Ohio State Football: Rivalry vs. TTUN finally picking up steam

For the last 15 years, the rivalry between the Ohio State football team and TTUN didn’t have as much juice to it as it had in previous decades. Only three moments stand out in those 15 or so years; the #1 vs. #2 matchup in ’06, the double OT game in ’16, and the Revenge Tour game in ’18.

Now that TTUN beat the Buckeyes this past season, the rivalry seems to have picked up some steam, even now in the offseason. A lot of that has to do with some trash talking between the two fanbases on social media. Michigan fans seem to have gotten a misplaced sense of confidence.

Yes, hearing their fans talk like they’ve won the National Championship is annoying. Yes, they don’t really have a reason to be talking so much smack after just one win in 10 years. But you can’t deny that this has been good for the rivalry at large.

It’s good for the rivalry because now fans from both fanbases are talking about The Game year-round. It’s a game that doesn’t seem to have a foregone conclusion anymore. There’s some mystery and anxiety around it again, and that’s something that had been lacking for close to 20 years.

When the rivalry has this much steam behind it in the offseason, you can claim that it’s the best rivalry in sports again. It had lost that title for a while because of TTUN’s incompetence in The Game. Now both teams have a legitimate chance to win any given year.

Ohio State football fans want to change that. We liked it more when we could count this as a win every year. Even so, deep down I think it’s better to watch this game when you don’t know what’s going to happen as soon as the teams step onto the field.

Only 9 more months until this year’s rendition of The Game.