ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan has been waiting for this a long time.
The Wolverines, on a cold, snowy day at Michigan Stadium, upset Ohio State, 42-27, and will play for the Big Ten championship. The Buckeyes entered the game as the No. 2 team in the College Football Playoff rankings, and the Wolverines snapped an eight-game losing streak to their arch-rival, winning for the first time since 2011, also in Ann Arbor.
Michigan is the Big Ten East Division champion and will play for the Big Ten title next week. Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh notched his first win in the rivalry since taking over as coach in 2015.
Michigan's workhorse running back Hassan Haskins scored five touchdowns, tying Ron Johnson's record set in 1968, carrying the Wolverines to the win. Haskins, who had 28 carries for 169 yards on Saturday, has 18 rushing touchdowns this season. The Wolverines had 489 yards of offense, including 299 rushing, well beyond what Ohio State had been allowing (102.3).
Aidan Hutchinson, who returned to Michigan for his final season for a shot at beating Ohio State, finished with three sacks, setting the program's single-season with 13
The Wolverines outscored Ohio State 14-0 in the third quarter and built a 28-13 lead it never relinquished.
How much did this game mean to both teams? It got heated between the teams in the tunnel outside of their respective locker rooms, cameras catching players from both teams yelling at each other with officials trying to hold both back. Another incident happened on field in the third quarter after OSU's Cameron Brown was called for an unsportsmanlike penalty after he ripped off Michigan receiver Roman Wilson's helmet.
Michigan's defense opened the second half as it did in the first, holding Ohio State to a three-and-out, and then the Wolverines went to work on offense.
They built a 21-13 lead early in the third quarter going run game the whole way with Blake Corum, who had missed most of the previous three games with a high right ankle sprain, rushing for 13 on his first carry and then went 55 yards to the Ohio State 13-yard line. Haskins scored on a 13-yard run as Michigan went 81 yards in three plays.
Ohio State was victim to penalties on the next drive, called for holding and the Buckeyes' fourth false start of the game — they would have five in the game — and Hutchinson's second sack. They would punt again, and the Wolverines' offense kicked into gear again.
Cade McNamara connected on a 31-yard pass to Wilson and then 34 yards to Mike Sainristil on back-to-back passes. Haskins scored on a one-yard run, his third touchdown, swelling Michigan's lead to 28-13.
But the Buckeyes responded with an 82-yard, 17 play drive, including a critical fourth-down conversion. Ohio State pulled to 28-20 on a one-yard run from TreVeyon Henderson with 14:05 left in the game.
McNamara led another scoring drive, this time going 66 yards in nine plays and Ohio State was penalized twice, once on offsides and then on pass interference on third down. Haskins scored his fourth touchdown on a two-yard run building Michigan's lead, 35-20.
The Buckeyes put together a 13-play drive with two fourth-down conversions, including on fourth-and-5 and Henderson catching a 10-yard pass from C.J. Stroud. That cut into Michigan's lead, 35-27, with 4:45 left in the game.
With snow flurries flying Michigan and Ohio State slugged it out in a physical first half.
This was the first time the teams have played since 2019, having missed last year's game when Michigan was forced to cancel because of a COVID-19 outbreak, and the teams came out looking hungry to make up for lost time and a missed game.
The Wolverines took a 14-13 lead into halftime. Michigan had taken the lead on a one-yard run from Haskins, who earlier in the drive made a critical fourth-down conversion. A 37-yard pass from McNamara to Cornelius Johnson put Michigan at the Ohio State 2-yard line.
Ohio State made a 30-yard field goal with nine seconds left in the half to pull within one point.
Michigan cost itself a potential score when McNamara threw his third interception of the season, this time after the Wolverines reached the OSU 15-yard line.
