Finally, a game of the century

It is more than a game between Big Ten neighbors who are anything but friendly rivals. As usual, something more than just a "W" is on the line.

For Ohio State, the nation's fourth-ranked team and the defending national champion, a win in the Big House this afternoon could all but secure a spot in the BCS championship game. The Buckeyes are 10-1 but there have been near-misses and missteps, and they have won in such unconvincing fashion that some call them the Luckeyes.

Most of that will end, of course, with a win over the No. 5 Wolverines (9-2). A win will give the Buckeyes a Rose Bowl berth at the very least. Whether they stay ahead of Southern Cal in the BCS rankings will be the key question.

But those are future concerns. Today the focus at Michigan Stadium will be on the task at hand.

"When Ohio State plays Michigan, the Big Ten title is always on the line," said Ohio State quarterback Craig Krenzel, and he wasn't exaggerating much. Between them, the schools have won 69 Big Ten titles.

For years, it was not just Ohio State vs. Michigan, it was the Buckeyes' Woody Hayes vs. Michigan's Bo Schembechler. The stories of both men's intensity is the stuff of legend. As an example, people like to cite Hayes's answer when he was asked why he went for a 2-point conversion against the Wolverines in a game the Buckeyes had clearly won. "Because I can't go for 3," he said.

Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, who is 2-0 against the Wolverines, tried to put things in perspective.

"Not that us winning or them winning makes it any bigger than it already is," said Tressel. "Ohio State-Michigan is the biggest game."

Ohio State is looking to build a three-game winning streak against the Wolverines for the first time since it won four straight from 1960-63.

Though Ohio State is ranked higher and has fewer losses, the Wolverines are favored, largely because of the Buckeyes' escape-artist routine most of this season.

A win for coach Lloyd Carr's team will give the Wolverines the Big Ten title and put them in the Rose Bowl, but a spot in the national championship game in the Sugar Bowl does not seem likely now. It would take a USC loss in the next two weeks, plus losses by Texas and LSU.

But, again, that is not the issue today. It's Michigan week. It's Ohio State week.

"It's the biggest event in the world," said Michigan running back Chris Perry.

In this part of the Midwest, it is. But on Rivalry Saturday, there are other issues to be settled around the country. In Mississippi, Ole Miss and quarterback Eli Manning, playing his last game in Oxford, will try to keep a championship-season dream alive by beating archrival LSU. The third-ranked Tigers must get past the Rebels, then win the SEC title game for a shot at the Sugar Bowl.

In California, USC will try to maintain its position at No. 3 in the BCS rankings by beating UCLA, while hoping that Washington State can pummel Washington enough to give the Trojans some additional strength-of-schedule points that could help them catch Ohio State. What will help USC more than anything, of course, is a Michigan win.

Even No. 1 Oklahoma must be careful that it does not take high-scoring Texas Tech too lightly this week.

The same will be true regarding its opponent in the Big 12 title game, probably Kansas State.

It is all linked together in one giant grid that has created intrigue as another college football season winds down.