Ohio State football snapped a 2,191-day streak without beating Michigan, dominating in the latter three quarters against the Wolverines on Nov. 29 to win 27-9.
After quarterback Julian Sayin threw an opening-drive interception, the Buckeyes scored on the next three possessions to take a 17-9 lead. At the focal point of the offense was a comeback performance from the wide receiver duo of Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate, who returned from injury and each scored a touchdown.
Ohio State’s defense locked down Michigan freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood, who completed 8 of 18 passes for 63 yards. Davison Igbinosun picked off Underwood in the final three minutes of the fourth quarter to secure a Buckeye victory.
How did the Buckeyes grade out in the win?
Ohio State offense (4 leaves)
The Tate-Smith duo is the X-factor for Ohio State. It’s difficult to guard both simultaneously, and Michigan found out the hard way.
The Buckeye faithful probably had a slight panic attack on the first possession when Sayin threw an interception into Cover 2 intended for Smith and picked off by Jyaire Hillon. Frustrating play continued on the second drive when Christian Bennett committed a false start on third down in the red zone and led to Ohio State to settling for a field goal.
Then, Bo Jackson began to run with a full head of steam. The non-relative of NFL/MLB legend Bo Jackson consistently broke tackles and ran with emphasis. After playing against lesser run defenses the previous two weeks, Jackson had a statement game and especially bulldozed Wolverine defenders in the second half to keep possession in the offense’s hands. He finished with a career-high 117 rushing yards while averaging 5.3 yards per carry and had four receptions for 49 yards.
After weeks without Smith and Tate, the offense finally showed its peak poise and dynamic ability from both the run and pass game. This led to quick movement downfield and two touchdowns in the second quarter; Ohio State outgained Michigan 136 to 39 in the quarter and ended the half with a Brandon Innis touchdown reception.
The Buckeyes’ offensive line played with physical prowess and prevented any pocket pressure for Sayin. The quarterback had ample time to throw to Smith on the Buckeyes’ first touchdown. Despite a closing pocket, the line gave Sayin plenty of time to focus on his top target in single coverage.
Sayin found Tate wide open for the knockout punch the Buckeyes needed to silence to Wolverine crowd.
Ohio State defense (5 leaves)
The Wolverines had big plays to get to the OSU 30-yard line on each of their three field goal drives. But Matt Patricia’s defense crushed any of Michigan’s dreams of an end zone trip. In nine attempts, the Wolverines converted on third down once.
Ohio State’s defense allowed a 36-yard outside run by Jordan Marshall and a 10-yard checkdown pass on the Wolverines’ first two plays of the game. Immediately near red zone trouble, the Buckeyes allowed two yards on the next three plays and prevented a touchdown.
After Sayin’s interception, Marshall again broke a gap for a 21-yard gain and booked it to the OSU 11-yard line, but the Buckeye red-zone defense came through yet again, highlighted by supercharged linebackers Arvelle Reese and Sonny Styles, who collapsed the gaps around the pocket and prevented any more runs. Styles led Ohio State defenders with six total tackles.
After Marshall’s absence after the first quarter (he sat out against Maryland due to a shoulder injury), Michigan had 78 yards in the latter three quarters. The Buckeyes monitored Underwood’s pocket movements successfully, holding him to one rushing yard, his lowest total since Oct. 11. Donovan McCulley was Underwood’s only receiver with more than 10 yards.
To cap it off, Davison Igbinosun intercepted Underwood and had an emphatic yet proper celebration (though he was penalized) to sum up the Buckeyes’ defensive effort.
Ohio State special teams (4 leaves)
Unlike some infamous field goal misses in the 2024 edition of the Game, Jayden Fielding corrected his mistakes and made both field-goal tries. There were no punting or return mistakes for the Buckeyes, and Ohio State was gifted a punt that went 11 yards to the Ohio State 43-yard line.
Ohio State coaching (5 leaves)
“He (Ryan Day) didn’t have to play against a narrative; all he had to do was go out and play their game,” FOX color commentator Joel Klatt said on the broadcast when the Buckeyes were up 24-9 late in the third quarter. It’s a perfect way to sum up how Day managed his sixth time coaching in The Game.
One clear flaw in the 2024 coaching staff during The Game was a lack of aggression in play-calling. This year, the Buckeyes played aggressively, highlighted by the decision to stay on the field down 6-3 with five yards to go on fourth down.
Instead of tying the score with a field goal, Brian Hartline trusted Sayin to get the ball to Smith in a tight window near the corner of the end zone, and the quarterback delivered. Who knows where the confidence level of the offense would be at halftime without the decision to go for it?
Sensing a hurry-up offense from Michigan on the first drive, Day immediately called a timeout on Michigan’s first third-down try of the game, giving the defense time to reset and plant its feet in the ground, which paid off. Preventing a first-drive touchdown score paid dividends and allowed Ohio State to survive the first quarter without much worry.
Even with partially healthy receivers, Ohio State played to its strength of the deep ball. Even though Tate’s first go route on the first play of the game was unsuccessful, it ended up cementing the Buckeye victory on Tate’s third-quarter touchdown. Still with a losing record in The Game, Day can afford to exhale after a coaching job well done.
Michigan (2 leaves)
Though Sherrone Moore did not seem to have Marshall available after the first quarter, Michigan’s offense was limited by a lack of downfield passing and plodding offensive play-calling. Underwood threw his second-lowest amount of passes and lowest amount of passing yards in the 2025 season.
The Buckeyes can boast the No. 1 defense in the country all they want, but Michigan had an underwhelming performance on offense and did not hold up to their rush-defense standards (ranked No. 12 in FBS play entering Week 14) a year after one of the greatest upsets in The Game’s history.
Fun factor (4 leaves)
Brutus, you little devil. The Buckeye mascot got away with crossing out the Michigan “M” in the Wolverines’ end zone while play was stopped, a bold yet comical event in the rivalry.
Ohio State vs Michigan | Brutus crosses the “M” during football game
Ohio State mascot Brutus sneaks onto the field Nov. 29 during The Game, crossing out the “M” in Michigan’s end zone.
The Game continues to provide the most intense football every season. Though the 2025 version ended up being one-sided by the second half, there was smack talk, highlight plays and fun pregame coverage that made the rivalry must-watch.
Tate and Smith were back in the highlight column for with touchdown grabs while Jackson rammed into defenders through the snow flurries, making a fun viewing experience for Buckeye fans.
There were plenty of rivalry theatrics, like the Wolverines staying on the field to surround the “M” while the Buckeyes celebrated with their fans and waved goodbye to the Big House.
Officials (1 leaf)
With the Ohio State offense within the 10-yard line in a third-down situation, Michigan linebacker Jaishawn Barham had a seemingly exchange with one of the officials that escalated into … nearly headbutting the official?
By some miracle, Barham was let off easy with a personal foul and remained in the game, despite adequate grounds for officials to eject him. A couple of plays later, officials delayed a call and incorrectly ruled a Sayin goal-line sneak a touchdown that was overturned in video replay.
But the near-official headbutt was not nearly the most controversial of the game.
On fourth-and-5, Sayin threw a perfect over-the-shoulder pass to Jeremiah Smith, who had a clear route to a touchdown but bobbled the ball while stepping out of bounds, causing some distress about the call.
With an initial touchdown ruling, the officials called for a video review. FOX rules analyst Mike Pereira suggested that Smith lost control of the ball and stepping out of bounds should result in a touchback.
After minutes of a dragging review, the officials upheld a call ruling that Smith maintained control of the ball when he crossed into the end zone. The play stirred up the internet and the Michigan crowd. While Ohio State had full command of the second half, the touchdown ruling will certainly go down in rivalry history as a contentious call.
