CHICAGO
– The question was about recruiting, but Brady Hoke's answer summed up his vision — and that of a lot of Wolverine detractors — for Michigan football.
"This might sound arrogant, and if it is, it is," Hoke said. "We're Michigan."
So if nothing else, that old Michigan attitude is back. Hoke's aggressive confidence was on display at Big Ten Media Day, where the coach sought to restore his team's reputation first by restoring its ... well, arrogance.
"I love it. Coach wants us to feel proud of our school, the way he does," said Wolverines quarterback Denard Robinson. "He talks about that a lot. He reminds us that we've got something that other teams want."
Not as much lately, though. Michigan is 6-18 in conference games the past three seasons, 1-5 in its last six bowl appearances, and has lost seven consecutive meetings to archrival Ohio State. Still, while much of the discussion at the media day was about embarrassing scandal and Nebraska's arrival, Hoke was busy reminding the conference that its greatest national relevance came during the lopsided days of "Big Two, Little Eight."
These days, those "Big Two" are reeling into a new era, one in which Wisconsin and Nebraska are the preseason favorites and Ohio State faces NCAA sanctions after an infraction committee hearing next month. This will be the first fall since 1929, in fact, that both Ohio State and Michigan will have first-year coaches on the sideline.
"If that starts, hopefully, a long rivalry as some of the [coaches] in the past have had, that's what it's all about," said Luke Fickell, who replaced Jim Tressell as coach of the Buckeyes for at least this season after his mentor resigned in disgrace over NCAA violations. "That [game is] something that will never be overlooked at Ohio State."
