Michigan vs. Ohio State: Captains Josaiah Stewart, Max Bredeson weigh in on showdown
The Michigan Wolverines‘ cluster of captains face a legacy-defining game on Saturday as three-score underdogs at Ohio State. For several, it will be the first trip down to one of the most hostile environments in college football.
Senior captain Josaiah Stewart will make his first trip to Columbus on Saturday, but he once wore read as a high schooler. For him, the dynamic is now flipped.
“We wore red in high school, so, and funny, our old rivalry was, they were blue, so now it’s flipped,” Stewart said on Tuesday night. “So now I’m wearing blue. They were in red in high school. But yeah, that’s kind of last time I wore red in high school.”
Stewart and Michigan are well aware of the magnitude of this game, and you can throw the records out when playing in it. The only objective for them is to finish on the strongest possible note.
“We know this was not the season we obviously imagined, but finishing strong is always important for us,” he said. “And creating memories is probably the most important thing. Like this is something we’ll never forget. And we can look back on this season thinking, ‘Hey, we won all of our trophy games and then we finish strong and all together as a team.’ And that’s what we’re looking forward to.”
Ohio State fans typically band together to create a snake pit of an environment, and Stewart has been briefed by fellow captain Max Bredeson on what to expect.
“Bredesen told me it’s just like the perfect setup for a rivalry game,” he said. “I’ve never been, but just the way he described how it’s set up pre-game and warm-up, it’s just perfect for each other and just the way we come off the bus and hat they’re wearing versus what we’re wearing and things of that nature.
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“I heard it’s loud over there. I mean, I heard it’s going to be aild trip. I can’t wait.”
Bredeson has never lost to Ohio State, and has helped craft the mentality that Michigan hopes can lead to an upset on Saturday.
“Was able to talk to some of the guys and like they understand what it means,” Bredeson said. “It’s like why you come here. This is a big game. It’s instilled in you from the day you show up here with what you’re doing to beat Ohio State today. Ohio Drill, everything about it. But as soon as you feel this week, feel the presence of this week… as soon as the bus shows up in Columbus, they’ll know what it feels like and they’ll be ready.”
So what gives Michigan the confidence it can upend its rivals’ season once again? It comes down to the fact that they have stuck together all season long, going back to camp.
“Just the tight group, the connection we have the battle we went through in camp, the battles in the spring, just all of our team bonding activities, I mean, we all love each other very much and we’re down in that field for each other,” Stewart said.
Saturday’s game between Michigan and Ohio State kicks off just after noon on FOX.
