Kyle Gillis
Opinions Editor

There have been many famous rivalries in contemporary culture but they all pale in comparison to the rivalry that will be renewed for the 104th time when the Michigan Wolverines host the Ohio State Buckeyes at the Big House tomorrow.

Ohio State is currently seventh in the Associated Press rankings and, despite a loss last week to Illinois, still has a chance to win the Big Ten title and win their sixth game against Michigan in seven years. Appalachian State and Oregon came into Ann Arbor and opened up a can of you-know-what early in the season. Despite these losses and a loss to the Wisconsin Badgers, Michigan has a chance to win the Big Ten Conference title, advance to a BCS bowl game and snap their three game losing streak to the Buckeyes. There hasn’t been a game this big in the Michigan-Ohio State series since…last season.

he pageantry, bad blood and location of the two schools also add to the intensity of the rivalry. Michigan’s fabled winged helmets are more recognizable than Harry Potter’s scar and their fight song is played more often than Fergie’s "Big Girls Don’t Cry." Contrarily, Ohio State’s "Script Ohio" pre-game show and "Hang on Sloopy" cause Buckeye fans to pump their chests with pride. Ohio State and Michigan also engaged in the famous "Ten Year War" between legendary coaches Woody Hayes (Ohio State) and Bo Schembechler (Michigan) that helped catapult the rivalry to its current national status. Ohio State fans claim that Michigan Stadium is the quietest stadium in the country, but Michigan fans are quick to counter that Michigan Stadium is larger than Ohio Stadium by a few thousand seats.

Other sports rivalries claim to be the best rivalry of all time but actually do not compare. The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox play each other several times throughout the baseball season. Duke and the University of North Carolina have a strong college basketball rivalry, but both schools are in the same state.

Michigan and Ohio State have the ideal rivalry that no other rivalry has found a way to emulate. One game, everything on the line, just the way the fans like it.