MSU Rival Michigan's Coach Complains About Buckeyes' Success

Michigan State's greatest rivals, the Michigan Wolverines, have nothing to complain about -- unless you consider Ohio State's national championship success.

Jan 19, 2025; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Wolverines head football coach Sherrone Moore fires up the crowd in overtime of the basketball game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

The Michigan Wolverines beat Ohio State for the fourth-straight season in November.

The Game is the biggest rivalry matchup in all of college football, that is without question. But Michigan coach Sherrone Moore was still bitter about the Buckeyes' participation in the national championship against Notre Dame, a game that Ohio State would win in commanding fashion.

Moore gave an interesting take when he spoke to reporters at the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association "Winners Circle" Coaches Clinic in Lansing last week.

"I haven’t made that decision yet,” Moore said. “I probably will because I like football, but it will pain me to watch it because we’re not in it. For us, it’s all about winning that game, so regardless what they do -- and they’ve got a great football team and had a great run in the playoffs -- it’s about winning that game. It’s not what they did after. For us, it’s all about, we won that game and continued on that momentum after that.”

Winning a rivalry game above a national championship? There are no banners for a rivalry game. No rings. No hardware. Bragging rights can only carry you so far. Winning a rivalry game doesn't assert your blue-blood status. Nor does it bring in the financial gain that a national championship does.

By Moore's thinking, would Michigan have settled for a loss in the national championship a year ago to Washington as long as they beat the Buckeyes? Apparently, winning the ReliaQuest Bowl against a diluted Alabama is totally fine after a national title season, long as you beat the Buckeyes (who won the biggest title in the land).

OK.

There is no denying the massive implications The Game has on both schools. Success against the Buckeyes, or likewise "That Team Up North," has gotten coaches fired, and hired, regardless of success elsewhere.

Buckeyes coach Ryan Day hasn't beaten the Wolverines in four contests. Fair enough, but his success is undeniable: a national championship, a 70-10 overall record, two appearances in the big game, three in the college football semifinals.

There is no argument as to whether Day is a better coach than Moore, and his successes since 2019 already rival what former head coach Jim Harbaugh managed in a decade with the Wolverines.

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