Now rumor on the web says that the Ohio State-Michigan matchup isn’t what it used to be. But ask a Wolverine or a Buckeye fan like my roommate and they will vehemently disagree with that.

True, the Ohio State Buckeyes have beaten Michigan for the last five years in a row. And yeah, last year Ohio State killed the Wolverines 42-7. And yeah, Michigan kinda sucks this year. And last year. But when the rivalry started way back in the day, Michigan beat (or tied) Ohio State 12 times in a row. And they once beat Ohio State 86-0. Yes, 86-0.  Safe to say they kinda sucked that year….

So just because the Buckeyes are on a winning streak, doesn’t mean this rivalry is over or lost some juice.

Rivalries like this one don’t fade away. I mean, ESPN once rated this as the greatest rivalry in all of sports over Red Sox/Yankees,  and North Carolina/Duke!

See this isn’t like the Pats-Colts NFL game from last Sunday. That rivarly only goes back a few decades and is super intense right now because it features two of the best quarterbacks in the country. Although, the Pats QB Tom Brady did go to Michigan….. But anyway. The big revival of their rivalry is because of those QBs and because the Colts and Patriots have won a lot of Championships since 2000.

Now the Michigan/Ohio State rivalry, on the other hand, goes back over a century. And together the two schools combine for 75 Big 10 Championships. That’s a whole lot! In fact, there was a time when the Big 10 was actually referred to as “The Big 2 and the little 8″ because Michigan and Ohio State combined for so many championships.

A Brief History

There’s always been a bit of tension surrounding Michigan and Ohio based teams. Back in the 1800s there was a Border War concerning the boundaries between them and ever since, there has been no love lost! Michigan-Ohio State rivalry was inevitable and it’s been a long bitter Border War ever since. Not to mention some of the best games in college football history have been between these two schools including the the “Snow Bowl” and the games that made up the “Ten Year War.”

And this year is the 40th anniversary of The Game that kicked-off the 10 Year War! In 1969, Ohio State was on a 22 game winning streak going into the match-up with Michigan and it looked like they couldn’t lose. Except they did. And that game became one of the biggest upsets in sports history.

The Greatest Rivalry in Sports History

The Series:

They have been playing since 1897. Michigan Wolverines leads the series 57-42. There has been 6 ties.

Big 10 Championships:

• Michigan: 42
• Ohio State: 33

National Titles:

• Michigan: 11
• Ohio State: 7

Rose Bowl Appearances:

• Ohio State 14
• Michigan 20

Heisman Trophy Winners the schools have produced:

• Ohio State: 7
• Michigan: 3

This Season:

• Ohio State: 9-2   (in Big 10 Conference Games Only: 6-1)
• Michigan:  5-6    (in Big 10 Conference Games Only: 1-6)

So why the lackluster enthusiasm for this game this year? Because most of the time The Game determines who is going to the Rose Bowl, who will be securing the conference title, who will be staying alive for the National Championship. But this year, most of that is already decided. Ohio State is already going to the Rose Bowl. And Michigan is desperately clinging on to it’s season.

What to expect:

• Very loud fans cheering, swearing and quite possibly punching people
• Buffalo Wild Wings and all sports bars to be super packed before noon so get there early
• The words Buckeyes, Wolverines, Tressel, Michigan and Ohio State to be trending topics on Twitter.
• A possible major upset. Afterall, it’s the 40th anniversary of the first big upset that really fueled this rivalry. With all eyes and money on Ohio State, something very interesting could happen!

Now you can’t have a key matchup rivalry game like this one and not have some amazing football party food to go along with it! So I picked out some awesome recipes from some of the recipe guides we have posted like “19 Unique Football Party Dips” and “17 Football Party Wings” to help kick-start your college game day bash!

Pre Game:

1. Ohio State:  Red BuckEye
2. Michigan: The Ann Arbor Wolverine
   

The Ohio State Red Buckeye:

• 1 oz vodka
• 1 oz sloe gin
• 1 oz Southern Comfort® peach liqueur
• 1 oz blackberry liqueur
• 1 oz triple sec
• 1 oz 7-Up® soda
• 1 oz orange juice
• 1 oz pineapple juice

The Michigan Wolverine:

• 12.0 oz.  Beer
• 1.0 shot Scotch
• 1.0 shot Jagermeister
• Directions: Pour  beer into a glass, take a double shot glass and put a shot of scotch and a shot of Jagermeister in and toss it in to the beer…chug away.

First Quarter:

White Castle Vidalia Dip I picked this dip for three reasons

1. White Castle is based in Columbus, Ohio home of OSU.
2. The castle design on White Castle’s packaging is said to be modeled after the Chicago Water Tower which is on the Magnificent Mile of…..Michigan Ave!
3. It’s seriously tasty! If you don’t know what a White Castle burger is, you need to get yourself to your local grocery store since they now have these square patties of goodness in the frozen food aisle! There is something so…… naughty…..about White Castle burgers that is just impossible to dupliate. Maybe it’s the square patty. Maybe it’s the fried onions. All I know is the combo is potent and highly addicting. And now they’ve taken the happinees of White Castle and packed it into the perfect party dip! Get the Recipe!

Second Quarter:

1. Red Hot Sticky Wings : Now, normally I’m not a fan of BBQ sauce unless it’s grilled or broiled to a nice crispy sweetness. But this sauce is so different. And the best part is that the wings are baked, not fried. The sauce is a delicious blend of reduced pomegranate juice and hot sauce. Warning: you will be a hot sticky mess after eating these, but it’s so worth it! Get the Recipe!

Half-Time:

It’s the battle of the chili burgers! Ohio State vs. Michigan rivalry at it’s finest!

For Ohio State: Cincinnati Chili Burger Ohio is famous for it’s Cincinnati style chili–which features chili on top of pasta. But for this recipe were just taking the yummy flavor Cincinatti chili and throwing it on a burger and covering it with cheese!  Get the recipe!

For Michigan: The Coney Hot Dog Burgers If Ohio is known for its chili, than Michigan is known for it’s chili cheese dogs, a.k.a. Coneys.  This is a unique spin on a Michigan Coney. Instead of just topping the dog with meat, the hot dog is actually wrapped up in the hamburger and broiled! Get the recipe!

Fourth Quarter:

• Ohio State Buckeyes: Delicious peanut butter cookies with a chocolate “buckeye” in the middle! Get the recipe!
• Michigan: I’m  going to suggest chocolate covered cherries because Michigan is one of the biggest producers of cherries in the country!

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• Girl’s Guide to College Football: The Rivalries