If there’s one thing that fans of the Michigan Wolverines absolutely despise, it’s losing to their chief rivals from Columbus. And unfortunately, the rivalry has been completely one sided in recent history.
The Ohio State Buckeyes have claimed victory over the Wolverines 15 of the last 17 matchups, with Michigan’s latest victory coming in 2011 prior to the Urban Meyer era.
And you can bet Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh isn’t keen on losing to the Buckeyes, either. In fact, he spoke out rather strongly about the feeling it gives him and his team.
“We’ve got to beat Ohio State,” Harbaugh said. “Nothing makes us angrier than that, or me. That’s what we’re working toward every day. We’ve beaten everybody else but we haven’t beaten them.
Since returning to Ann Arbor, Harbaugh has yet to defeat the Buckeyes, losing all five games including the heartbreaking and controversial overtime loss in Columbus in 2016. But in order to be the best, you have to beat the best, and that’s Harbaugh’s aim.
“That’s what we have to do — beat them, win a championship, get ourselves into the playoff, win a national championship,” he said.
But despite the setbacks against their principal rival, Harbaugh is having “a great time” coaching his players in Ann Arbor.
“It’s been a joy to coach our guys,” Harbaugh said. “We’re a high-drive team. We’re driving toward success. We want to put it over the top. We’ve just been kind of on that outside of the playoffs, haven’t gotten in, and want to push that over the top. That’s our mission.”
– – Quotes via Orion Sang of The Detroit Free Press Link – –
