The Victors

About "the Game" & the rivalry 'twixt the valiant Wolverines of the University of Michigan & the hated Buckeyes of THE ^{(Ohio State University)}—or "the University of Ohio State" as it has been known to some of its most lauded recruits—let me just say this: There is a some sung by some Buckeyes, a reputedly humorous little ditty that serves as both a clever skewering of the foibles of sacred Michigan (the state, not the university specifically) & a persuasive acclamation of the myriad virtues of the Ohioans. It goes as follows:

I don't give a damn for the whole state of Michigan!
The whole state of Michigan, the whole state of Michigan,
I don't give a damn for the whole state of Michigan,
I'm from Ohio!

How is one to respond in the face of such poetry, such deft lyrical pulchritude? It is interesting to note that there is no similar Michigander song about Ohio. While many valiant Wolverines, your humble narrator amongst them, certainly harbor a deep & abiding loathing for the hated Buckeyes & indeed the whole State of Ohio, this is not paramount in our view of the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry. We praise the valiant Wolverines before we condemn the hated Buckeyes; we think first of ourselves & only after that to the external enemy. To the hated Buckeyes, the external enemy is all but all there is. They define themselves by opposition, by against what they stand, not for what. Note that in just four lines the word "Michigan" appears four times, the word "Ohio" but once. Ohio, which became a state in the Union over three decades before Michigan, which boasts a larger population than Michigan, & which plays a more determinative rôle in our national electoral politics than does Michigan, nevertheless harbors a collective sense of inferiority to Michigan. This is right & proper, for Ohio is inferior to Michigan & Ohioans are inferior to Michiganders, yet it remains remarkable as an almost singular instance in which reason & truth have been able to get through Ohio's proverbial thick skull.



To-morrow, in the friendly confines of Michigan Stadium, the "Big House," the valiant Wolverines (7-4, Big Ten 3-4) will take to the gridiron against the hated Buckeyes (11-0, Big Ten 7-0). The outcome of the contest is in little doubt, though as the old saw says, any club can beat any other club on any given Saturday & that is why they play the games. Win or lose, the valiant Wolverines will take the field in the defense of the light, in defense of knowledge & wisdom against ignorance & foolishness; the cause is worthy even when we are not. Win or lose, the magnificent Michigan Marching Band will stay play "The Victors."

Go Blue!