‘That’s Your Job to Hate Them’ — Urban Meyer Issues No-Nonsense Take on Kyle Whittingham, Bryce Underwood Downplaying Ohio State Rivalry

Former coach Urban Meyer understands Kyle Whittingham’s point. He just thinks Michigan’s new head coach is approaching the Ohio State rivalry with a little too much common sense.

After Whittingham rejected the idea that he needs to personally hate Ryan Day and Bryce Underwood called Ohio State “just another game,” Meyer offered a very different philosophy. For the former Buckeyes coach, hatred does not have to be personal to be useful.

During a recent The Triple Option podcast episode, Meyer said he never personally hated Jim Harbaugh or Brady Hoke, but that distinction disappeared once Michigan became the opponent.

“Do I hate them? Absolutely, I hate them, and that’s your job to hate them,” Meyer said. “You got to play the game.”

Meyer predicted Whittingham may develop more of that edge after his first trip to Columbus as Michigan’s head coach. More importantly, he argued that a coach at either program has to understand what the rivalry means to the people around it.

“You’re not going to change that,” Meyer said. “So play the game.”

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Meyer then took the argument beyond rivalry theater. He said love, fear, and hate were the three greatest motivators he used when preparing his teams, and he deliberately tried to create situations that made his players angry before games.

“I wanted my team so angry coming out of that tunnel that they played with nastiness and violence to them,” Meyer said.

There is some history behind the conviction. Meyer went 7-0 against Michigan during his seven seasons at Ohio State, never experiencing the rivalry from the losing locker room.

Whittingham’s comments drew attention after he said a rivalry can be intense without a “hatred factor” and questioned whether hating Ohio State would improve Michigan’s chances of winning.

Underwood then told NBC Sports’ John Fanta in an original interview that the Buckeyes are “just another game, just guys in a different color.”

Underwood will have a chance to test that approach again after a difficult first appearance in The Game. Ohio State beat Michigan 27-9 last November, with Underwood completing eight of 18 passes for 63 yards and an interception.

His freshman season still showed plenty of upside. Underwood finished with a 78.0 PFSN QB Impact grade, ranking No. 79 nationally, while throwing for 2,428 yards and adding 392 rushing yards.

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Michigan travels to Columbus on Nov. 28 for the 122nd meeting between the programs. Whittingham has made clear that he desperately wants to win it, even if he does not embrace the language surrounding it.

Meyer’s message is simpler. In this rivalry, hatred is not supposed to describe the person across the field. It is supposed to help beat the colors they are wearing.

This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.