Finally, the day has arrived — the one day a year that means more than the rest for Michigan football and Ohio State football fans. “The Game,” as it’s known, will be played today at noon; however, yesterday, there was a pretty good slate of college football games, including a battle between SEC coach Eli Drinkwitz (Missouri) and Arkansas. After the Tigers picked up their 10th win of the season, Drinkwitz hit the podium to throw shade at Jim Harbaugh and his Wolverines ahead of today’s contest, even dubbing Missouri to be “America’s team.”
Following Friday win, SEC coach calls out Michigan football and Jim Harbaugh
Missouri just picked up its first 10-win season in nearly a decade, and its coach — Eli Drinkwitz — yet again made headlines for his team’s impressive showing. After picking up a massive 48-14 SEC victory against Arkansas, you would think that Jim Harbaugh and Michigan football would be the least of Drinkwitz’s concerns, though that was not the case.
Following Michigan’s two-score win over a top-10 Penn State team earlier this month, Jim Harbaugh promptly promoted his Wolverines to the status of being “America’s team” — something that had analysts, fans, and more all buzzing for weeks.
Eli Drinkwitze Shades Jim Harbaugh, Michigan football
Among those who took note of Harbaugh’s statement was SEC coach Eli Drinkwitz, who clearly disagrees with the 9th-year Michigan football coach and made it clear on Friday.
“Earlier in the week, I heard a coach talk about being ‘America’s team.’ And I don’t know about all that conversation — they got so many different good things going for them,” Eli Drinkwitz said, talking about Michigan football and Jim Harbaugh ahead of today’s Ohio State game. “Some good, some maybe they stole illegally. (Missouri) is America’s team.
“We’re a team built on underdogs,” he added. “We’re a team built on young men with something to prove. We’ve got a Division II transfer running back who’s leading the SEC in rushing. We’ve got a bunch of fighters. Our quarterback has been fighting his whole life to earn an opportunity to play the way he does. We’ve got offensive linemen who just play for each other, tight ends, defensively. We’re the story that people should be really proud to be behind. … And that’s what America’s all about, people coming together.”
Ohio State game will determine the narratives
Was this just for attention, knowing that Michigan football gets a reaction and that the name Jim Harbaugh would get him more attention nationally? Maybe, and if it was, it clearly worked. That said, regardless of what Missouri, or anyone else in the SEC, Big Ten, on ESPN, etc., thinks about Michigan, today’s game will completely control the narrative.
If the Wolverines can beat Ohio State today, things will settle down — Michigan football can prove that it doesn’t need signs to down the Buckeyes. If not, things could get very noisy for the Maize and Blue.
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