importance of this rivalry are likely not old enough to remember when it was competitive. A Loss increases the importance of the rivalry. I don't want to lose to keep this game fresh though. You guys can't tell me you weren't chomping at the bit to beat the pizz out of those guys in 2008? I agree it is toward the middle of the pack when it comes to recent importance but I want every game to hold meaning.
I rank these games ahead of Illinois:
1) _ichigan (Because victories in the 1800's and early 1900's makes them think they are better than us)
2) Wisconsin (Only team we haven't been man-handling)
3) Penn State (Because they hold themselves on a level above us and we know they don't belong there)
4) Purdue (Play us tougher than they should almost every other year.)
5) Michigan State is a tie (We don't face them every year and haven't necessarily had problems with them. The loss in 1998 and the one two years ago make me want to see this match up yearly.)
Agree about Illinois. The last 50 years have been a complete slaughter.
MSU on the other hand has given us terrible fits. They have knocked us from the national title at least twice in my memory. But, as you point out, since we have skipped them frequently over the years, I am happy to keep skipping them.
Penn State and to a lesser extent Wisconsin have grown into great rivalries for us
It's hard to get worked up over a trophy like that.....and the "rivalry" really hasnt been much of a rivalry to speak of.I know Illinois beat us a few times and have given us some problems from time to time, but truly when was the last time Illinois was really relevent?
Battles are sometimes won by generals; wars are nearly always won by sergeants and privates. Football is no different, the guys down in the trenches win the games, not the coach.
Yes, I value this rivalry quite a bit. Obviously it's not Michigan but it's still a significant rivalry to me.
While Illinois hasn't been exactly relevent, they've given us some dogfights over the years. It obviously means more to them than it does to us in terms of magnitude, but I'd rather play Illinois in a game that means something than Maryland and Rutgers every year.
I would be pretty sad about this. Other than _ichigan State and Wisco and Penn St., I think that these guys have the resources to be a force someday, and I have always loved the Illibuck trophy.
Honestly it's kind of embarrassing when I have to explain to non-OSU fans that Illinois is considered a rival.
Not as embarrassing as whatever the heck has been going on when we've played Purdue lately, but still embarrassing.
I'm definitely in the camp that thinks of this as a "trophy game" and not a "rivalry game." Given the staggering number of trophies out there in the conference, I'm actually surprised that we don't play in more trophy games, so on that front the idea of losing this one is sad, but I agree with the majority of commenters that there is not a true "rivalry," at least in football - there have been more recent reasons to say we're competitive with one another in basketball, but that obviously doesn't apply to this discussion.
Penn State and Wisconsin (and maybe Purdue) are much closer to what I'd consider true rivalries. I think Nebraska could be, if for no other reason than they're the other school in the conference with much of a top-shelf football legacy.
It will not go away. It just will not be an annual game. I am sure the honararies (Bucket and Dipper/Atius-Sachem) will keep it alive even if it is not and annual thing. I do like the idea of a live turtle instead of the wooden one. We can keep it at the Columbus Zoo in a Buckeye's Defeated Foes section along with a wolverine, badger, gopher, hawk, lion, cat, and a bunch of monkeys dressed up as a spartan, boilermaker, etc.
After a shot of coffee I'm certain to be able to rustle up my own turtle on a Sat. morning in the fall.
Not really...it may still be a match up that occurs every now and again with the new conference realignment. It has been that way for some time to be honest. There's been years where OSU didn't play Illinois...so it's not that big of a deal if the game's every so often. It's not even as big as a recent rivalry then say Wiscy and OSU has been. It's been more of a historical rivalry for sure than any other school than tTUN. However it's not one I'll get upset over not seeing again after watching it live last year as OSU did pretty much whatever they wanted to against a fairly young defense. It will be some time before they're relevant again...IMO.
"There's nothing that cleanses your soul like getting the hell kicked out of you."
"I love football. I think it is most wonderful game in world and I despise to lose."
Woody Hayes 1913 - 1987
I don't have series' records but I remember that it was Indiana rather than Illinois that went crazy when it was time to skip them as part of the rotation when PSU was integrated into the conference.
I'd like to see it stay. It's our only trophy game. However, like everyone else said...it's at best our 5th or 6th and in some years our 7th most inticipated conference game.
1. michigan
2. Wisconsin/Penn State
4. Purdue
5. Nebraska/MSU
7. Illinois.
I would rather play Nebraska every year, there is nothing to gain from beating Illinois and everything to lose!
"Because I couldn't go for 3"
Make a corn trophy and lets play Nebraska every year for it
I would rather play Illinois every year than Indiana, but otherwise, I don't care too much.
"Because the rules won't let you go for three." - Woody Hayes
THE Ohio State University
I don't mind a whole lot, but as someone else said, maybe we could play Illinois every year instead of a weaker opponent like Indiana or something.
I would like to play them each twice
Couldn't care less.
Class of 2010.