After a weekend highlighted by the annual thumping of Purdue, a hysterical Bielema loss on the road to a (soon to be) Big Ten team, and Badger fans triumphantly tweeting "#karma" to Mrs. Razorback, Gary Andersen and co. now start preparing for the most anticipated game of the year. The Badgers travel to Columbus on Saturday for a matchup with No. 4 Ohio State.
And that can only mean one things for us Badger fans, it's Ohio State Hate Week.
There's no denying this rivalry has turned in to one of the Big Ten's greatest grudge matches over the past decade. The modern-era of this rivalry was born on a play Badger fans like to call "MATT SCHABERT TO LEE EVANS", when Wisconsin ruined Ohio State's perfect season bid ten years ago.
These two programs have dominated the Big Ten recently, combining to win the past 8 conference championships. The two schools both have continued success on the field, passionate fanbases, as well as a similar color scheme; but that's just about where the comparison ends.
I believe that Wisconsin Football holds its student-athletes as well as itself as a program to a higher standard then Urban Meyer and his Ohio State program does.
Wisconsin had 25 players named as Academic All-Big Ten honorees last season. Ohio State? 12 (the lowest of any Big Ten school). Speaking of academics, who could forget what OSU's backup QB tweeted during last year's fall semester?
Yes, these are the kinds of players Ohio State recruits, and sadly enough, wins with.
Speaking of wins, how about the 12 wins Ohio State recorded in the 2010 season that no longer exist because of the infamous "Tattoo Scandal"?
If you don't remember correctly, "O$U" lost one game (and a chance at a national championship) that season. A 31-18 loss at the hands of JJ Watt and the Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium (thanks to our contributor Arman Belding for the chilling video).
Although the NCAA came down hard on Ohio State in 2011 and punished them with "harsh consequences" for the failures of their program, you could argue that the 2010 Badger team issued OSU the ultimate punishment with the beatdown that prevailed that October night.
I won't sit here and say that Wisconsin runs a 100% clean program, because in today's NCAA that's just about impossible to do. But as a Badger fan, I'm just thankful we have people like Barry Alvarez and Gary Andersen running our program with integrity while continuing the tradition of success Wisconsin football has maintained over the years.
Even as back-to-back-to-back reigning Big Ten champions, Wisconsin goes in to Columbus on Saturday as underdogs. But as OSU head coach Urban Meyer said, Wisconsin is the "king of the Big Ten right now", and you'd better believe Ohio State is going to have to play a hell of a game if they want to take that title from us on Saturday night.
Perhaps Braxton Miller will sell the memorabilia to "pay some bills," it's not as if a Heisman Trophy front-running QB from Ohio State hasn't done that in the past, right?
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