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No. 7 Ohio State (10-1, 6-1) @ No. 21 Michigan (8-3, 6-1)

Just your average Michigan-Ohio State battle. The Big Ten Title and a trip to the Rose Bowl are both on the line as the two teams are both coming off a loss for the first time since 1959.  With rumors swirling around earlier this week about the possible retirement of Michigan coach Lloyd Carr, the Michigan Wolverines suddenly have more to play for than just a conference title and a trip to one of college football's most historic bowl games. Wolverine seniors haven't beaten Ohio State except for those who took a redshirt year, and in addition to looking for their first win against, arguably, their biggest rival, they now find themselves possibly playing for their coach in what could be his last game in the rivalry. This is an ever bigger game for Lloyd Carr, personally, as it will determine what side of the .500 mark he falls against the rival Buckeyes. Currently, Carr has compiled a 6-6 record in the rivalry and similar to his seniors, this game could go a long way in determining what kind of legacy he leaves behind at Michigan.

Regardless of the losses last weekend, this game is big for both teams because of the opportunity to be named Big Ten Champions. Michigan lost its national title hopes after the first weekend of the season and has virtually been playing for a Big Ten Championship since mid-September. Ohio State, however, likely lost the chance to play for a national championship, and it will take a quick recovery for the Buckeyes and a great motivational job by the Buckeye captains to get the team's focus back, realizing there is still a lot to play for. Jim Tressel has had Lloyd Carr's number since arriving in Columbus, but with the senior leadership of Mike Hart, Chad Henne and Jake Long, the Wolverines will be more focused than ever for this matchup.

When Michigan has the ball...

The level of success the Michigan offense will experience will all depend on the performance of Mike Hart and Chad Henne. With the two fighting nagging injuries, Mario Manningham and Adrian Arrington will have to play a huge role in the Michigan offense. No matter how healthy Mike Hart is, the Buckeye offense will undoubtedly make the Wolverines beat them through the air and with the targets on the outside that Henne has in Manningham and Arrington, and even Greg Mathews, he will have to have a good day throwing the football for Michigan to move the ball consistenly on the Buckeye defense. The Buckeye defense was exposed last weekend in the loss to Illinois as they were slashed for 260 yards on the ground after allowing an average of less than 70 yards/game rushing for the season heading into that contest. With Ohio State's focus likely on the rushing game, the weight will fall on the shoulders of Jake Long and the offensive line and the protection that is given to Chad Henne to allow him to deliver the ball downfield. Whether offensive coordinator Mike DeBord attempts to set up the pass with the run or the run with the pass, Ohio State will have a lot of weapons to cover all over the field. If Michigan gets it going early, offensively, and is able to possess the football, keeping the Buckeye offense off of the field, it will give even more confidence to the Michigan defense and the confidence along the Michigan sidelines will begin to grow more and more. If the Ohio State defense is able to get some early three-and-outs, and the offense is able to put some points on the board, it will likely force the Michigan offense to be one-dimensional and will allowing the defense to use blitz packages in hopes of forcing DeBord to bring more protection at the line of scrimmage.

When Ohio State has the ball...

Todd Boeckman had his first real disappointing performance of the season last weekend, throwing zero touchdowns and three interceptions. The key for Ohio State will be similar to that of the Michigan offense in that they will need to spread the ball around on the outside in addition to using a solid rushing attack to tire the Michigan defense. If Ohio State allows Michigan's defense to shut down the run, which they have had trouble doing at times this season, they will play right into the hands of the Wolverines, who have played great defense this season when forcing teams to beat them through the air while shutting down the run. Chris Wells will need to be healthy as his ability to run the football could very well determine the overall outcome of this game. Along with the presence of a consistent rushing attack, the Buckeyes will likely need a few big plays out of Brian Robiskie and Brian Hartline down the field in order to loosen up the Michigan secondary and force them to play off the line of scrimmage. If Ohio State can get the rushing game going early, it will open up the passing game and will keep the pressure off of Boeckman, which is what Ohio State will attempt to do. Although don't be surprised if offensive coordinator Jim Bollman allows Todd Boeckman to come out throwing the football early in attempts to loosen up the Michigan defense similar to the way he did a year ago with Troy Smith. This matchup will all depend on how Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English responds to the gameplan of Bollman and the Ohio State offense and how aggressive he allows his defense to get in using blitzes and mixing up coverages on the outside.

Prediction

This is one of the more odd games to pick in recent memory because of all that has happened in recent matchups between the two teams and with what happened to each team last weekend. In one sense, this is the game the Michigan seniors pointed to when asked of the reason they came back for another season, and it's difficult to imagine they won't come out ready to play with a lot of emotion. It also is tough to imagine that Michigan won't play their best game of the season due to the fact they've been playing for this opportunity since the second week of the season. In another sense, even though the pressure isn't necessarily on Michigan, the seniors haven't won a game in this series yet and although they will likely play with poise, uneasiness might start to set in if the Buckeyes take an early lead and are able to take Michigan out of their gameplan. Mike Hart steps up at crucial points fighting pain and Chad Henne throws for a couple scores and the Michigan defense shows up in the biggest win of the year for Michigan.

Ohio State- 23 Michigan- 27

Tags: michigan, ohio state football