A group of Ohio State upperclassmen, who have never beaten Michigan, are determined not to leave with that regret.
Receiver Emeka Egbuka, running back TreVeyon Henderson, defensive ends Jack Sawyer and J.T. Tuimoloau, along with other NFL draft-eligible players, decided to return for another chance to defeat “That Team Up North” — as Michigan is called in Columbus — and compete for a conference title and a national championship.
These players have lost to their biggest rival three times.
In 2021, No. 5 Michigan beat No. 2 Ohio State 42-27 in Ann Arbor. In 2022, Ohio State was again No. 2 when No. 3 Michigan defeated the Buckeyes 45-23 in Ohio Stadium.
Last year, Ohio State was No. 2 when quarterback Kyle McCord threw an interception in Michigan territory with 25 seconds left. No. 3 Michigan won 30-24 and went on to win the Big Ten championship and the national title in the College Football Playoff, amid a sign-stealing controversy.
This time, No. 2 Ohio State (10-1, 7-1 Big Ten, No. 2 CFP) faces an unranked Michigan team (6-5, 4-4) on Saturday. Michigan has nothing left to play for except to continue its dominance over the Buckeyes, whose fans haven’t seen a home win in this rivalry since 2018.
“It’ll be as hostile as it’s ever been there this weekend,” Michigan coach Sherrone More said. “I think our guys embrace it.”
Ohio State has everything to play for. A win would send the Buckeyes to the Big Ten championship game for the first time since 2020, where they would likely face No. 1 Oregon again, which handed Ohio State their only loss in a 32-31 thriller last month.
Winning the conference title would also earn Ohio State a first-round bye in the playoff.
Egbuka is more than ready for this year’s game.
“Just seeing all the hardships that people who I love have had to go through, including my teammates, my head coach, and (Michigan) fans being nasty to my parents as we’re leaving the stadium,” the fourth-year receiver said. “There’s a lot of emotions I feel towards this moment, so I’m trying to harness those and just let it all rip on the field on Saturday.”
Sawyer, who grew up in suburban Columbus, has experienced the rivalry longer than most of his teammates.
“This is what we do it for right here,” he said. “We want this one so bad.”
