This afternoon just blocks away, the hated University of Michigan Wolverines are playing against the hated Michigan State University Spartans. I do not exaggerate:
On Saturday afternoon (3:30 p.m., ESPN), with a stiff chill in the air, “the hate” is about to start flowing through more than 100,000 people inside Michigan Stadium, and thousands of others who have invaded Ann Arbor for what very well could be the biggest installment of the Michigan-Michigan State rivalry ever.
This isn’t a rivalry built on respect, or fueled by mutual admiration. It’s driven by one thing.
Hate.
Truer words were never spoken. I’ve lived in this town for over seven years, and I have never seen a nastier or more bitter football rivalry anywhere. That’s because it involves more than football, which mainly provides an excuse for what is a culture war. The problem stems from the fact that MSU students typically are not quite academically good enough to get into UM, and it leads to a lifetime resentment of the latter’s perceived triumphalism. But with football as a proxy, MSU gets a chance every year to show up their “betters” and it is very, very ugly. For many years, MSU has had the better team, and one of the reasons is precisely because they are not as picky academically (either to get in or stay in), so they have a wider recruiting base. This year, though, things might be different under UM’s new coach Jim Harbaugh.
(For anyone who is interested in the long background behind the hatred, here’s a long, one-sided explanation of why MSU so bitterly hates and should hate UM. The article is derided by commenters here as grounded in MSU’s inferiority complex.)
I wish they didn’t have this rivalry, as I think it’s bad for the state. It’s not as if there isn’t a longstanding traditional rivalry; there is, and it is Michigan versus Ohio State — a legendary rivalry arising with roots in an actual war between the two states. But when the Ohio State fans come to town, for the most part they behave as gentlemen. The MSU is more than a football rivalry, as it is personal.
So I’m staying at home to keep a eye out for MSU vandals. They have rampaged on this street before.
You’d almost think this was about politics.
MORE: Drudge linked a story about a fan suffering a heart attack after MSU’s surprise last-minute victory over Michigan. There were also street battles and fires, along with death threats against the Michigan punter who fumbled the ball in the last seconds of the game.
Whether is like politics or not, it certainly seems to be more than a game.
Comments
13 responses to “Local hatefest”
But for inter-collegiate athletic competition, there would be no majors in “eligibility”. And that would be a shame. Just ask any (seven figures salary) college coach.
The University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M in College Station have long had a rivalry in sports and other matters. For example we have Aggie Jokes.
Sixty years ago Texas A&M may have been considered an academic poor sister compared to UT. But today there is not a lot of difference between the two schools.
The A&M-IT rivalry is not so much a competition between different social classes, as you seem to state about UM and MSU, but a sibling rivalry. It is not uncommon in Texas families to have one sibling go to UT and the other to A&M.
The ribbing between the two schools is basically good-natured fun.
my alma matte asu lost to utah. when I was younger I saw these adds on tv to get a good job get a good education as asu football and party school(still is!) my political science teacher morris startsky was fired for leading anti-vietnam war demonstrations before I could attended any of his classes. in philosophy class the kids were practicing their tennis back hand while I was arguing with the professor over who was the bette philosopher. he was ok but not in my league. my good job I got was driving a garbage truck that was mechanically challenged.
Apparently, God is a Spartan fan.
Just wonderful. It’s the Greens vs the Blues, while Rome burns. Where’s Belisarius when you need him?
Do the plebes ever wake up?
Bob, hahaha!
MMM, wouldn’t you rather have them fighting each other than uniting against their oppressors?
I agree about the MSU/UM rivalry not being to the benefit of the state of Michigan. I’m an Ohio State grad & moved to South Carolina a few years back. The Clemson/Carolina rivalry can be healthy, but the antipathy extends into areas that have little to do with football. Even transplants are more or less “forced” to pick a side. Indifference on the matter is sometimes treated worse than rooting for the “wrong” team.
I enjoyed “hating” U of M the week of the game, but the behavior of the drunks on game day was often times embarrassing at best.
I played football as an undergrad (D3 school) & went to OSU for grad school. Being part of the football team was probably the best thing I did at school in terms of preparation for life (it might sound corny, but one can really learn life lessons in team sports). But big time D-I football as become rather than a means to an end, an end unto itself. that perspective is unhealthy.
While not strictly a college rivalry joke, I had a co-worker from Waco emit the following:
“Did you hear about the Okie that flunked out of Texas A&M? He went home and raised the average IQ of two states.”
I rather gathered that Oklahomans were as popular in Texas as California Transplants are Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.
some years ago carl sagan was at ohio state university to give a speech and was trapped in an elevator during a power outage with three other people. when they were gotten out of the elevator professor sagan was asked by newsmen what he did for 2 hours. he said we talked. when asked what he talked about . he said well I didn’t know the others so I asked them their iq’s the first person said 130 so we talked about the cosmos. the second said 105 so we talked about current events. the third was really hard he said 90 and said he was retarded. he was their handing out flyers to vote republican. I thought now what can I talk to this ignorant moron that he will understand. I turned to him and said “how about them buckeyes!”
c andrew
“Did you hear about the Okie that flunked out of Texas A&M? He went home and raised the average IQ of two states.”
I rather gathered that Oklahomans were as popular in Texas as California Transplants are Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.
Not so strong. For one thing, Okie transplants to TX have pretty much the same politics as Texans, so their coming to TX doesn’t disrupt local politics, as the California influx has in the mountain states. Or like the influx of Noo Yawkuz has changed politics in Vermont.
The UT-OU rivalry is going strong, and there are a lot of jokes from both sides around the time of the Red River Shootout in October. But like UT-TA&M, it is to a large degree a sibling rivalry. OU recruits many of its players from the state of TX.
There is a lot of movement back and forth between the two states. My grandparents were born in TX but bought a farm in Oklahoma. My Okie uncle worked in TX for 15 years. Granted, my uncle showed where his loyalties were by never getting a TX driver’s license nor TX registration for his car.
On football, recall that legendary UT coach Darrell Royal was an Okie and OU graduate. For a while I worked for a UT graduate whose father, a TX native, played football for Bud Wilkinson at OU.
There is a lot of banter between the two states, but there is also a lot of population movement between the two states. And a lot in common. Barbecue, okra, and black eyed peas are common food items in both states. Country music- both states. TX western swing legend Bob Wills operated out of Tulsa for a number of years.
I would venture to say that in TX, Californians would generate more negative opinions than Okies would. Self-righteous prog arrogance will do it every time.
a holocaust denigher a bottle deposit crook and a demagogue walk in to a bar. the bar tender say hello mr netanyahu we still don’t redeem israili government bottle deposits here!
Hate is something I never really understood. Anger, yes. But targeted to the individual(s), not to a whole group (see captain’s above for an example of group hate.)
You attack me, I’ll do my best to kill you (and my best is pretty damned good). But I won’t hate you. I’ll pity you. Because you never had a chance to learn about anything but hate.
kathy when did benjamin netanyahu become a group? beside you all hate obama and hillary.