How the Michigan-Ohio State football rivalry is bleeding into the 2024 election

As the 2024 presidential campaign heats up, the contest between the Trump-Vance ticket and the Harris-Walz ticket is putting a spotlight on another famous face-off.

The Wolverines-Buckeyes rivalry — aka the annual University of Michigan vs. Ohio State University college football clash — is popping up in speeches and earning mentions in political coverage.

So why is an intense college football grudge match getting so much attention in connection with the race for the White House?

Well, it’s a tough topic to avoid, given that GOP vice presidential nominee JD Vance is a native Ohioan and alum of Ohio State (not to mention the junior U.S. senator from Ohio).

At July’s GOP convention, Vance was greeted onstage early on by chants of “O-H-I-O,' which eventually prompted him to say, “We have to chill out with the Ohio love. We have to win Michigan, too, here."

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Later in his speech, Vance brought up the rivalry himself. “I left the Marines after four years and went to The Ohio State University," he noted, adding, “I am sorry, Michigan, I had to get that in there.” When that prompted a chant of “Let’s go, Blue!” from conventioneers, Vance replied: “Come on, come on. We have had enough political violence."

But that wasn't the conclusion of the partisan pigskin talk. Next came a response to the Ohio shout-outs from "The Daily Show” correspondent Jordan Klepper, a Michigan native and Kalamazoo College graduate. “If you’re wondering why the Ohio chant is ‘O-H-I-O,’ it’s because it’s the only word people from Ohio can spell. Go Blue, you hillbilly (expletive)," he said in solidarity with his sister state school.

OK, that’s just comedy, you may be thinking. But the mentions continue. Consider how U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, who won Tuesday’s primary to become the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate from Michigan, wrapped up her remarks at Wednesday’s Detroit Metropolitan Airport rally for the Democratic ticket of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

“No red-blooded Michigander is ever going to let a Buckeye get into the damned White House,” said Slotkin to cheers from the crowd.

As New York Times reporter Jonathan Weisman explained in the paper’s live coverage of the event, “To you non-college football fans, the University of Michigan Wolverines are archrivals with the Ohio State University Buckeyes.”

While it certainly is correct that Michigan and Ohio have long been rivals, the football acrimony between U-M and Ohio State is the most visible element of the long-running feud.

It’s also a rite that University of Michigan Law School professor Barbara McQuade cited during her guest appearance Wednesday on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show."

While discussing her book “Attack from Within: How Disinformation Is Sabotaging America,” McQuade explained the concept of tribe over truth, which means prioritizing support for a certain candidate or party above weighing actual facts. "It's almost like, you know, Michigan vs. Ohio State. We care about being loyal to the team," said McQuade.

To which her interviewer, "Daily Show" correspondent and Ann Arbor native Michael Kosta quipped, "Well, one of those teams is legit," before clarifying, "What I just said is is a joke, but then I realized I probably perpetuated this thing you’re talking about.”

The last time the U-M vs. Ohio State rivalry was relevant to a presidential election was in 1976, when former U-M football star Gerald Ford was trying to stay in the Oval Office by defeating Jimmy Carter.

As the University of Michigan's student newspaper, the Michigan Daily, recounted in a 2023 article, "The rivalry, and the trappings of it, were never far from President Ford’s mind — in both social and political contexts."

One of the first calls Ford made after becoming president in 1974 after Richard Nixon's resignation was to Ohio State football coach Woody Hayes, who, according to the Daily, revealed to the Ann Arbor News, "“I told him, ‘I’m going to support you the same way I supported President Nixon. You’re my President. And that’s hard for me to say to a man from Michigan.”

Voters will be casting their ballots this year for the next president before they know whether the Wolverines or Buckeyes are victorious in this year's football matchup. The 2024 presidential election will take place Nov. 5. The U-M vs. Ohio State football game is scheduled for Nov. 30.

Contact Detroit Free Press pop culture critic Julie Hinds at jhinds@freepress.com.