Andy & Ari On3 - My Favorite Game: Tennessee vs Alabama in 2022, Michigan vs Ohio State in 2021

Episode Date: June 19, 2024

It's time to take a trip down memory lane in this SPECIAL edition of Andy Staples as we begin our "My Favorite Game" series. Today, we hit the hills of Rocky Top and the snowy Big House, as we take a look back at some massive wins for the Big Orange and the Big Blue.(0:00-2:50) Intro(2:51-41:49) Brent Hubbs joins to discuss 2022 Tennessee vs Alabama(41:50-1:10:15) Chris Balas joins to talk Michigan's Resurgence vs Ohio State in 2021(1:10:16-1:11:31) Conclusion, See you Friday!Want to watch the show instead? Join us LIVE, M-F, at 8 am et! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn2g2Wy8uiE9BhDPV4knT7AHost: Andy StaplesGuests: Brent Hubbs, Chris BalasProducer: River Bailey

welcome to andy staples on three very special show for you today as you've probably heard we are on vacation this week but we didn't want to leave you with nothing to watch slash listen to and also we had a a pretty fun idea so a few weeks ago, I got asked a question during a Dear Andy show about what my favorite game to cover in person was. And it was the Boise State-Oklahoma Fiesta Bowl for me. And I explained why. It was the first game I'd covered after my mom had passed away. And it was a game that my mom, who was a massive college football fan, would have absolutely loved. And it was more about that my mom, who was a massive college football fan, would have absolutely loved. And it was more about that than the game itself.

But of course, it was also one of the greatest college football games of all time. And talking about that game and just bringing back the memories of that game made me think, OK, everybody has a favorite game. So why don't we take our team at On3? And we have all these amazing team sites. And we asked some of the folks from our team sites, what their favorite game involving the team they cover is. And we've gotten an unbelievable response. So we've done four of those for this week. So today's show, we're going to be talking Tennessee and Michigan,

Brent Hubbs of VolQuest, Chris Ballas of the Wolverine, talking about their favorite games involving the Vols and the Wolverines. And then later in the week, we've got Jake Rowe from Dogs HQ and Spencer Holbrook from Letterman Rowe talking about their favorite games involving Georgia and Ohio State. And so today we've got Brent Hubbs talking about the 2022 Tennessee-Alabama game. Oh yeah, you remember that one. Goalpost sunk in the Tennessee River. Just an incredible scene. But you're probably thinking, if you're an older Vols fan,

huh, why that one? Why not 98 Florida? Why not 95 Alabama? Well, we talked to Brent about that, why he picked that particular game. And it's a fascinating answer. And it's also just a fascinating game when you dig into it. So I want to talk about that one. And then later, Chris Ballas tells us all about the 2021 Michigan, Ohio State game, which is the game that Michigan broke back in the rivalry. I know what you're thinking. Michigan won the national title this past year.

It's not one of those games. No. It's the game where Michigan ended its losing streak against Ohio State and all the circumstances around it and just the game itself were pretty incredible. So let us stroll down memory lane. We'll start with Brent Hubbs of VolQuest talking about the 2022 Tennessee Alabama game. Brent Hubbs from VolQuest is talking his favorite

game and he has chosen the 2022 Alabama Tennessee game, but it was one of three finalists. And before we get into that game, before we get into the Hendon hooker and the Bryce young of it all, let's talk about the other two finalists that didn't make it because I think they were both kind of program defining wins. And one of them specifically, I think is very similar to the one that Brent chose. So, uh, Brent, you had the 95 Alabama-Tennessee game, the 98 Florida-Tennessee game, and then obviously 22 Alabama-Tennessee. So 95 Alabama-Tennessee.

Why is that one such a big deal in Tennessee lore? Well, because it ended a streak in Legion Field. It was Peyton Manning's true coming out party. That's Peyton Manning versus brother Oliver, who was a defensive guru at that time. Tennessee scores on play number one, driving down I-59 to that game. Tennessee fans looked up and saw the number nine on every bridge.

You know, Tennessee had a tie game, which was like, you know, kissing your mother in 93 because Tennessee outplayed them and David Palmer had a two game, which was like kissing your mother in 93 because Tennessee outplayed them, and David Palmer had a two-point conversion. And you kind of had this, was Tennessee ever going to beat Alabama? When was it ever going to happen? And that, for Phillip Fulmer, was a major milestone win because at Tennessee, listen, as Doug Dickey once said, you're paid to win three games, Georgia, Alabama, and Florida.

And for longtime Tennessee fans, Andy, it's the Alabama game. And that one solidified Fulmer, who also almost went to Alabama from Winchester. There was a lot of natural ties there, but that slayed the Dragon in 95 and was a major milestone win and kind of, that was a plant the flag win. And I think your question about best games is a really unfair question. I love you.

You're not getting along great, but it's a really unfair question. I know. Is it the greatest game or is it the greatest game because of its impact? And I can find games that were really better games probably, Andy, but they didn't carry an impact because they didn't do anything with it. Think about where Tennessee's program went after the 95 season and what they evolved and became into.

That was the planning of the flag to the national championship in 98. So to me, the 95 Alabama game has to be near the top, if not one of the top games. Well, 98 Florida, like 22 Alabama, that was a really good game. That was a very exciting game back and forth and kind of similar to Alabama and also similar to the other Alabama game we're going to talk about. It was an obstacle that Tennessee just had not been able to overcome. So the Vols beat Florida in 92, which is a first-year divisional play, but Florida ended up winning the East. And then Florida beats Tennessee 93, 94, 95, 96, 97.

The 97 game, Tennessee ends up winning the SEC that year, but Peyton Manning had a bad game in the swamp Tony George had the 89 yard interception return for touchdown so it's 98 Peyton Manning's gone the roster is good but it's not like I feel like everybody thought 99 was going to be the year that that was when everything everybody was going to be at full power and turned out roster's pretty damn good in 98 and Florida comes in and it's back and forth it goes to overtime Collins Cooper misses that field going over I thought so I'm I'm a student reporter at this point I and then obviously I'm a lot of those guys are former teammates at that point and And Collins' locker was like three down from mine my freshman year.

And he misses the kick. And I thought the press box was going to shake off the foundation when he missed that kick. And I remember weaving my way through the fans on the field because I had to go interview people in Florida's locker room. And it was just like, that's as big of a party as I think I've ever seen in my life. Yeah, that one was, and to give context to that team a little bit, I go back to fall camp of 98. And I watched Tennessee scrimmage. This was back when Coach Fulmer had open scrimmages. They had a night scrimmage, like the day before classes started

or two days before classes started. It was kind of the end of camp, big scrimmage like the day before classes started or two days before classes started. It was kind of the end of camp big scrimmage. I watched Tennessee that night. Andy, I'm not sure they made a first down. And so, I mean, you've seen Peyton Manning play for four years, and it's this offense, and it's going all over the place. And you're sitting there and you're watching them going, you know what? They may not – I mean, they may win six know what? They may win six, seven games.

Getting to a bowl game is pretty good. What you didn't realize at that point, when you watched that team scrimmage, you didn't have the sense of how far the defense had come in that offseason. And I've talked to a bunch of former players defensive players who talked about the lesson they learned from playing nebraska in the orange bowl the year before which would have been the 98 orange bowl but it was after the 97 right and they got manhandled i mean the nebraska army andy comes marching out of the tunnel you know and it's like and and i got down there a lot of those guys on that florida team could have told you the same thing about getting a lesson from nebraska that that led to a national title yeah i mean i i got to to miami to cover that

bowl game like on the 26th and i remember vividly asking scott frost you know what did you guys do for christmas because they'd been there a week because they got him out of nebraska he goes oh we had 100 play scrimmage Christmas morning. And I was like, oh, now Tennessee's not ready for this. Tom Osborne's last game. The point being after they got handled in that game, there was a

monumental shift in offseason training, particularly for the defensive guys. And there was a core group of guys who liked Peyton Manning. Al Wilson likes Peyton Manning. Fred White, they all like Peyton. But they were really tired of it being the Peyton Manning show.

And they wanted to prove that they were a good program without Peyton Manning. And they had a chip on their shoulder, and they carried it through the summer. They can't score in fall camp, and you like okay they're not good they go to Syracuse and kick a field goal at the end of regulation to win 34-31 and you're thinking man this team's not very good but then you go back and look and Syracuse has got Donovan McNabb Marvin Harrison Quentin Spock they're pretty good you know and so Florida comes to town you're like can they even find a way to score? And it was hard, but that defense was unbelievable that night. I mean, Deion Grant.

And Peerless Price making a huge catch. Yeah. I mean, it was one of those, I don't want to say destiny things, but it was one of those. I mean, Tennessee gave up 500 yards of offense, but they were terrific in the red zone. They forced, you know, three fumbles. Al Wilson had a three fumble night. hundred yards of offense but but they were terrific in the in the red zone they forced you know three fumbles Al Wilson had a three fumble night Raynott Thompson picked up a fumble

right at the goal line which saved a touchdown they popped the Sean Bryson play I mean that was again a slay the dragon moment right here's here's Steve Spurrier who has mouthed off and mouthed off about Tennessee for Tennessee fans it's he's the villain. You're never going to beat him. And finally, in an improbable way, because it was not the team expected to beat him. The 97 team was. The 96 team, that was a one versus two matchup in Neyland Stadium. And it was 29-0 Florida.

Yeah, I mean, you know. Or 35-0 Florida. Yeah, Florida mean, you know, they've stayed 35-0 Florida. Yeah, Florida converts on 4th and 19 on the first possession. You don't have your popcorn. You're not sitting down, and the game's over. And so this is the unlikely one that happened, but it set the course for Tennessee to go win the championship because they grew as the year went on.

They weren't very good offensively. They got better as the season went along in that defense and how Wilson carried the, carried not, not only that night, but they carried the entire year. Now let's, let's get to the feature game here, which is also a slay the dragon situation because as, as much as Spurrier tortured Tennessee, and it's probably worse because Spurrier was torturing Tennessee when Tennessee was great. But Nick Saban running the most dominant program in college football history and Tennessee having to be an annual rival, the cross-divisional opponent of that Nick Saban team.

When Tennessee is going through some stuff, Brent Hubbs, like the wandering through the wilderness post-Philip Fulmer, at that point, you didn't know when it was going to end. Like, I keep going back to when Jeremy Pruitt got fired and Josh Heupel got hired and everybody poured into the transfer portal. I thought, Oh God, when is Tennessee ever going to be able to come back? Well, this game was the moment Tennessee announced it was back.

It was year two of Josh Hypel, year two of Hendon hookers, starting quarterback and Bryce young defending Heisman trophy winner is leading Alabama. Jameer Gibbs, future first round draft pick. I mean, just that all that teamrophy winner, is leading Alabama. Jameer Gibbs, future first-round draft pick. I mean, just that Alabama team's loaded. And they come into Neyland Stadium, and it was – that was a plant-the-flag moment too, I think.

Oh, there's no question. And it was – again, I think those things – the 95 win at Alabama was, Tennessee was the better team. I mean, and they were dominant in that game, okay? 98, that was, those two teams could have played 10 times, and I'm not sure how many of those Tennessee wins. The 22 Alabama game was improbable just because of how that team was assembled. I mean, Hendon Hooker had done it the year before, was learning this offense. But Jalen Hyatt, you know, what he does.

And Tennessee. Cedric Tillman's hurt. That's the other part that people forget. Absolutely. And it's one of those deals, Andy, where it was a Tennessee – when you walked out of the stadium that night, Tennessee had a brand and an identity back, if that makes sense. Yeah, absolutely.

They had found their brand. They had found their identity. And as a result of that, it changed the course of where Tennessee was and what Tennessee is. And the expectations that are there for Josh Heupel now. I mean, that was the thing. I mean, I looked this up while we were sitting here talking because I wanted to get the stat.

The previous seven trips that Nick Saban had come to Neyland Stadium, Tennessee had been beaten by an average of 29 points by Alabama. Wow. Alabama, they had overtaken Neyland Stadium for seven trips. I mean, they were dominating over Tennessee. And so to slay that dragon, to win that game, you know, put Josh Heupel on the map at Tennessee. Hey, look here, they're real. Obviously it got Jalen Hyatt up the draft board. It put Hendon Hooker in the Heisman race. It gave Tennessee such national relevance because they had went and beaten Nick Saban,

and they had done it in their own brand, in their own style of play. And it was like, okay, for Tennessee fans, they're going to be a problem. I mean, it was going to be a problem. What's interesting to me about the reaction of those two games, and listen, I mean, Tennessee's administration is playing Dixieland Delight after the game right they they hope there you know but in 98 Andy you were you were on that field you were trying to get to the locker room as quick as you could because it was mass chaos like there was people, going everywhere. The euphoria at Alabama and the Alabama win in 22 was almost just more relief.

It was, there were mass amounts of people on the field, but there was not, nobody tore up a fence. Nobody dug up turf. Like they just got on the field and like, we don't have to leave. Do we? Like, can we just sit here and smoke our cigars I mean it was the most there was nothing chaotic about it I mean everybody was jubilant everybody was happy but it was just we can almost like we can breathe now it was a very different feeling in terms of intensity on the field after that game compared to the Florida game and that's that's one thing I don't know why that was the case but that game compared to the Florida game.

And that's one thing. I don't know why that was the case, but that's one thing I'll always remember in comparing the two games. Because I was on the field at the end of Florida. In fact, there's a video of me. I'm just trying to not get bumped. I'm against the wall, and I'm just trying to score. It was terrifying. People are running everywhere.

In Alabama, you're just just like everybody's coming up high-fiving each other and you know and finally like they didn't the police were like all right we've given y'all an hour hour and a half on the field y'all can leave now we gotta quietly get people out but it was just the most i just want to soak it all in type moment um which was really weird because both games ended you know in dramatic fashion right with a kick intensity was very was very different it was very very odd between the two yeah so let's let's set the stage here so in this situation Tennessee goes in the game five and five and oh Alabama six and oh this is tennessee's best start since 2016

remember 2016 they beat florida in knoxville they win the dobnail boot game in athens that the hail mary to beat georgia and athens didn't they have that double over that game is on the list as potential top five single games but it's not a plant the flag moment. The Dobnell. Exactly. They play an incredible double overtime game at Texas A&M. I was at that game as well. That was a crazy game. But it's what happens the week. And this is the difference.

And I think it's interesting that Alabama scored 49 points in both of these games. 2016, Alabama, Tennessee. Tennessee is in control of the SEC East, despite losing Texas A&M. Doesn't even matter, really. They lose 49-10 to Alabama. That game is never close. It's never even in doubt for a second that Alabama's going to win that game.

And that was sort of a, okay, you can maybe be the best team in the SEC East, but this is how far you have to go. And then Tennessee ends up losing to South Carolina, and then they wind up champions of life that season. So it's like that was a, oh, no, we're still not out of this crap yet. 22, it was like, no, this is who we are. We can play with anybody now.

Yeah, and I think that was, and again, I give Josh Heupel credit. I mean, if you spend any time with Josh Heupel, you know the bigger the game, the happier he is. He doesn't like games where he's heavily favored. I mean, he relishes that moment. I think that's the competitor in him as a former quarterback. And the story of that game, if you look in the context of Tennessee with General Neal's maxims, think about it, Andy.

They won all parts of it, right? I mean, they won the kicking game. They were the more physical team when you look at how they ran the football in that game. And the biggest thing about that game in 22 that gave you, if you cover this team or you're a fan of this team, or you're an observer of the SEC, where you said Tennessee might be different, they might be really turning the corner here,

is when something bad happened in that game, they did not flinch. And they had the botched fumble that Alabama picks up and scores on a scoop and score for six. And everybody in the stands, I don't care. You can come up to me anywhere you want to in the state of Tennessee and say, Hubs, you're wrong. I don't believe that. I will not believe you that if you're in the stands that moment, you did not have a thought in your head

about here we go again. Yes. That made it 49-42 Tennessee. It was just a read option and the back thought that Hendon Hooker was going to keep and Hendon Hooker thought the back was going to, I can't remember which, if it was small or who the back was on that play. But they got confused, and the ball just drops. Dallas Turner picks it up and walks in, and it feels like the game's over. Yep. It's like, here you go again, right? I mean, Tennessee's been there.

It was – that's the Mount Cody block field goal moment, right? That's the moment where Tennessee turns it over, or they give up a big play like we've seen them do in games during the Butch Jones era, right? There's the moment. Okay, there it is. And Tennessee can't win the close when they haven't figured out how to win one of these games. Tennessee and Josh Heupel at that moment never flinched.

Offensively, they got the ball back, and they went and they answered immediately. And you said, you know what? Maybe Tennessee is a little different. And then on top of that, at the end of the game, after the missed field goal, they did not play for overtime. They simply said, let's go win now we're going to keep attacking and and look josh heupel had won the florida game they had been they had been a team andy that throws it their big plays everything this was different this was this was hey they've got nick Saban's defensive backfield twisted in knots,

turned in knots. Alabama doesn't have answers for what Tennessee's doing. It was Hendon. I thought Hendon Hooker was great against Florida that year. It's a debate on which one he was better in because he was terrific against Alabama. And to stand in there and make that throw to Brew McCoy to sign it up for the win. Yeah.

The throw to Brew McCoy that sets up the field goal is probably the best play of Hendon Hooker and Brew McCoy's career so far. Hendon Hooker made a play. Now, the moment was different, okay? Yeah. But if you go back three weeks earlier, four weeks earlier, whatever it was, when they played Florida,

Billy Napier had called a timeout to try to get the ball back to extend the lead at the end of the first half, late in the first half. He had Tennessee backed up, had them on a third down, and there was a free blitzer, and Hindenhooker slid to his left and just an immediate reaction and threw it to the tight end for a first down to move the sticks. They go on and score. Tennessee takes momentum into the second half

or in the locker room at half. They win the quote, you know, the middle eight. The middle eight, yeah. That was a great Hendon Hooker play. But in that moment against Alabama, again, you're trying to slay the dragon. You make that, you stand tall in the pocket, you throw the ball hot. You know what I mean? You don't take the sack. You don't get the ball batted down. That was a terrific football play by those two guys. Great box out by Brew McCoy to make the catch. If he holds it a second and a half longer, you don't get the timeout called.

You know, the clock's run out, and you give yourself a chance to win the game. I mean, it's just one of those deals where everybody who's a Tennessee fan is going to remember exactly where they were when that play in the field goal took place. You'll never forget where you were. So let's talk about the game plan itself because this is the only time that offense and i'm not talking about tennessee's offense i'm talking about the the this is the art brows baylor offense this is where it comes from this is the only time any team running that offense which would be all miss right now tennessee right now baylor back in

the day uh oklahoma the last couple of years. No team running that offense had beaten one of the super teams, had been able to beat Nick Saban or Kirby Smart or any of those. This is the first time anybody had been able to do it. And Heupel does it without his best receiver. Cedric Tillman was out. And he really did it by matching up Jalen Hyatt on players who couldn't keep up with Jalen Hyatt and poor DeMarco Helms in this game just got tortured because basically Tennessee would go in motion in such a way that it would leave DeMarco Helms sitting out there 20 yards off the line of scrimmage and then having to deal with Jalen Hyatt coming,

roaring at him with a 20-yard running start, which even the fastest player in the world is going to struggle to cover Jalen Hyatt in that situation, and you've got a safety trying to do it. It was just brutal to watch for an Alabama fan because it didn't feel like there was any answer Alabama had. No, and look, I mean, Jalen Hyde had made a couple of plays, but if you go back three or four weeks earlier, they're playing at Pittsburgh, and it was literally Hendon Hooker and Cedric Tillman playing one-on-one. I mean, I think Tillman had like 13 catches in that game. I mean, that was just, they won in overtime, and it was the only place they were going with the ball in the passing game was Cedric Tillman. And you came out of that going, all right, that's not –

you didn't know Tillman was going to get hurt, but you had – you're like, there's no way they're going to win a bunch of games if that's the only place – the only way they can throw the football. And so Hyatt starts to develop, and he starts to come on. And obviously Tennessee found something. If you go back to 21, Andy, Tennessee's in the football game in Tuscaloosa. And a little side note to that story, if you go back and look at the film of that story, Tennessee played basically one side of the field because they were depleted at tackle.

I guess it was right tackle. They were playing a walk on it, right tackle. And basically they said, you know what, we, we can't go that direction. So we've got to play one hand of the other way. But Tennessee got behind Alabama secondary. Cedric Tillman had a big game and Tennessee was in that game into the third quarter. Defensively, they couldn't get any stops and they couldn't keep matching. You know,

Hendon Hooker was beat up coming into that game and he got beat up even more, but Tennessee, you walked out of there and went, okay, this offense can give Alabama some problems. And he thought, okay, Nick Saban's got an entire off season to figure this out. You know, what, what are they going to come up with and what are they going to do? And the fact of the matter is, Tennessee schematically had a couple

things for them that they weren't anticipating. They weren't expecting. Obviously, Jalen Hyde had a career day when you look at it. The unsung hero in that game was Rommel Keaton. You go back to the last drive, Keaton makes a really nice catch there. He's stepping in for Cedric Tillman. He's got 78 yards receiving in that game. You know, Brew McCoy only had two catches. Now, the last one was the biggest catch of his career

and a catch in lore for Tennessee. But Tennessee runs for 182 yards in that game, averages nearly five yards a rush. That's the part of it that gets lost a little bit and it gets lost in josh heifel's offense handy is that they got to run the football and and alex gola said it to the television crew leading up to that game he told me that week he said my biggest mistake from 21 is i didn't help us out enough because we didn't try to stay. We didn't stay committed to trying to run the football.

He did not get away from running the football in that game. So Alabama had to commit a little extra and they got the safeties twisted up because they were effective enough running the football that you couldn't just play seven on seven, if you will, on the back end. So it's interesting because there's a moment late in the first half where it feels like Tennessee could have put it away, where Hooker misses Rommel Keaton on a deep ball on fourth down. That would have made it 35-17.

Tennessee almost gets a Hail Mary at the end of the first half. That would have been a touchdown also but Jameer Gibbs who was awesome in this game scores to tie it that they get a two point and make it 28 all and then this is where it could have been you know Hyatt scores again. So they're up 34-28. But then Alabama scores. Because McClellan scores. There's a holding call that nullifies it. But then Tennessee gets called for pass interference, and Gibbs scores. So it's 35-34, Bama.

And Hooker throws it right to DeMarco Helms on the next possession. This is where I was thinking, that's it and i'm sure there there were a lot of fans in the stands going okay this is where alabama just mushes us but the d gets a stop and you have the 78 yard catch and run for jalen hyatt where he's just running away from all of alabama's defense and like, okay, track meets on again. Well, I mean, a couple of things. I mean, Jameer Gibbs was very interested in Tennessee. Tennessee didn't think he was an offensive player.

Neither did anybody else in the SEC, by the way, when he came out of high school. But Tennessee wanted him to be a defensive back. That's why he went to Georgia Tech, because nobody in the SEC thought he was an offensive player. They thought he was a defensive guy. Whoops. He's pretty good on offense. If you go back and look at the fourth quarter, I mean, his drop on Alabama's last offensive drive is the one that will haunt Alabama fans, because if he catches that ball there, Tennessee doesn't get a chance at the end. Alabama's going to kick it to win it at the

end of the game and break the 49-49 tie, and Tennessee's offense never gets back on the field. But, you know, that's the course of – I mean, that's football. And you're right. I mean, it was track meet back on. And it was one of those deals where if you're covering that game, if you're calling that game, if you're in the ends of that game, you're just like, if you can just get one stop, because they can't stop us. Alabama can't stop Hendon Hooker.

They can't stop this offense. Just get the ball back, right? Limit them to a field goal. I mean, that's a win if they have to kick a field goal. By the way, the pass interference call against Tennessee was a bad call in that game at that point, too. Well, all right, let's talk about pass interference calls. That one was a bad call.

We cannot talk about this game without talking about the pass interference call that nullified the Kool-Aid McKinstry interception that allowed Tennessee to keep trying to drive for the game-winning field goal or ultimately allowed Tennessee to get the ball. But Alabama actually does get a field goal attempt in there too. But let's talk about that particular play because McKinstry intercepts it. The call's actually on Malachi Moore as he is trying to cover the receiver down the sideline. I don't have a problem with the call. I know every Alabama fan has a problem with the call, but it did really swing things.

Oh, it was a huge call. It's fourth and five. Yeah, it's a fourth down play. It's a fourth down play, and Tennessee's down a touchdown. They've got a score there. They have to go. I mean, you can't kick a field goal because you're not going to have enough time there. You know, I mean, I think there was contact.

I mean, I think that – listen, I mean, if the pass interference call against Tennessee on the ball that was just floated in the air where everybody's trying to play the ball was pass interference, then that call on the McKinstry interception is pass interference all day long. And, you know, Alabama, that was a frustrating deal for Alabama, one, because of the impact of that call. But, two, that was the most penalized Alabama team Nick Saban had. And, I mean, it was pass interference call after they held grabbed in the secondary got called for it all year long

more than they had ever been called for it which was a bone of contention for Nick Saban I mean that that team over 100 yards worth of penalties on in multiple games which was very uncharacteristic for them um that was a pivotal moment I don't think it was a bad call but I get if if you're an Alabama fan do you think it's a bad call oh yeah you do you think it's a disastrous call just like you think the other call against Tennessee for pass interference was a disastrous call so um that's the ebbs and flows of a college football it's what makes college that's what makesbbs and flows of a college football. It's what makes college. It's what makes football great, but in particular college football, great because you know,

it's just a couple of plays here and there that are the difference in the game. And Tennessee made enough at the end, Alabama didn't make enough. And as a result, Tennessee, Tennessee fans feel like they sent Nick Saban into retirement. Now they really didn't, but they think that was the start of sending

him into retirement. They got a chance to beat him in his final game in Neyland Stadium, just like Johnny Majors beat Bear Bryant in Bear Bryant's final game in Neyland Stadium. There's some oozing in the tradition there in that rivalry for sure so we talked about the brew mccoy catch already but but let me let me ask you this if i told you before that game he's gonna come down to a chase mcgrath kick and he's gonna kick a knuckleball what do you think's gonna happen i mean yeah i mean you I mean, you're just, again, you're just sitting there.

You know, here it is. I mean, can they execute it and get it done? Because, again, I know I'm telling old stories, but I go back to the Mount Cody block kick, and I'm in the booth calling the game for the Vol Network, and Jim Chaney's to my right, and there's a bad set of blinds that are about half tore up. And Luke Stocker catches the ball.

And basically Tennessee stops at that point and says, okay, we're going to kick it to win it. And it's like, it's a 45 yard kick. Like we're sitting, I'm going, well, you're not going to run another play. And I'm just kind of shaking my head. And Jim Chaney's like, oh, no, he just looks over at me and kind of gives me, Hey, just the relaxed deal. And I'm like kind of shaking my head and Jim Chaney's like oh no he just looks over at me and kind of gives me hey just the relax deal I'm like no you know Sebastian Genachowski's not kicking

this for Lane Kiffin here this is this is not how it works you need to be closer and obviously the ball the kick had no chance in that game so you fast forward to 22, and there you are. Okay, here's Chase McGrath. He's got his opportunity. You know, can they complete this thing? I mean, they're finally knocking on the door. They've got a real chance. I mean, Butch Jones had Alabama, had the lead against Alabama and Tuscaloosa in the fourth quarter, couldn't get off the field.

Tennessee had been somewhat close a couple of times and couldn't finish it. Could they actually finish it? They botched the protection up front, nearly get it blocked. I thought Nick Saban was going to call a second timeout. I think McGrath thought he was too, because McGrath actually kind of double hitches on his approach. And that was the most beautiful, ugly kick any Tennessee fan has seen in a long, long time because it was ugly.

But the result of it was obviously beautiful and euphoria for everybody in orange. And credit to the CBS production crew, our pal Craig Silver did such great work on those SEC games, and it's going to be weird this year not seeing that CBS broadcast. So you see that it's a great shot from behind Chase McGrath as it knuckles through the uprights, and then they go to the blimp shot of the orange pyro

coming out of Neyland Stadium as the people pour onto the field. It's iconic. Yeah. I mean, listen, if you're in production or you're calling a game as a broadcaster or whatever, you don't know when those moments are going to come when you start the day. But when the moment's there, can you capture it either verbally or visually?

And CBS and Brad Nessler and the production of it, I mean, captured the end of that game beautifully. I mean, it's simple, but it's, and here they come and there's people coming everywhere and it's the orange fireworks. And it's just that they, it was beautiful. I mean, it was, it was terrific production. Anybody that knows anything about video production, you just, you know, tip your cap and say, well done, because when the moment is there, you don't want to butcher the moment or botch the moment or miss the moment. And man, they were spot on and they were spot on visually, which is not the easiest thing to do. Whoever's sitting there as a director, a Craig Silver, no guy going, let's go to the overhead blimp shot in the dark because we just know these fireworks are going to hit just at the right time I mean they just hit the moment perfectly Andy they really did yeah and and I

feel like it was Tennessee hitting the moment perfectly because this was a game Tennessee needed this was a game that the entire fan base needed it had been a long walk through the wilderness at that point and it felt like that was them saying we're back yes because because you could not walk look that we talked about the misplays here questionable call here whatever there there's there's no way and nick saban to his credit didn't nobody walked out going, man, that was the luckiest win ever. That was such a fluke. Listen, we have upsets through the years where they're flukes, right? I mean, Doug Flutie throwing the ball 78 yards, you know,

45 years ago or whatever it is now, that's a fluky play, right? I mean, Hail Marys are just luck, I mean, in a lot of ways. There is nothing fluke about this game when you look at how Tennessee won. They overcame adversity late. They made the plays that they had to make down the stretch. They were physical. They ran the football. Alabama did not push them around. They couldn't bully Tennessee.

And all the notion about the finesse of Josh Heupel and the finesse of what Tennessee was, there was nothing finesse about the win and there was nothing fluky about the win, which is why everybody looks at that game as they plant the flag moment, as they, hey, Tennessee's back, Tennessee's arriving, Josh Heupel's really building something here. This is not the, you know, goofy offense or Mickey Mouse offense or whatever you want to label it as. This is an offense that works, and it works in this league. And if you're going to prove that it works,

you got to go beat the big boys. And they went and beat Alabama that day to prove that, you know what? Put us in the conversation because we're not just a fluky little offense that plays seven on seven while everybody else is playing big boy ball. Cause we can play big boy ball too. Very well said Brent, very well said Brent very well said and I will recommend now Alabama fans don't bother doing this I'm not going to torture you with this but anybody else Tennessee fans obviously probably do this once a month but if you just love love

college football and you miss college football right now that game's on YouTube just watch it you will you will rekindle your joy and your love for college football pretty much immediately. It is just the drama is perfect. The twists and the turns. It starts at a breakneck pace, and it kind of slows down a little bit, and then it just goes into whiplash mode at the end. It is about as fun of a college football game as you'll ever watch again alabama fans i understand if you don't want to watch it everybody else like go ahead and and

you're going to get fired up that college football is coming back and that alabama is going to be playing at neil's stadium again this season and i can't wait to see it brent thank you so much thanks andy appreciate it man Thanks, Andy. Appreciate it, man. Thanks to Brent Hubbs. That game was incredible. That shot of the fireworks going off at Neyland Stadium with the crowd pouring onto the field, you'll never forget that. If you were at the game, you'll never forget where you sat. You'll never forget where you wound up.

If you wound up carrying the goalposts out of the stadium, you'll never forget it. But what a Saturday that was. Let's go to a different Saturday, a season earlier. Michigan had been losing to Ohio State over and over and over again. For once, Michigan wasn't coming off a season where it had lost to Ohio State, but only because they hadn't played Ohio State in that 2020 season that was shortened by COVID. Things were very dark for Jim Harbaugh in Michigan. Things were looking up for Ryan Day in Ohio State. When Ohio State came into the big house

on a snowy day in November, and Michigan turned the whole thing around. Here's Chris Ballas from the Wolverine talking about that day. We are joined now by Chris Ballas of the Wolverine. We continue our My Favorite Games series, and he has picked a doozy. The 2021 Ohio State-Michigan game game and I know what you're probably saying wait why not 2023 when Sharon Moore was coaching Michigan Chris I'm gonna let you have the floor here yeah to help set the scene for this one because I I agree with you I think this is the

perfect choice for a Michigan person to pick this game so So let's, let's go back. And what was it about this game that, that made you decide this is, this is my favorite. Yeah. Well, you knew it was going to be an Ohio state game, right? If it's Michigan, it couldn't be. And there've been some classic games with Notre Dame over the years. You had the three overtime game with Michigan state in 2004, everybody calls the Braylon Edwards game. And, you know, I'm a little older, so I could even go back and probably remember some of the 80s and late 70s games. But, you know, this one really changed the course of the rivalry, kind of like the 1969 game did when, okay, Bo Schembecker comes in and he says, Ohio State, this is going to be, now this is our focus, right? Anything else that happens,

it all matters, but it doesn't matter if you don't beat Ohio State. And he kind of set that expectation. And Jim Harbaugh, you know, in 2020, after that lousy season and after 2019, he says, we're going to beat Ohio State or we're going to die trying, right? And I think Ohio State fans would say, yeah, you know, then you got counterstallions going out to games and so on and so forth. And that's how you did it. But I don't think that's the case at all. And I think most people around college football wouldn't say that. But this is the one. Right. It'd been 17 years since they'd won a Big Ten title, which is unbelievable. Right. And going back to 2004 and that one was shared and they just could not get over that Ohio State hump.

And they had to do it one year, Andy, and to get to could not get over that Ohio State hump. They had to do it one year, Andy, to get themselves to believe that they could again and to make this a rivalry again. That's what made this game so important. At this point, Ohio State has won eight straight. They've won 15 of 16. Do Michigan people even count 2011? Because that was the year that Luke Fickle was the interim at Ohio State. Trestle had been run off because of the NCAA stuff,

and then Meyer was about to come in. It feels like, for a Michigan fan, it probably just felt like that entire time was a losing streak, right? Yeah, it did, and, you know, you had to win. And I'll tell you what, they could have lost that game too. There was a wide open at the end of that game where a cornerback was the coverage, and Ohio State could have pulled that one out. But, you know, with Brady Hope, though, you kind of thought the way he took the rivalry, too, and you thought, OK, a good start.

But then Urban Meyer comes in, you know, your expectations are tempered. You know, you know, this guy's going to win and it's going to be tough for them to win. And they came close, but they could never get over the hump. So it did. It felt like 15 years in the wilderness there when, you know, this has been a weird rivalry. You know, Michigan owned it when John Cooper was there, you know, 10-2-1. And then you've got the other side. It wasn't like the 70s and wasn't like the 80s. Like everybody thinks, oh, this is a back and forth rivalry. It's one team owns it. And then another team owns it for the last 20 years and Ohio State happened to own it. So yeah, it was nice to win that one. And you hoped that it would set the table for more success down the road it just didn't happen so let's go back to 2019 so at this

point you know 2018 was the one where michigan came in favored and then ohio state blew them out but this is 2019 so this is ohio state has come into michigan stadium This is Ryan Day's first year, and they have blown out Michigan. It has been an embarrassment. And Jim Harbaugh gets asked a question after the game that I think a lot of Michigan fans were asking at the time. Jim, is this a talent gap? Is it a preparation gap? Is it a coaching gap? What is the biggest difference between you and Ohio State at this point? I mean, I'll answer your questions, not your insults.

That wasn't an anxiety. We gave them all 118 points in two years. They played really good. They played good. That's why I'm asking, what's the biggest difference in the gap between you guys? They played better today. On the right, Austin. You can just go. On the right, Austin. You can just go ahead and ask it, Austin. Yeah, Jim, I guess just to follow up on that,

moving forward, what are the areas where you feel like your program needs to progress to be able to close that gap? We'll regroup and come back and play our next game. Regroup and retool. Get our guys back better for our next ballgame.

He has no answers. No. There are no answers. And so then you have the 2020 season, which is a disaster. The Ohio State game gets canceled mercifully probably for michigan because that would have been ugly then jim harbaugh's salary is cut by word manual like everything was going wrong it actually looked like they might fire him instead they cut his pay and he does the bet on myself thing but as you mentioned earlier beat ohio state or die trying

which he says at big 10 media days in 2021 while they got a retooled coaching staff things have changed like we laughed at him nationally when he said that yeah but he had been doing the things like he didn't answer he couldn't answer those questions then in 2019. Yep. He found the answers between 2020 and 2021, it seems like. Yeah. And part of that is he got back to his roots, Stapes, right? And they brought in the speed and space crap, you know,

and they had the defense with Don Brown that wasn't great in a lot of games, but Ohio State had them figured it out, figured out, you know, and for all the talk about sign stealing and stuff, we, they were very confident that Ohio State knew what they were running. Nothing nefarious, right? They didn't, it's not like they were, you know, okay, they had somebody in the stands and they were stealing signs. They were predictable. They were predictable, right. And somebody told us that all they had to do was put the tight end in motion and they knew what Michigan was going to be doing, whether it was, you know, Pat Zoner

or Mann, and it was usually Mann and who they could pick on. And they did. And it demoralized the defense, but I think Jim Harbaugh got back to his roots and he said, okay, I can win the way that I want at Stanford. And I'm going to get back to playing smash, smash mouth football. We're going to put the speed and space stuff away. We're going to get in there and we're going to blow them out on the offensive line. We're going to get after them defensively and not be so aggressive because when you're aggressive, as you know, that aggressive against Ohio State is a recipe for disaster. So you get Mike McDonald in there and you get Jesse Minter in there and guys that really run that Raven system and confuse quarterbacks instead of giving them free reign to go out there

and shoot ducks, so to speak. So I think that was really a big part of the difference. And then what he would say and what we've been talking about for years, guys like Aiden Hutchinson and that senior class said enough is enough. Right. I'm not going out this way. This is an embarrassment. My dad played here. It's time for us to change this thing. So let's set the scene. It's Ann Arbor Thanksgiving weekend, 2021. There's a light snow falling as the game starts. It's kind of just flurries, but it's the perfect. The HD picture on Fox is amazing, and I'm sure it was even better in person.

Gus Johnson starts the game out as Ohio State is kicking off to Michigan by pointing out that Ohio State has won eight straight and 15 of 16. Michigan gets that opening kickoff. Three third and one or third and two conversions on the first drive leading to the hitting end around for a touchdown. And you're like, OK, this is the tone Michigan wants to set. Right. And we'd seen that before, you know, in a game a couple, you know, a couple years ago and earlier, and you're thinking, okay, but then the dam breaks, right? And the defense gives it up, but they came on and it was really even, we were talking

in the press box about the approach and what we saw in the field during warmups. And you could just tell that these Michigan kids were ready to play, right? They came out smoking. They were just really fired up. And there was just an energy in the air where you thought, i predicted them to lose i'll be honest and i think most of us did but there was just something different that where you felt okay these guys are ready to end this and and put this misery behind them so but yeah that first drive really kind of set the tone and you could see you could sense the barking from the guys up front the offensive line which had been dominant on the

ground andy to that point throughout the year right right? If you go back to the Washington game earlier in the year, I mean, they were the Joe Moore Award winners for a reason, but you were just wondering, could they do it against a defense like Ohio State? And they did. They went right down the field. The A.J. Henning touchdown was a beautiful play call, you know, one that they've kept in their back pocket all year. And you're thinking, okay, if you can hold them, if you can hold them to three or keep them off the board here, you know, on their first drive, then we're going to really,

really, really might have a chance here. And that first drive. So they, they muff a fair catch. Yeah. Ohio state has a starter on its own for, uh,

good. They go three and out and they got a punt and Michigan's incredible field position. Cause Henning has a, has a great punt return there. And then McNamara uh makes a really good throw early in that drive but then I can imagine just the feeling in in Michigan Stadium when Bryson Shaw picks off Cade McNamara right in front of the goal line and say it's like oh no here because because then then Ohio State's offense starts to march and it's like uh-oh yeah missed opportunity right and that was has been really

the theme of the close games in this rivalry and there were several of them in 15 years Josh Metellus safety Michigan's up I think 14 to nothing against Ohio State and I think it was 2017 if he if he makes a pick at the goal line, you know what? They probably win that game or have a darn good chance of doing it, even shorthanded. But that was the one where you're like, okay. But let's go back to that first drive, though. There was a snap where they fumbled it in that three and out Ohio State series.

And you're thinking, okay, they look flustered. And that's not something that we were used to seeing from them. You know, it was louder than I've heard it in years. So then you're thinking, man, if McNamara, if they score there, Andy, then it's really going to be looking. It was over if they scored there. Exactly. Terrible pass, but you know what?

It is what it is. And you're wondering how he's going to respond, Cade McNamara. And, you know, people don't give him enough credit, I think, for the way he responded in that game, too, and what he did for that team. Well, and let's remember on the other side, C.J. Stroud is Ohio State's quarterback. Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave are the two leading receivers. There's a young Marvin Harrison Jr. on the team, but he is not one of the major targets yet. But you're going to see a lot of Chris Olave and a lot of Garrett Wilson in this game, a lot of Jackson Spadigba, who was also a first-rounder.

He was probably their best receiver in this game. And so they start out, they're throwing the ball to him, they're finally moving the ball down the field. But in what becomes a theme of this game, big third-down sacks. So Aiden Hutchinson sacks C.J. Stroud on third down in the red zone, and Ohio State has to settle for a field goal. That was a huge play. I think that was one of the biggest plays of this game.

Yeah, they could not block him. And it was interesting. We had his dad on a podcast who was an All-American at Michigan, and I said, you know, any time did you think they were going to maybe help over there and adjust? He goes, oh, no, no, no. The big boys, you know what? They got these egos.

You know, we can take them. We can handle them. They couldn't, Stapes. And that was one of the differences in the game. I kept waiting for them to adjust and maybe try to neutralize Hutchinson a little bit. They did not. And it came back to bite them time and time again. The problem, though, is that Jabo is so good on the other side.

It really was a little pick your poison at that point. If you did help on Hutch, you, you were probably dealing with a one-on-one with the job. Oh, and you're probably going to lose some of those too. So that that's something that I think, you know, cause Hutchinson gets all the pie and Hutchinson has become the better NFL player. Cause the job, I remember he got hurt going into the pre-draft situation. So we, we really haven't gotten a chance to see as much of him in the nfl but that was an incredible pass rushing tandem that you couldn't do much with so you know but i think that you know that holding a field goal was big because ohio state comes back again and scores the you know jsn is is catching the ball and catching those short ends and running. And this was a beautiful – the touchdown drive for Ohio State

ends with a beautiful throw and an incredible catch by Garrett Wilson along the sideline and falling into the end zone. The coverage was perfect. There was nothing you could do about it. And that's one of those that I'm sure Michigan fans because Ohio State is taking the lead at this point and you're going okay this is the problem with playing Ohio State because sometimes they have players that are so great that you can do everything right and it doesn't matter right and they had some drop passes there was one in the end zone that they had that's uncharacteristic you know and I think

someone playing the snow but but they threw for 396 yards in that game that's what people don't remember you know you made a great point uh for Michigan it was about keeping them out of the end zone right they were going to get their yard they were going to get some points but you had to keep them out of the end zone and you had to shorten the game a little bit and with the running game which is exactly what they did but some of those throws and catches even late in that game right when they'd get down by two scores, you know what, boom, you're getting 35 yards on one pass. Boom, you're scoring in one minute.

And you never felt comfortable, right, until the end of that game because that offense was so explosive. And, of course, we knew what Stroud could do. And now it's interesting because I like to compare the 2021 and 2022 games because they kind of unfold in a similar way, but not exactly like the 2022 game was a lot of JJ McCarthy and Cornelius Johnson keeping Michigan in it until Michigan could find his it's run game. This one,

the run game is working, but you're so scared of what CJ Stroud is going to do to you on the other side is you never feel comfortable. So Michigan punches one in before the half it's 14, 13. Then they come out in the second half. The first possession of the second half is a three play 81 yard drive with two massive Blake Corum runs to kick it off.

And then a Haskins touchdown to cap it. But this is a, this is where Blake Corum makes his presence known in this rivalry. Yeah, and really, he wasn't 100% either. He had the big run, and you could see him hobbling there. Otherwise, he probably doesn't get caught. But I can't stress enough how big it was for them to take the lead at the half, right? Because that's when you got the sense that, okay, they went into that tunnel and all hell broke loose, man. They were going after each other. There were a lot of middle fingers. These guys were yelling, they were screaming, they had to be separated.

And you thought, okay, these guys are like, all right, we're not backing down here. We are not intimidated by you anymore, right? We've got the lead here. And then you come out and you punch that one in and you're thinking they got a real shot to win this game and especially if they're going to be able to run the ball like they did now i think i i don't think i'm being you know i don't think i'm over say overstating it here when i say that the next drive for michigan when they had the ball is one of the most important drives in Michigan football history. Because of all that was going on. So let's break everything down. So basically, well, before that, to get the ball back, you had another Aiden Hutchinson third down sack of CJ Stroud.

That gets them the ball back. So this next drive, J.J. McCarthy gets snuck in there at quarterback to make a throw to Roman Wilson that I'm not sure Cade McNamara could have made. And I remember watching that game at home and thinking, huh, that's a different look. Yeah, and Gus got fooled, right? And he said McCarthy to Wilson, and I'm like, that wasn't, you know, I was at the game, you know, but we were kind of watching.

They said McNamara to Wilson, and he's like, wait, and then Joel Klatt's like, no, no, no, no, no, that's not McNamara. I'm throwing that bullet, but you got a sense here, you know, and then Cade comes back out, and Cade made some nice deep throws in that game too. He had one to Cornelius Johnson. He had another one on the flea flicker to Mike Sainer still, who was playing. Well, and that's on this drive.

So they give to Haskins. He pitches back and the throw to Sainer still, who he'll switch positions in the offseason and make one of the biggest plays ever in the next Ohio State-Michigan game. But that was a pretty big one. So they bring McCarthy back in after that play and McCarthy runs it down the left sideline he gets to about the Ohio State too it's not what happens with McCarthy on that play it's what happens away from the play yes and then what happens next that I think is one of the most important moments in the history of

this series so you've got you've got McCarthy getting tackled over of the most important moments in the history of this series so you've got you've got McCarthy getting tackled over on the left sideline in the middle of the end zone you've got a little fracas with Cameron Brown and Roman Wilson and Roman Wilson's helmet gets ripped off then you see the entire Michigan offensive line come after Cameron Brown. It was a, we are protecting our guy. This is who we are. This is our culture now. Jerome Moore, by the way, has been moved to offensive line coach from tight ends coach.

All the things that you saw in 2023 that led to the national championship, the seeds were right there if you were watching for them in 2021 it was a complete culture change from some of the teams that Harbaugh had with these some of the NFL prima donnas I'm not going to name them but guys were just there and they couldn't wait to get out right and uh but the really cool thing about that was those linemen come over there they get in his face but they don't cross the line right the 15 yard flag he did exactly exactly because if somebody ripped Wilson's helmet off and he and he tossed it to midfield and that's what got the offensive lineman over there but they kept their cool you know in the past maybe you have uh offsetting 15 yarders or something and that or

maybe an extra 15 yard penalty didn't happen but you could tell that these guys were playing for each other that this was different and that's I think the moment that we all felt that, okay, Michigan's got a really good chance to win this football game. Yeah. And so that, that play is, you know, they're on the two, it's half the distance to the goal. It's a one yard penalty essentially, but you could not have a more massive play. That's more symbolic. And also in the game at the time, in the flow of the game, that is a big message to be sent to the Ohio state sideline. Cause as you pointed out, the Michigan guys did not get penalized,

but look at, let's be real. If you're Cameron Brown and five, 300 pound dudes come at you. Yeah. Are you, you're not going to swing on one. Like they don't need to do anything else.

They just need to be there and be imposing, which they were. Yeah, they were the enforcers. And, you know, there was a little bit of mingling. But you didn't see the whole Ohio State bench come over or anything like that, you know. And you just got the sense that, okay, we're protecting our guy, right? And that's where these guys are. And they epitomized the turnaround of the culture. Really, they'll be remembered forever for that.

You know, the Trevor Keegans and the Zinters and the Barnharts and those guys. And, man, what an unbelievable scene that was. And, again, that's when we knew, all in the press box, we all said the same thing. Okay, Michigan's going to win this football game. Except C.J. Stroud on the next drive converts a third and 19 and a fourth and four with the Jackson Smith and Jigba. Ohio State scores on a Travion Henderson run and all of a sudden it's 28-20 and it's like, oh, come on. It's still not over. I imagine when those plays got converted everybody in the stadium just sort of sucks in their breath is like oh boy yeah no no question about it I know people who

were there friends of mine who left and were like underneath the you know they couldn't stand to watch you know the heart you know was racing and they were so nervous because okay this is we know this is our moment but is it going to be taken from us again type of thing? So that was really, okay, how do you respond to that? And a lot of people were saying, keep it on the ground. And I go back to the 1996 game, right? At some point, and every offensive lineman I've ever talked to at Michigan has said, we want the ball up by a touchdown or up by three points with a chance to run the game out at the end of the game, keep running behind us and let's do this thing.

They didn't have to throw a pass, Andy, and that was what was so brilliant about that. And they were so dominant up front. And Hassan Haskins, probably one of the more underrated backs to ever play for Michigan, will never be forgotten. But some of the runs he had, right, with the footwork and the broken tackles were unbelievable. That was his drive. That was his moment. And then, of course, he had this signature leap down there at the end of one of those runs.

They let him score. But by then, you know, it was over. But that was really when they solidified their Joe Moore award winning, you know. I mean, that drive really summed up that team extremely well. Nine-play 66-yard drive took four minutes and 51 seconds. Every play is a run. Like every path or every yardage gaining play is a run. Some by Haskins, some by McNamara.

They did throw it on third and two, which was kind of going against type. But they draw a pass interference penalty on Denzel Burke on Roman Wilson that actually, you know, moves Ohio state into the red zone. So that was, I'm sorry, it moves Michigan to the red zone, but that, that was an incredible drive. And as you mentioned, you know, so they score Ohio state answers and then Michigan just does it again with a drive that is all Haskins runs yeah nothing but now you're like as you said they let him score at the end but he had gotten him like he had essentially ended the game already yeah five touchdowns right and I mean that that really cements your legacy right as a Buckeye killer right we can point to

we can go back to Haskins and guys like that. We talked about Corum and his runs, but that was Hassan Haskins' game. And again, just to brutalize them up front like they did, the final rushing total was what, 362 or something like that? And just unbelievable what they were able to accomplish against a solid defensive line. You know, we'd seen it against opponents where you're like, yeah, they should be doing that. And we expect that, but against Ohio state in that game you know, there's a reason that the team that wins the running battle in this game

usually wins the game. And but they, they flat out dominated. So, and you're still, even at that point, you know, a couple of minutes left and you're thinking, let's just get off the field here and let's end this thing because we've seen it before, man, you know, weird things happen, and not this time. And then, we start coming up a bit harder. Got another third down sack, but this time, it was from Ojabo, that it set up, you know, pretty desperation, fourth down, terrible down in distance at that point, and Ohio State couldn't convert, and that was the end of the game.

By that point, the snow was't convert and that was the end of the game by that point the snow is pouring down by the way yeah like it was it was exactly what you'd want as a like as a viewer who had no rooting interest in the game like that's what I want to see at the Ohio State Michigan game I want it just pouring snow yeah and but I imagine for the Michigan fans there the catharsis was just incredible and you look up and all the flakes are falling down. Like it had to be pretty amazing. It was unreal. And then he fled the field. Right.

And, you know, sometimes it's not warranted this time. It absolutely was. And the party wasn't ending. And again, when we did that podcast with Chris Hutchinson and he said, my son's over there crying, you know, and he's looking to the sky, he said he got teary remembering that. And, you know, he had's looking to the sky. He said he got teary remembering that. And, you know, he had his family down there with him. He had the players behind them and the fans behind him when they were interviewing him. And then I've got to tell you, it was almost, you know, an inch an hour

after that. It was like it just waited for the end of the game and walking back to the car. I'll never forget. I went back and the lights were still on on the stadium and you could see the snow coming down. And I'm thinking it doesn't it'll never get any better than this. I get, I get chills thinking about it when I was walking back to my car and then the lights go off in Michigan stadium. And it's, I think Bob, you for Michigan's old announcer, that's all there is. There isn't any more, you know, and it was just fantastic. What a, what a day. But there was more because they go to Columbus and do it again the following year and then take another step by winning the big 10 by, you know,

you getting now they lost in the playoff to TCU, but that TCU loss convinces everybody to come back. And in 2023, they do it again, except Jim Harbaugh suspended for the Ohio State game and Sharon Moore. It's the coach. And then they go and win the national title. It is amazing how things turned right there that day.

Yeah. And they had to validate the 21 win with the 22 win in Columbus, right? And they did that. And then, you know, everybody's talking about the sign stealing, but Ohio State, you know, the coaches admitted, yeah, we knew that there was something up. We changed our signs before the 2022 game. But then Ryan Day goes all in in 2023.

I could have easily picked that game too, Andy, as one, because that's the one that you really had to validate that, okay, this had nothing to do with cheating. This had nothing to do with anything but us kicking your ass up and down the field for a third straight year. And the way they did that one as well, unbelievable. You know, Rod Moore, you can't, that's a script. You know, the Buckeye killer, a kid from Ohio that didn't get the Ohio State offer, making the interception at the end of the game. Ryan Day walking with his head down, having put everything into that, saying, hey, we knew, saying on local television, we knew, you know what, there are some crazy things, weird things going on the last two years.

No excuses this time, Andy. No snow, no sign stealing crap. Just a win on the way to the national championship. What a year. And now they're in the same position probably. Like if they were to come back and win the game in the rivalry this year. And I talk about, you know, to an Ohio State person about how it's their favorite game. I would probably start with a clip from Ryan Day's press conference.

After the 2023 game, we're like Harbaugh in 2019. He has no answers. There are no answers and you just got to find them. And that's why I think the 2021 game is so important because that's when it showed that Harbaugh had found the answers. Finally. Yeah. You know, 0-6 or 0-5 to that point, you know, and would have been 0-6, right, if they'd played.

Yeah, if they'd played. Yeah. But that was it. And you know what? He got back to his roots, like I said, and proved that you don't have to be a track meet on grass or whatever. You can win with good, hard-nosed Big Ten football. You can win a national championship.

It doesn't hurt to have a great defense too, though, Andy. I was going to say, it doesn't hurt to have elite edge rushers come screaming off and sack that opposing quarterback who, turns out, he's pretty good too. C.J. Stroud is a common theme in these shows come screaming off and sack that opposing quarterback who turns out he's pretty good too. C.J. Stroud is a common theme in these shows because he was very tough to beat. Stroud and Michael Collins now down there is fantastic. You know, it's kind of fun listening. I don't think either one of those guys beat the other one when they were at

their school. So there's no crap to be taught, you know? Exactly. Exactly. Well, Chris, this has been so much fun. one when they were at their school so there's no crap for me to hot you know exactly exactly well chris this has been so much fun i hope everybody else enjoyed it as much as i did if you get a chance go back and watch the full version of that game the condensed version of that game it is fascinating knowing what we know now to watch that 2021 game because it really, if you watched closely as Michigan moved to the national title through 2023, all of the seeds were planted there in 2021. That was it.

That was the one, and that's the way I picked it, brother. Thanks, Chris. You bet. Have a great one. Thank you to Chris Ballas. What a game that was, and it also kind of told the future for what was going to happen in that rivalry for the next few years we'll see if ohio state can turn it around this year and who knows maybe if they do this will be some ohio state fans favorite game down the

road that's the beauty of the 2024 season. Nothing's happened yet. Nobody's played any actual games. We don't know which one might be our favorite by the end of the season, but it's fun to imagine what could come next. And it's fun to go back to some of these great games. We're going to do it again on Friday. We talk to Jake Rowe of Dogs HQ about the Georgia Ohio State Peach Bowl. And then we talk to Spencer Holbrook of Letterman Rowe about the Alabama Ohio State Sugar Bowl after the 2014 season.

Two incredible games. I cannot wait to relive with you. We'll talk to you soon.