The annual game between Michigan and Ohio State won't occur until the end of November but this is a rivalry that doesn't sleep.

Last year, despite coming into the game as underdogs at home, the Buckeyes defeated the Wolverines 62-39. The 62 points given up in regulation were the most by a Maize and Blue defense ever and the 567 yards conceded was not a good look for a defense that came into the contest ranked No. 1 in the country.

That defense was led by defensive coordinators Don Brown and Greg Mattison. Following the season, Mattison jumped ship and took over as the defensive coordinator at Ohio State. Brown remains in charge of the Michigan defense in Ann Arbor and certainly has not forgotten what the Buckeyes did to the Wolverines last year in Columbus.

Last week, Brown was on the In The Trenches podcast with Jon Jansen discussing a number of Maize and Blue football topics. When the discussion came around to the annual rivalry game, Brown was asked what his defense needs to do to compete with the Scarlet and Gray on Nov. 30.

"I think we just need to stay true to form," Brown responded. "I think we’ve done a good job of giving our guys stuff on a week to week basis where they’re probably wondering, ‘Why are we practicing this play? Why are we practicing that play?’ So, we’ve done a good job of keeping their hands in it without really telling them their hands are in it. But, they know.

"It’s another year, it’s a different group. They better be careful now because we’re hitting our stride too. This is a two-way street, and I know our guys will be ready in three weeks."

When asked on Tuesday if he cared to respond to Brown's comments that Ohio State needed to be careful, head coach Ryan Day responded with a simple "not really."

The Buckeyes' offense is currently ranked fifth in the country in total offense, averaging 535.9 yards per game, slightly better than last year's group. The Scarlet and Gray are the country's top scoring offense with an average of 51 points per game, more than seven points per game better than last season. Michigan's defense remains one of the best in the country under Brown's direction, ranking seventh in the nation in yards allowed per game (266.2 yards per game) and 11th in scoring defense (17.1 points per game).

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It is not uncommon for these two teams to prepare for each other throughout the season with Ohio State typically reserving a portion of the team's practice for Michigan. That has not changed since Day took over this year.

"We're always working on our packages to make sure that we have wrinkles," he said. "There's certain things that never see the field, certain things that do. Some things you came up with a great idea as a coach, you work on it for a couple weeks. You can't let your ego get in the way. A great idea, you like it, it doesn't fit right. You have to put it aside. There's other things you work on, work on, get them ready as time goes on. That's kind of something that goes on with every program, every kind of offense throughout the season."