Starting at noon Saturday, wins won’t be the only thing on the line. This weekend, pride will be at stake in college football.

In Ann Arbor, Mich., the faces of rabid fans will be painted blue and maize. In Columbus, Ohio, the Ohio State faithful will pack their coolers en route to Michigan Stadium. Oregon State will head to Eugene, Ore.,and the Jordan-Hare Stadium will host Alabama and Auburn in a gridiron battle that is 110 years old.

That’s right, it’s rivalry week in the world of college football.

More than 20 teams will match up with their perennial rivals, and the victors will hold bragging rights for at least one more year.

Games include ‘The Battle for the Oaken Bucket’ between Indiana and Purdue, ‘The Battle for the Land Grant Trophy’ between Michigan State and Penn State, and Illinois and Northwestern engage in ‘The Battle for the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk.’

But the most impressive match-up will be in Ann Arbor, where No. 4 Ohio State will meet No. 5 Michigan.

This will be the 100th anniversary of the first game between these two teams. In addition, the game holds national championship implications.

While the match-up brings out passion in fans, the game also holds special meaning for seniors like Ohio State quarterback Craig Krenzel and Michigan quarterback John Navarre.

‘This is why kids come to Ohio State and why they go to Michigan,’ Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel said. ‘It’s to play in games like this.

‘We as coaches, we look at the game we’re playing as the biggest game ever, so there’s no doubt about it, this is the biggest game ever.’

‘I can tell you it’s exciting,’ Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr said. ‘There’s nothing quite like the colors, the noise, the bands, the crowds, looking into the eyes of your players and knowing that the team across the field wants to win as much as you do. There’s nothing quite like it.’

The passion of the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry stays with players long after they graduate. Before the two squads hit the field Saturday, alumni of both teams will gather for an intense eight-on-eight flag-football game. Former Michigan running back Jamie Morris calls it ‘the big game before the big game.’

‘Its going to be a lot of fun in the beginning, but as we get toward the end, the intensity is going to pick up,’ Morris said jokingly about the alumni game. ‘There’ll be a lot of trainers out on the field icing hamstrings down and different things like that.’

One would expect the two bitter rivals to play for something tangible, at least. But no, it’s only pride.

The Buckeyes and Wolverines don’t play for a coveted trophy like many other schools do when facing their rivals.

Notre Dame, for example, plays in five different rivalry games, each characterized by five distinct trophies. You’d probably need Irish roots to understand the names of some of Notre Dame’s most prized trophies. USC and Purdue play Notre Dame for both the Jeweled Shillelagh and the Shillelagh Trophy, respectively. A shillelagh – in case you were wondering – is a large club made of oak, blackthorn or other hardwood.

The Orangemen will be fighting for their own prize this Saturday against West Virginia, a prize most casual fans don’t even know about. For 11 years, each team has competed for the Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy.

‘Unlike the Oaken Bucket or other Big Ten games that have been around for 60 or 70 years, the Schwartzwalder Trophy has only been around for 11,’ said Jake Crouthamel, Syracuse director of athletics. ‘Even though football began in the East, Eastern schools just don’t have those types of traditions.’

The trophy is named after Floyd ‘Ben’ Schwartzwalder, who coached the Orangemen during their national championship run in 1959. Schwartzwalder was also a letterman for the Mountaineers from 1931-1933 and was a decorated paratrooper during World War II.

The Orangemen first played the Mountaineers in 1945, and the contest became a yearly event 10 years later. Syracuse has played West Virginia for the Schwartzwalder Trophy since 1993.

‘(The trophy) represents one of West Virginia’s greatest players,’ Crouthamel said, ‘and one of our greatest coaches.’

Last year, West Virginia won back the trophy after it had been in SU’s possession since 1999. Similarly, the Buckeyes have won the past two games against the Wolverines.

‘You don’t want to lose any games to rivals,’ Michigan defensive lineman Grant Bowman said. ‘When you come to school, you mark on the calendar all those games that are rivalries, and you say that you never want to lose them.’

Said Carr: ‘With so many memorable games that had so much impact on the history of college football, any time you have the opportunity to participate in this kind of rivalry, it’s very special. It’s something that means a great deal to every guy that participates in it.

‘I can tell you its exciting, and there’s nothing quite like it.’

NO. 25 WEST VIRGINIA (-2.5) AT SYRACUSE

Schwartzwalder Trophy

Noon, ESPN2

What we know: West Virginia (6-4, 4-1 Big East) is 2-2 on the road this season and it travels to the Dome to face Syracuse, which has something to prove after nearly upsetting Miami. Look for the Orangemen (5-4, 2-3) to make the Big East more confusing than it already is with so many possible conference winners and come out of Saturday’s game with a big win. Crowd noise will be a factor, and the Schwartzwalder Trophy will be in the SU Football Hall of Fame once again.

PICK: SYRACUSE 24, WEST VIRGINIA 20

NO. 4 OHIO STATE (+7) AT NO. 5 MICHIGAN

Noon, ABC

Michigan (9-2, 6-1 Big Ten) is going to win, but its not going to beat the spread. Lloyd Carr has too much pride in his team to lose three in a row to the Buckeyes (10-1, 6-1), especially when the game is at Michigan Stadium. Navarre and the Wolverines are going to make Ohio State wish it still had Maurice Clarett.

PICK: MICHIGAN 22, OHIO STATE 20

NO. 3 LSU (-7) AT NO. 15 MISSISSIPPI

3:30 p.m., CBS

Though Mississippi (8-2, 6-0 SEC) has a better conference record than LSU, the Tigers (9-1, 5-1) will prove they are the best team in the SEC West. The Rebels got lucky last week after Ben Obomanu of Auburn dropped what would be a game-winning catch in the end zone. They won’t be so lucky this week. Look for LSU to embarrass Ole Miss at home.

PICK: LSU 35, MISSISSIPPI 10

PENN STATE (+5) AT MICHIGAN STATE

BATTLE FOR THE LAND GRANT TROPHY

Noon, ESPN

Penn State head coach Joe Paterno must be upset with his Nittany Lions (3-8, 1-6 Big Ten) after they lost six out their last seven games. Their only win came against Indiana in a 52-7 blowout. Penn State will have some confidence coming into Michigan State, but the Spartans (7-4, 4-3) will be too much for the Nittany Lions. In rivalry games, home field advantage is huge. Michigan State has just that, not to mention a better team.

PICK: MICHIGAN STATE 27, PENN STATE 17

OREGON STATE (-3.5) AT OREGON

CIVIL WAR

3:30 p.m., No TV

Both teams are coming off two-game winning streaks. Oregon State (7-3, 4-2 Pacific 10) made quick work of both Arizona and Stanford, while Oregon (7-4, 5-2) beat UCLA and California. The Ducks are finishing their season the way they started it, with wins. They won’t let the favorite Oregon State spoil their winning ways. Oregon is a decent team despite losing three midseason contests. Plus, it’s very likely that Oregon State will be too distracted by the Ducks’ ugly highlighter yellow uniforms to play to its full potential.

PICK: OREGON 21, OREGON STATE 14

Published on November 19, 2003 at 12:00 pm