I will own up to the fact that I am, by any rational standard, an old fart. I was born before Woody won his first national championship, though my memory of OSU football really began in 1961, when, as a "husky" (they used words like that then for pudgy kids who were always picked last) third grader, I watched, er, listened to, Bob Ferguson and the boys win Woody's third one. I also listened to previously unheard swear words issuing from my enraged father's mouth when the faculty council voted to deny the Bucks their trip to the Rose Bowl that year. As a long time Buckeye fan and alum, I have been through all of the great and not so great moments in the last 60 years of Ohio State football, but the greatest years of all were the years known as the Ten Year War. For both #ichigan and Ohio State, all of the other games they played each of those stirring seasons were merely prologue for the pitched battle which took place on the third Saturday of November. The animosity between the two schools and their respective fan bases was at a fever pitch, 365 days a year, and, loath as we may have been to admit it, our respect for our ultimate opponent was wide and deep. We knew that, on that cold, grey, windy Saturday afternoon, anything could, and often did, happen. The mere fact that it could was all the sauce we needed to sweeten the main course, The Game. Tension was high, anticipation was rampant, the games were brutal contests of will. It was the perfect way to cap a season, whether successful or disappointing - the chance to beat a clearly better Michigan squad could ease the pain of any 4-loss campaign. I know that there are many true and faithful Buckeye fans who revel in the Wolverines' mediocrity, and I understand that point of view. For me, though, I prefer a strong, prepared foe who truly tests our beloved Buckeyes, bringing out the best in those fine, scarlet-clad young men we cheer for with such pride. So, in sum, I crave a return to the old days, the days of worthy opponents squaring off in a battle for the ages, with millions watching, and with the emotional well-being of every fan hanging in the balance. Here's hoping that those dunderheads in charge of things in Ann Arbor get it right this time, and hire a coach who is able to go toe-to-toe with our new Woody, UFM, and that the legendary years of the Ten Year War rise from the mists of history to fill our Buckeye hearts with joy.