New Ohio State safety Caleb Downs has not donned a scarlet and grey uniform yet, but he does share a painful experience with returning members of the Buckeye roster: losing to Michigan.
Downs’ fantastic freshman season at Alabama ended with a loss to the Wolverines in the College Football Playoff at the Rose Bowl. Michigan went on to defeat Washington to win the national championship.
Asked Tuesday morning about the fervent Ohio State-Michigan rivalry, Downs drew on his personal clash with the Maize and Blue.
“I think I understand it more. I definitely can’t understand it from an Ohio State perspective, because I haven’t played in it, I haven’t been through that. So I can’t really speak on how they feel, but I’m definitely hungry to beat Michigan myself,” Downs said.
“I’m definitely hungry to beat Michigan”
Caleb Downs is new to the Ohio State vs Michigan rivalry but still is familiar with the Wolverines.
Downs played against Michigan in the Rose Bowl. pic.twitter.com/10dCfV85jj
— Adam King (@AdamKing10TV) January 30, 2024
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Michigan, of course, has beaten Ohio State three straight years, earning a trio of Big Ten championships and College Football Playoff appearances in the process.
Jim Harbaugh is gone, but his replacement Sherrone Moore has already beaten Ryan Day once as an interim head coach. The pressure on Day heading into the 2024 season is immense, perhaps unlike anything we’ve seen in the college game in recent years.