The last time a player made a guarantee before The Game, it didn’t go very well.
Now, take Michigan football running back Karan Higdon’s so-called guarantee with a grain of salt — he was essentially coerced into it. But still, in 2018, the Wolverines were favored over the Buckeyes and ended up losing, 62-39, in Columbus.
Michigan football has had the upper hand in the rivalry the past two years, but it appears Ohio State cornerback is essentially going ahead and assuring fans in the Buckeye State they should be unconcerned come Saturday.
And as if that wasn’t enough motivation for both teams, Buckeyes star corner Denzel Burke has now taken things to an even higher level, ostensibly guaranteeing a victory over the No. 3 Wolverines.
“I’m very emotional,” Burke said. “I’m trying not to get too out of character, but this game means a lot for us. And we’re gonna get it done for the state of Ohio.”
However, Burke wasn’t done there.
Instead, he would go on to tell the media that ‘nothing’ about the Wolverines stood out to him on film, and that the Buckeyes were going to head into Michigan Stadium with a ‘villain’ mentality.
“Nothing,” Burke said. “We’ve just got to go out there and do our job and really compete and play hard for each other. We’re gonna be the villain walking in there and this game is really about respect for us. Especially my class, the last two years, we haven’t gotten it done. No gold pants. So, we’ve got to go there and just be us.”
You may remember Denzel Burke was the player who was dusted by Cornelius Johnson in 2021 on the long pass play. He was also in pursuit of Edwards on the 85-yard touchdown that put the game away in 2022 for the maize and blue.
We’ll see what happens, but at this moment, bold strategy, Cotton.