Rivalries make or break a season, that’s a given especially in a sport like college football. When one team has enjoyed the advantage in a rivalry for a generation, a sudden shift in power will bring about plenty of questions.

The Ohio State-Michigan rivalry is currently in a position where the balance of power can swing dramatically in a way that it hasn’t for more than 20 years. The Wolverines will enter Saturday with a chance to win a third straight game over the Buckeyes, something that hasn’t happened since 1995-97. For Buckeye fans who have grown up and become accustomed to Ohio State winning “The Game” regularly, this is unfamiliar, and unwelcome, territory. Many factors can be brought up as to what went wrong in 2021, as were likely mentioned in 2003 & 2011. For Michigan to win in Ohio Stadium last year, in a game where the Buckeyes were limited to just a field goal in the second half, that brings the question of whether Michigan has truly taken control of the rivalry.

While it may be unfair, the results do bring up questions about the efficacy of Ryan Day as Ohio State’s head coach. In his fifth full season, Day has won 56 out of 62 games. The only time he didn’t record at least 11 wins in a season was 2020, when the Buckeyes only played eight games in total because that season was shortened by COVID-19.

But Day’s record against the Buckeyes’ most hated rival is 1-2. While OSU beat the Wolverines comfortably in 2019, they did so with most players recruited by Urban Meyer. After COVID canceled the 2020 meeting, the Wolverines won each of the last two contests, topping 40 points while keeping Ohio State under 30.

If Michigan wins a third straight edition of “The Game” on Saturday, does Day become viewed through the same lens as John Cooper? From an overall view, Cooper has a stellar record, and that is reflected with his induction to the College Football and Rose Bowl Halls of Fame. But to this day, many associate three numbers with Cooper: 2-10-1, his record against the Maize and Blue. The harsh words directed at Cooper during his tenure have faded, in part because of the passage of time, and in part because of Ohio State’s dominance in the rivalry since 2001. But Cooper’s record against Michigan remains a sore point among Buckeye fans.

Another point worth discussing is whether success in “The Game” will have the impact it once did, with the landscape continuing to change in college football. For multiple generations, it was the Ohio State-Michigan winner who went to the Rose Bowl, whereas the loser stayed home. Starting next year, with the College Football Playoff expanding to 12 teams, it’s safe to say there will be some years where the result of the rivalry game is irrelevant in terms of whether either or both teams make the playoff. But it’s a big mistake to say that the result doesn’t matter to either fan base.

That’s exactly why Ryan Day will coach a game on Saturday that may potentially define his legacy. Will he keep the string of success going that was enjoyed by Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer? Or will he be like John Cooper, a good coach who just couldn’t find a way to win the game Buckeye fans want to win more than any other? Day has an opportunity to write a positive chapter in his tenure, but if the Buckeyes are unable to win Saturday, it will be another long winter in Columbus.