Michigan football will take on arch rival Ohio State on Oct. 24 instead of to conclude the regular season, the Big Ten's newly released conference-only schedule indicates. This season will be just the fourth time since 1935 in which the Wolverines close out their season with a team other than the Buckeyes.
As soon as the schedule was announced, the reaction in the college football world began taking place, starting with Big Ten Network's own Urban Meyer, the former Buckeye head coach who stepped down from his post in Columbus amid controversy after the 2018 season.
“It’s heartbreaking to be honest with you, but adaptability and sacrifice are all gonna be critical on everyone’s part," Meyer said Wednesday.
Here's a look around the country on more reaction about the new schedule as it pertains to 'The Game' being moved.
RELATED: Thoughts On Michigan's Revised Big Ten Schedule
RELATED: By The Numbers: What You Need To Know About Michigan's New 2020 Schedule
By moving the game, the buildup to The Game has been effectively wiped out. November simply doesn't mean as much. You've seen this with other rivalries, such as Bedlam between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, which is no longer played in the final week of the regular season. It’s a precedent that might change college football’s best rivalry ....
For a conference that thrives on tradition and holds that rivalry between Michigan and Ohio State so close, it’s a move that concedes that the entire regular season might not happen. Ohio State and Michigan design their programs around those three-and-a-half-hours. Legacies are defined by it. It’s always been that way. Will it always be that way after 2020?
Even if Michigan-Ohio State does happen, it won't feel the same. You'll have ruined Halloween for the losing fan base. You'll have taken away those Thanksgiving week traditions both sides enjoy so much. There is still something to be said for trying to play the game at the right time, even in the current conditions.
That's the way it should be. The 2007 HBO documentary "Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry" painted that tradition best during a montage that illustrates how much that tradition means to both sides of the rivalry. A voiceover says it all:
"One of the things that makes the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry so great and separates it from other sports rivalries is not only does it happen once a year, it happens at the same time every year. And all great traditions in most cultures happen at the same time."
The players can say what they want. Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields talked about Michigan on a teleconference Tuesday.
For the fans, however, it cuts deeper. It does not matter how many fans — if any — are allowed in Ohio Stadium for that game. It does not matter who has the better record. The Game is the most important thing on the schedule — and if you think fans are over-reacting, wait and see what happens if the SEC moves the Iron Bowl between Alabama and Auburn up to October.
The schedule at least left some wiggle room, however. Both teams have bye weeks on Nov. 14, and the open date on Nov. 28 for all the teams is built in just in case the COVID-19 pandemic forces more games to be moved around. Perhaps Michigan-Ohio State gets moved again at some point, but you can't root for that to happen. That would mean the schedule has been affected even more by the pandemic. Nobody wants that.
At least we still get The Game. Michigan and Ohio State fans live for it every single day. That's why that text happened seconds after the announcement. That's why Sept. 24 will not feel the same.
Especially if and when they move Ohio State-Michigan from its traditional noon slot to primetime.
Dan Hope, Eleven Warriors: Ohio State's 2020 Game Against Michigan Moved Up To Oct. 24
The move comes in an effort to increase the likelihood of The Game being played, as an earlier scheduled date gives Ohio State and Michigan more flexibility to reschedule the game if the season gets interrupted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Game, which was originally scheduled for Nov. 28, will still be played at Ohio Stadium. It will be the first time Ohio State has played Michigan before the final week of the regular season since 1942, and the first time Ohio State will play Michigan in October since 1933. It's not quite the earliest the two teams have played, though; the Buckeyes and Wolverines played each other on Oct. 15 in 1904.
As a result of the newly scheduled date for The Game, the countdown clock in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center has been updated accordingly:
Chris Balas, The Wolverine: Thoughts On Michigan's Revised Big Ten Schedule
The Wolverines will play OSU in October. And yeah, that’s weird. But it’s a one-time deal, and in 2020 ... well, it is what it is. Playing the Buckeyes in a nearly empty Ohio Stadium isn’t the same as playing in front of a rabid 100,000 — anyone who has been there knows what we’re talking about — that’s to the Wolverines’ advantage.
Austin Meek, The Athletic: Five takeaways from Michigan’s new 2020 schedule
That late October stretch is a doozy.
At Indiana on Oct. 17. At Ohio State on Oct. 24. Home against Wisconsin on Oct. 31. That’s the meat of Michigan’s schedule right there.
If the Wolverines somehow win all three of those games, we’re probably talking about them in the hunt for the College Football Playoff. If they lose all three, maybe we’re talking about a 5-5 season. The Wolverines can only hope they’re healthy and hitting their peak by the time mid-October rolls around, because that’s the only way they’ll make it to November with championship hopes still intact.
The Wisconsin game is interesting from this standpoint: We’ve never seen how Michigan responds to a one-week turnaround after playing Ohio State. Since it’s always the last game of the year, the Wolverines usually have time to recover and recharge before they have to focus on another opponent. That won’t be the case this season. If the Wolverines somehow beat Ohio State, the euphoria will last way more than a week. If they lose another lopsided game, they’ll only have a few days to regroup.
We’ll have ample time to discuss this game as the season approaches, but my gut-level read is that playing the Buckeyes in late October is a better situation for Michigan than playing them in Week 1. The Wolverines have more unknowns than they’ll be able to confidently address in preseason camp alone, and the extra time could be useful.
Orion Sang, Detroit Free Press: Three key takeaways on Michigan football's revamped 2020 schedule
It's a tradition that dates back almost 100 years.
But this isn't a normal year. And if college football happens, "The Game" will take place Oct. 24, more than a month earlier than originally intended.
If playing "The Game" in October sounds weird, that's because it is. It will be just the third time the Wolverines end the regular season against a non-Ohio State opponent since 1935, and the first since 1998, when U-M played Hawaii a week after losing to the Buckeyes.
Ohio State lost some talent to the NFL but returns star quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate Justin Fields, star offensive linemen Wyatt Davis and Josh Myers, and star cornerback Shaun Wade, among others. Home-field advantage might not mean as much for the Buckeyes this season, but Ohio State is still loaded with talent. And the players are already looking forward to playing Michigan, with Fields and Davis telling reporters that they'd like to "beat the brakes off" the Wolverines.
Social Media Reaction To Schedule Release / Michigan-Ohio State Rivalry Game Being Moved To Oct. 24
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