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Michigan’s biggest game of the year is finally upon us, Ohio State. The Wolverines come into this game with nothing to lose as their Big Ten title hopes are gone and the playoff chances slim, while the Buckeyes undefeated season and playoff hopes are on this game. Michigan is going to want to be the only team to give the Buckeyes a loss this year, and if it can help them knock them out of the playoff race as well, that’s just the frosting on the cake.
Before the game happens though, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day and his players spoke to the media this week. Day started by talking about Michigan defensive coordinator Don Brown and his defense, then later transitioned to coaching with him at Boston College years ago.
“He actually coached against me when I played, then coached my brother at UMass, then we coached together at Boston College, now get an opportunity to coach against each other in a huge rivalry game, which makes it hard,” Day said.” Nothing but respect obviously for his background and what he’s done defensively over the years. One of the best guys in the business.”
Day then spoke about how dominant the rivalry has been for the Buckeyes since the early 2000s and how prepared the Buckeye teams have been for years.
“Again, if you’re working on it all year, then you’re prepared, whether you’ve worked on it the spring, the pre-season, certain periods that you set aside just to work on the team up north,” Day said. ” You talk to guys all the time about what it means, so they understand coming into the game what to expect. It’s always on the schedule that way. We have the countdown in the building. I think everyone understands the importance of it, that’s the first thing.”
“When you’re talking about the game itself, it goes back to the fundamentals: taking care of the football, executing the game plan, giving them a good plan they can execute,” Day said. “Being on the road is a little different than being at home. We have to handle that, being loud, the crowd noise. We’ll handle that today, make sure we pipe in the crowd noise during practice, show composure there. It’s going to come down to winning the one-on-one battles in the end.”
Day brought up defensive end Chase Young and what Michigan might do to try and stop him.
“They’re sound, they do a good job. I think at the end of the day it comes down to players,” Day said. “I don’t think they’re going to do anything that we probably haven’t seen. Maybe they will. But I think at the end of the day it’s going to come down to execution and guys winning their one-on-one battles.”
Day than later transitioned to talking about Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson and why he’s playing his best football of the season right now.
“I don’t really know,” Day said. “I’m not there, so I don’t know the dynamics of what’s going on. It’s hard to tell when you don’t know people. I do see him being more confident. I see a group that feels like they’ve found an identity. They got really good receivers, by the way. Those receivers are talented. Offensive line is giving them time. I don’t know exactly what made them all click, but it seems like it’s going well right now for them.”
The players would speak later and linebacker Tuf Borland would speak about how Michigan lines up scheme-wise and the challenge they face this week.
“Schematically, big bodies, multiple tight ends packages,” Borland said. “They have the ability to run the ball right at you but then they also have playmakers along the perimeter, a quarterback. Just multiple ways they can attack the defense.”
Linebacker Pete Werner spoke about what he learned immediately about the rivalry between Michigan and Ohio State.
“Everything is different,” Werner said. “The big thing that strikes me is the preparation. You have to prepare harder than that team, you have to work harder than that team. That all starts in practice. Preparation, there are just so many things to take into account to win this game. We’ve beaten them with preparation in the past, and that’s what showed in the outcome of the game.”
Werner added in some comments about co-defensive coordinator Greg Mattison and linebackers coach Al Washington, both coaching at Michigan last year, how impactful they’ve been, and how much this game means to them.
“Oh yeah,” Werner said. “I can already tell. This is the game they’ve had checked on their calendar since the time they’ve been here. They have something to prove. I’ve learned so much from them. Some of the best coaches I’ve ever been around. I’ve become so much of a better player because of them too. This game is going to mean a lot. We’re going to prepare harder than we ever have and that starts with them.”
Werner then gave praise to Patterson and how dangerous he can be to opposing defenses as he goes up against him this week.
“He’s one of those guys who is kind of tricky,” Werner said. “He’s got a lot of different options, he scrambles very well, throws a great ball and if you’re (caught) lacking around, leave a guy open, he’s going to make a play from it.”
Safety Jordan Fuller brought up the Michigan wide receivers and how much of a challenge they will be for the secondary this week.
“We definitely look forward to it,” Fuller said. “After watching the film and just knowing them from prior years, they’re definitely a very talented group, one of the most talented groups we play all year, so we definitely have our hands full with them. But I’m confident in our group as well. So we’re going to prepare hard and try to get a bead on the kinds of stuff they like to do. But we definitely have our hands full. It should be fun.”
“They have guys that have great hands, that can go up and get the ball but also, when they have the ball in their hands, they can they can make something happen with it,” Fuller said. “They can attack you in every which way. So that’s something you’ve got to be prepared for.”
Michigan takes on Ohio State at noon EST on FOX as they play in the Big House in Ann Arbor, MI.
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