Again....until we adapt the same mentality we’ll always lose....
They’re doing something different and it’s working.
Andy Anders • BuckeyeGrove.com
@UniotoTank55
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Many successful coaches say a key to long-term program success is establishing a winning culture.
To achieve long-term success against Michigan (7-0), coach Urban Meyer built a culture respecting the rivalry. Offseason workouts dedicated to the Wolverines. Banning the word "Michigan" in the locker room. Crossing out Ms all over the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.
Culture is something recruits are integrated into from day one, in most successful programs. Ohio State's new arrivals are already indoctrinated with a belief that "The Game" means more.
"I definitely knew it was a big rivalry but coming here and actually seeing all the Ms crossed out, it’s definitely way bigger than I thought it would be," freshman quarterback Justin Fields said. "So, I’ll definitely be excited about that upcoming game."
Fields is from Georgia. He didn't grow up around the rivalry. Within a month of arriving at Ohio State, he gets it.
That's by the design of new head coach Ryan Day. After two years coaching for Meyer with the Buckeyes, Day learned the importance of the Thanksgiving weekend contest and carried on the tradition of making it a priority within the team.
It's among the first things Day mentioned when speaking as the University's head football coach for the first time in December 2018.
Coaches can talk up a winning culture or adept focus on one team. It's shown through the players.
Clearly, the players gave Fields a crash course too.
"That’s kind of private," Fields said when asked what teammates told him about the rivalry. "Just know there’s a lot of hate for The Team Up North."
Various methods are utilized to obtain new recruit buy-in with the culture of beating Michigan. Incoming freshman Running back Marcus Crowley named one such activity as his "welcome to college" moment.
"We do a Team Up North workout every week -- that caught me off guard my first time," Crowley said.
Strength coach Mickey Marotti is sure to design those workouts to instill a disdain for the Wolverines.
"We’ll be in the weight room before everything and then however many days it is until we play The Team Up North, we’ve got to do that many abs," Crowley said. "a straight ab workout and push-ups. It’s definitely a grind."
Crowley and Fields both already refer to Michigan as "The Team Up North", a long-standing Ohio State tradition that two out-of-state recruits already grasp. Incoming freshman defensive ends Zach Harrison and Noah Potter did the same when answering questions that required the nomenclature.
Potter, a lifelong Buckeye fan that grew up in Ohio, received some initial shock after seeing how deeply The Game is entrenched in the program.
"Today during mat drills, they were playing the TUN fight song," he said. "It was like, ‘dang, they really take it seriously.' I have always been a Buckeye fan my whole life, so I know what it is, but they take it a whole stop here."
Making The Game a cornerstone of the program yielded Meyer a 7-0 record against the team and an 83-9 overall record in Columbus, Ohio.
Coach Greg Mattison, recently acquired from the Wolverines, is noticeably impressed with the culture, hinting at a mental edge that Ohio State may have had in recent years.
"[Mattison] questioned why they take the rivalry so seriously and that’s why we’ve been so successful," Potter said. "We base our entire program around the game."
They’re doing something different and it’s working.
Andy Anders • BuckeyeGrove.com
@UniotoTank55
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Many successful coaches say a key to long-term program success is establishing a winning culture.
To achieve long-term success against Michigan (7-0), coach Urban Meyer built a culture respecting the rivalry. Offseason workouts dedicated to the Wolverines. Banning the word "Michigan" in the locker room. Crossing out Ms all over the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.
Culture is something recruits are integrated into from day one, in most successful programs. Ohio State's new arrivals are already indoctrinated with a belief that "The Game" means more.
"I definitely knew it was a big rivalry but coming here and actually seeing all the Ms crossed out, it’s definitely way bigger than I thought it would be," freshman quarterback Justin Fields said. "So, I’ll definitely be excited about that upcoming game."
Fields is from Georgia. He didn't grow up around the rivalry. Within a month of arriving at Ohio State, he gets it.
That's by the design of new head coach Ryan Day. After two years coaching for Meyer with the Buckeyes, Day learned the importance of the Thanksgiving weekend contest and carried on the tradition of making it a priority within the team.
It's among the first things Day mentioned when speaking as the University's head football coach for the first time in December 2018.
Coaches can talk up a winning culture or adept focus on one team. It's shown through the players.
Clearly, the players gave Fields a crash course too.
"That’s kind of private," Fields said when asked what teammates told him about the rivalry. "Just know there’s a lot of hate for The Team Up North."
Various methods are utilized to obtain new recruit buy-in with the culture of beating Michigan. Incoming freshman Running back Marcus Crowley named one such activity as his "welcome to college" moment.
"We do a Team Up North workout every week -- that caught me off guard my first time," Crowley said.
Strength coach Mickey Marotti is sure to design those workouts to instill a disdain for the Wolverines.
"We’ll be in the weight room before everything and then however many days it is until we play The Team Up North, we’ve got to do that many abs," Crowley said. "a straight ab workout and push-ups. It’s definitely a grind."
Crowley and Fields both already refer to Michigan as "The Team Up North", a long-standing Ohio State tradition that two out-of-state recruits already grasp. Incoming freshman defensive ends Zach Harrison and Noah Potter did the same when answering questions that required the nomenclature.
Potter, a lifelong Buckeye fan that grew up in Ohio, received some initial shock after seeing how deeply The Game is entrenched in the program.
"Today during mat drills, they were playing the TUN fight song," he said. "It was like, ‘dang, they really take it seriously.' I have always been a Buckeye fan my whole life, so I know what it is, but they take it a whole stop here."
Making The Game a cornerstone of the program yielded Meyer a 7-0 record against the team and an 83-9 overall record in Columbus, Ohio.
Coach Greg Mattison, recently acquired from the Wolverines, is noticeably impressed with the culture, hinting at a mental edge that Ohio State may have had in recent years.
"[Mattison] questioned why they take the rivalry so seriously and that’s why we’ve been so successful," Potter said. "We base our entire program around the game."
