Does Michigan football really have a mental edge over Ohio State?

It has been described as a mental pretzel - the state of flummox Michigan football currently has over Ohio State.

The Wolverines have been underdogs in three of the teams' past four meetings, including by 23½ points last season.

Still, despite two of the four games being played in Ohio State and the Buckeyes coming into every matchup as one of the top two teams in the country, Michigan has won all four, flipping what was a rivalry dominated by OSU into one suddenly controlled by the Wolverines.

OSU has always had equal or more talent on the field. Still, the Wolverines prevail.

Is there something else at play? A mental edge?

"None of that really matters," coach Sherrone Moore said at his weekly press conference Monday, Nov. 24, in Ann Arbor. "What people think, what people say, doesn't matter. And what matters is how we compare, how we get rid of this game mentally, and that's it.

"I don't know what the mental edge piece [is], I just know that we're going to just go prepare to win the game."

In many ways, it would seem the Wolverines can have an 'if it ain't broke don't fix it' mentality for this showdown. Everything they've done in recent years, even in a year where there passing game amassed just 62 yards and had two interceptions on the road, has been enough to literally and figuratively plant their flag.

However, those inside the program don't see it that way. According to quarterback Bryce Underwood, the training and focus all year has been to "peak at the right time" which it seems U-M has done after its most resounding win of Big Ten play, 45-20, over Maryland last week.

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The Wolverines know it will take their best effort of the season to top No. 1 Ohio State and as much as they'd like it to play a factor, they don't see how games have gone in other years as a factor in the next installment of this classic rivalry.

"We don't really think about it that way," said senior tight end Marlin Klein. "I think we just worry about us and what we have to do in our mental space that's really just being the best version of ourselves each and every single day."

Nobody who wears an Ohio State jersey has ever defeated Michigan as a member of the Buckeyes. If U-M was to extend its winning streak to five games, it would be unmatched in modern history. The last time the Wolverines have defeated OSU five times in a row? That was a six-game streak before the great depression - from 1922-28.

There was a run more recently, from 1988-93, where OSU went six years in a row without a victory, but that included a tie, 13-13, in the 1992 season. Another win would allow the senior class to exit Ann Arbor with immeasurable pride.

It's unclear, publicly, if Ohio State believes or doesn't believe U-M has picked up a mental edge in recent years - OSU coach Ryan Day hadn't had his weekly press conference (held on Tuesdays) when the Wolverines gave their perspective. Either way, Moore's message to the team Monday morning had nothing to do with that. Players told media members it was simple: "this week it's about us - it's about Michigan."

Are the past wins fun for fans? You bet. For rivalry fodder? Absolutely. But between the white lines, does it matter? As much as it may seem so to outsiders, those who wear the pads see it differently.

"We're not really worried about the last couple years at all," said fifth-year senior and captain Gio El-Hadi. "It's a whole new game, whole new team, whole new year every day. Just keep ramping up a little bit, just a little bit until game time. Then, you let it all out."

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Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Does Michigan football really have the mental edge over Ohio State?