There is one day that defines the next year to come and justifies everything that went into making that day possible.
Today is That Day.
Today is The Game.
There are 31 seniors on this Ohio State team that are looking to right a wrong. Many of them put the NFL on pause for one more year. One last opportunity to beat Michigan.
They put the rest of their lives on hold because this is not how they want the rest of their lives to go. There are Gold Pants to be won. There are legacies to be left. There is a natural order of things to be restored.
There isn’t a single player on this year’s Buckeye football team that has experienced a win over the Wolverines. Three times they have tried, and three times they have walked off the field with the kind of pain that cuts so deep, even the blood needs a moment to process what just happened.
What used to be a given has since been taken.
But now Michigan comes into Ohio Stadium for just the second time since 2018. And this is no longer about opportunities lost. This is about opportunities gained.
Today is That Day.
Today is The Game.
This is what the work is for. This is why it hurts so much. This is what you have asked for. This is all you have ever wanted, without even knowing how much you needed it.
This is your next breath. Your next chance at a lasting memory.
All it takes is everything you’ve got, everything you’ve given, and everything you didn’t even know you had.
It’s a year of preparation for just a few hours of time, but the victory lasts forever.
The pain goes away. It is replaced by the kind of electricity that you can float upon. It erases the past, at least for a while.
A win in The Game creates the kind of joy that every person should get to experience at least once in their lives, but not without paying some kind of price.
Everybody in this rivalry has paid their tolls.
And some have sold their souls.
The legacy is coming either way. History can only write what it sees. It may hold the pen, but the players dictate the words.
This is the story as it will be told forever. This will be how many are remembered. What a moment to be given. To be taken. To be etched into the walls of time.
There is nothing quite like finality.
There is nothing quite like this rivalry.
So here we are. The reason for the tightness in the chest. The vibrations in the veins. The nerves shooting back and forth like instant messengers telling you what you already know.
Today is That Day.
Today is The Game.
The weight of this rivalry has its own gravity. We all have our different orbits, but we never stray too far from its pull.
The responsibility of being part of this rivalry shouldn’t be taken lightly. It is not for everyone. But for those who accept it, there is nothing else like it. There can’t be anything else like it. The body and mind can only handle so much.
But whoever can handle the most will be rewarded with it as well.
Today is the day for which we have all been waiting.
It is Ohio State versus Michigan.
History is on hand.
And its pen is ready.
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