Tressels, Fickells and Urbans,

I want the Bucks to beat Michigan BADLY this weekend.  I don't want to see the Bucks play a good game, but come up short.  I don't want to see a moral victory.  I want to see them win BIG.  I want to beat Michigan because of Tim Biakabatuka.  I want to beat Michigan because of The Slip.  I want to beat them because of wide-left FG attempts in the Eighties.  I  want to beat them to make the winter seem shorter.  I want to beat them to make beer taste better.  I want to beat them because of their annoying fight song.  I want to beat them because of their ugly helmets.  I  want to beat them for Charles Lovett Palmer III, Charles Lovett Palmer IV and Charles Lovett Palmer V.  I want to beat them because of Charles Woodson.   I want to beat them because of Braylon Edwards.  I want to beat them for my Uncle Garth.  I want the Bucks to pull a "Woody Hayes" & go for 2 even if they are up big late in the 4th quarter.  I want Michigan fans to know that OSU is no longer an automatic win - as it was during the Cooper era.  I want Michigan fans to quit their annoying counter that Michigan State is their big rival.  I want to beat them, so people wearing Michigan apparel in Columbus put that crap in the closet.  I want to dash Michigan's hopes of going to the Big Ten Championship Game.  I want to beat them for Mr. Kingsboro who annually led us as kids in Script Ohio on the playground @ Tremont Elementary the Friday before the Michigan game.  I want to beat them because of Phoebe Weinke.  I want to beat them for the Portland Buckeyes.  I want to beat them because of Prescott Burgess and Mario Manningham.  I want to beat them for Tino.  I want to beat them because of Mike Hart.  I want to beat them for Austin and his proud singing of his "Ohio State Football Song" when he was a little boy.  I want to beat them, so we can end the season with playoff hopes.  I want to beat them for Jason "Mr. Green Jeans" Blackburn and his Buckeye-fanatic wife who go to every game -- home and away.  I want to beat them for (or because of) apple bottom jeans.  I want to beat them because of the little dog that bit my friend John after the IU game a few seasons ago.  I want to beat them for the Congo van.  I want to beat them for kids playing football at Northam Park until early late-Fall sunsets.  I want to beat them for 1711 Cardiff Road.  I want to beat them for displaced Buckeye fans who think of home.  I want to beat them for our gracious host in Phoenix for the 2002 Championship Game.  I want to beat them for bragging rights to the biggest rivalry in College Football.  I want to beat them for Nels and his generous tailgates.  I want to beat them for the Dougherty brothers and their outstanding fried turkey.  I want to beat them for my cooking, pacing friend who hosted me for the Penn State game in 2007.  I want to beat them because of my frustration trying to get a hot dog in Evanston.  I want to beat them for memories under the Buckeye tree in my grandma's side yard.  I want to beat them for family reunions using football Saturdays as the catalyst.  I want to beat them for the Buckeye necklaces my Aunt Penny made.  I want to beat them to make the Friday night Tommy's wait shorter.  I want to beat them for "Jake's Place."  I want to beat them for Steiny-gate.  I want to beat them for Mike's sloppy joes.  I want to beat them for Brandon Saine taking the time to sign an autograph for every kid in Mrs. Emery's third grade class a few years ago when he was senior.  I want to beat them for the residents who decorate their apartment doors with Ohio State memories at Knightsbridge assisted living, where my Grandma Winters last lived.  I want to beat them for my Grandpa Warren and the OSU memorabilia he wanted me to have.  I want to beat them for Mr. Gwinn.  I want to beat them for Sunday mornings in front of the old RCA watching the WOSU-TV replay.  I want to beat them for Raymont Harris.  I want to beat them for Jakey pointing to pictures of OSU players in the paper and saying "ball-ball" (translation: football) when he was a baby.  I want to beat them because of Eddie Rife.  I want to beat them for Coach Reed.  I want to beat them for Coach Tressel.  I want to beat them for Schmoo-gate.  I want to beat them for (or because of) OMG.  I want to beat them for early-season family swimming "tailgates" at our house.  I want to beat them for Eat Too Brutus.  I want to beat them for Hap.  I want to beat them for the first Buckeye game with my eldest son; the Purdue game in 2012 that was the focal point for an amazing ride during Urban's first season.  I want to beat them for Ramzy's generosity that game.  I want to beat them for yet another fried turkey from my brother-in-law, Todd.  I want to beat them for running around Ohio Stadium with Shannon and the boys early game-day Saturdays and stopping momentarily to take in its vastness.  I want to be them for (or because of) OSU 52 Indiana 49.  I want to beat them for saki bombs in rain-soaked Evanston.  I want to beat them for the snowfall in Ohio Stadium.  I want to beat them because of nearly a decade of Big Ten conference weakness.  I want to beat them because of college football playoff standings with the Big Ten initially on the outskirts in 2014.  I want to beat them for friends gathered to watch the game for a 40th birthday party.  I want to beat them for Ohio State Marching Band halftime show spectacular.  I want to beat them for Jakey continually asking "which one is the Ohio States, Daddy?" when he was younger.  I want to beat them for the very prideful moments when I experience a game in Ohio Stadium with 700 fellow co-workers.  I want to beat them because of the obnoxious grown men dressed as Virginia Tech turkeys.  I want to beat them for watching the Penn State OT win on Halloween with my friends dressed up as Floyd and Janice from The Muppets.  I want to beat them for Jakey calling his #9 Ohio State football jersey his "Denzelle Smith" jersey (a combination of Devin Smith and Lenzelle Smith).  I want to beat them for my eldest son, Austin, now being old enough to sell Buckeye necklaces for charity with his classmates at the Ohio Union a week before The Game.  I want to beat them for the memory of taking Jakey to his first game and dancing during the Skull Session before a 66-0 drubbing of Kent State.  I want to beat them for Michael Bennett wearing #53 to honor Kosta during the magical run late during the 2014 season.  I want to beat them for the kids doing the "whip nae nae" dance before our first game together with all four of our family members.  I want to beat them for the moment Jake and I came down the tunnel at the same time many OSU players took the field for pregame warm-ups.  I want to beat them for Chad's turtle soup.  I want to beat them because of rain and cold for the MSU game.  I want to beat them for the lucky Buckeye Raekwon gave Jakey as the team made its way from the Blackwell.  I want to beat them for the outstanding experience the kids in Mrs. Benton's and Mrs. Rucker's classes had with Buckeye Bonanza.  I want to beat them because of two weather delays.  I want to be them for Jake's first game after sunset in Ohio Stadium with cell-phone-lit cheers.  I want to beat them because of Mork from Ork costumes.  I want to beat them for SOS tailgates.  I want to beat them for the kids at Children's Hospital who unexpectedly received a visit from Troy Smith and Antonio Smith 10 years ago the night before the #1 vs. #2 Michigan game.              
  
This list could have no end... 
 
For this game, forget everything you know about these teams up to this point.  It doesn't matter.  The numbers don't mean anything.  The previous wins and previous losses have no effect on the outcome of this one game.  This game IS the season.  All the other games just give us things to cheer about.  They are a nice distraction -- reasons to get everyone together despite errands and bills.  They are comforting traditions -- like Buckeyes from the tree in Grandma's side yard, jogging around the stadium with the family early game-day Saturdays and the Sunday morning Dispatch.   

For all the college football playoff worries and intense scrutiny...one thing is clear to me...the best team wins more often than not.  I truly believe in the "nine units strong" concept.  If there is complete dedication and focus from each of the players to their closest teammates, then collectively, they are really hard to beat.  It is how a team comes from outside the college football playoff top 4 rankings to winning three straight postseason games in convincing fashion and taking home the trophy with its third string quarterback.  I'm a big believer in momentum, attitude and chemistry.  I believe a downfield block or onside kick recovery from a guy like Parris Campbell is the difference between winning and losing...especially once the stage is big and everything is on the line.

The stage this year is massive - it's very rare for Ohio State and Michigan to meet with both in the top 3 in the country.  The hype and backdrop could not be bigger.  But, there's a much smaller story that intrigues me.  I've mentioned before - I'm enjoying this 2016 team even more than the loaded 2015 Buckeye squad....and here are a few reasons why...

It's not hard to root for a player like true freshman defensive lineman Robert Landers who was not even on Ohio State's recruitment radar until his team went deep into the Ohio high school state playoff last season...and he was unstoppable along the way.  Landers is 3-yards in the backfield as soon as the ball is snapped; he completely disrupts the flow of the offense.  

It's not hard to root for a player like kicker Tyler Durbin.  He was a walk-on last season and this is only his second season playing football.  After an injury to Sean Nuernberger just before the first game, Durbin stepped in and has been a real weapon.

It's not hard to root for a player like Malik Hooker.  Who would have thought that a player can leave Ohio State before his senior season as an early NFL draft pick...and the player behind him is actually even better?  It wasn't an easy route.  Hooker was about to leave Ohio State and football altogether last year...and now he's one of the best in the country and poised to go to the NFL himself.

It's not hard to root for a player like Michael Jordan.  The first true freshman to start at offensive line at Ohio State since Orlando Pace.  He's a smart, tough player who is continually getting even better and better.  His starting this early in his career is not out of desperation...he's that good and deserved to start.  

It's players like Landers, Durbin, Hooker and Jordan that make this team great.  There are more players with a similar story on the roster.  They weren't on the radar before the season began...and they aren't really on the radar for some Ohio State fans today.  But, they are the reason why Ohio State is in this position today...and this 2016 team is one of my all-time favorites.  

With so many years of history...and so many players and games accumulating in the distant past...you get to the point where only a handful of seasons can maintain a memory foothold and standout for many years to come.  The 2016 Ohio State football team has the chance to withstand the test of time with a victory this Saturday in the biggest edition of The Game since 2006.              

This is it.  There is one Saturday a year in late November where we can count on things momentarily having extreme clarity.  We have the simplicity of good versus evil.  Good guys and bad guys are clearly marked.  There's no holding back...and I would love to see Ohio State take it to Michigan. 

Touchdowns:  Mike Weber, JT, Curtis Samuel, Curtis Samuel
 
OSU 28 Michigan 26

Go Bucks!  Beat Michigan!  Dante Booker for Heisman! 

Large Father