There is a hot take going around sports circles that Michigan and Michigan State may not play every year in the new, realigned Big Ten.

With USC and UCLA joining the conference in 2024, each Big Ten team was asked to submit three games that they would like to protect as “rivals.” Apparently Michigan submitted Ohio State, Minnesota (Little Brown Jug) and…UCLA? Huh?

The story is that Michigan is still upset about the tunnel incident after last season’s game in Ann Arbor and wants the rivalry to cool off a bit. Michigan may also see value in a trip every other year to L.A. for recruiting purposes much like the annual Notre Dame vs. USC match-up.

For the record, I am not buying this rumor and think if it is true, the Big Ten would nix the request as the Michigan vs. Sparty rivalry is much too important to the Big Ten than an annual clash between Michigan and UCLA.

There is one thing Michigan and Sparty are always in agreement. This game must happen every year with no exceptions.