Michigan football: 5 things I want to see from Wolverines this weekend against Ohio State

There are plenty of people on both sides of the state line that say the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry is the best in college football. But there’s one catch to that. For a rivalry to truly be great, both teams have to have an equal amount of success, or something close to it.

That hasn’t been the case in this rivalry lately. Ohio State has owned it since 2004, losing only once. Michigan hasn’t been able to match their talent level. Jim Harbaugh hasn’t beaten Urban Meyer yet.

Now’s his best chance.

The two teams are clearly rivals now, and Michigan is actually favored by 4 points in Saturday’s game at Columbus (Noon ET; TV: FOX). Both teams are 10-1 and the Big Ten East title is on the line

Here are five things I want to see from the Wolverines this weekend against Ohio State:

1. Harbaugh needs to succeed in his biggest game since Super Bowl

Since returning to his alma mater, Jim Harbaugh hasn’t been able to get over the hump against Ohio State, losing all three times. Now that Michigan seems to be the better team this year, there is an enormous amount of pressure on him to win this game. If not now, then when, right? He’s made all the right moves all season, bouncing back nicely from the season-opening loss to Notre Dame to win 10 games in a row, and do it impressively. He will surely have this team well-prepared, but now he needs to make all the right decisions during the game. It’s a must win.

2. Don Brown needs to treat this like his Super Bowl, too

Michigan’s defense is ranked No. 1 in the country, and rightly so. They’ve been downright nasty all year, with just a few blips in the radar here and there. Defensive coordinator Don Brown gets a lot of credit for that, as do the players, who have been awesome on all three levels. Because of the stakes, this is the most important game in Don Brown’s career. Months of planning have gone into this game, and now that plan needs to get executed. Let’s hope he keeps bringing the heat and the Wolverines keep playing aggresively.

3. Get Ohio State QB Dwayne Haskins off his spot

That first bit of success in winning this game is to get Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins out of the pocket and throwing on the run. There’s a huge difference in his game from when he’s in the pocket to when he’s forced to move around. Michigan’s pass rush has been very good all year, even when stars Rashan Gary and Chase Winovich have missed snaps. The depth is that good. Ohio State’s offense can be slowed down when you make Haskins uncomfortable. That’s proirity No. 1.

4. Michigan offensive line wins war in the trenches

The storyline from the beginning of the season was whether Michigan’s offensive line would be good enough to lead this team to a Big Ten title. So far, they’ve proven that they are. They’ve stayed healthy all year and have had one great game after another. This is the final encore now, and they need to hit all the high notes, opening holes for Karan Higdon and the other backs in the running game, and giving quarterback Shea Patterson time to throw.

5. Shea Patterson wins the game he was brought in for

When Shea Patterson arrived in Ann Arbor from Ole Miss, the consensus was that Michigan finally had the quarterback it needed to beat Ohio State. That’s been the one position where Ohio State has had the huge edge since Harbaugh arrived, but that’s not the case anymore. Patterson needs to be accurate, he needs to get them in and out of bad plays and he needs to avoid turnovers at all costs. This is his moment, and the guess here is he’s more than ready for it and will have a huge day.

Tom Brew

Tom Brew has been a recognized reporter in Big Ten sports for decades. Among other projects, he writes about Big Ten football for Saturday Tradition.