Ohio State won the national championship last season and currently finds itself undefeated, No. 1 in the country, and potentially primed to repeat as champs.
Pretty much any other fanbase would be feeling copasetic right now. But not Buckeyes fans.
That’s because their team has lost four consecutive games to the hated Michigan Wolverines. That also means Ryan Day has yet to beat That Team Up North as a head coach.
Much has been made of Ohio State fans’ deep-seated desire to inflict defeat on Michigan as much as possible, just as they did for the eight seasons before this current losing streak. And despite winning a national title last year, the loss to UM weeks earlier left a bitter taste in many Buckeyes fans’ mouths. While some college football folks find a certain charm in their obstinacy on the issue, one person who has never liked it is Nick Saban.
The legendary college coach had no time for OSU fans’ “negative bull****” last year and recommended they get therapy. Earlier this year, he said Ohio State fans need to get over their “psychological disposition” with Michigan.
Saban was back on the Buckeyes fans’ case on Wednesday, saying that everyone in Columbus needs to “go see the doctor” to fix their mindset.
“These Ohio State fans are psychotic about this. They all need to go see a doctor. … I’d rather win the National Championship than beat Michigan.”
Nick Saban doesn’t understand Ohio State fans’ obsession with beating Michigan 😭
(🎥 @PatMcAfeeShow) pic.twitter.com/bwZPFhtUqs
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 26, 2025
“These Ohio State fans, they’re psychotic about this, man,” Saban said on The Pat McAfee Show. “They all need to go see the doctor someplace. I’d rather win the national championship than beat Michigan. That’s just me. Although, I’d love to beat Michigan, don’t get me wrong.”
It’s worth noting that Saban is no outsider. He spent two seasons as an Ohio State assistant coach under Woody Hayes, and remembers what it meant to beat the hated Wolverines.
“When I was at Ohio State, in the last year, we beat them,” Saban said. “Similar situation except in reverse. They were ranked really high, we had already lost two games. We had a terrible, negative week of practice. But Woody (Hayes) came and talked to the team and said, ‘This is an opportunity for a great win.’ That was the difference in the mindset of how we played. They played tight, we played loose, and we played ass over tea kettle and won the game 14-9.”
There’s probably some good advice in there from Saban, but the truth is that some OSU fans probably won’t be pleased unless their Buckeyes beat Michigan and also win the national title this season. Good luck with all that, Ryan Day.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.