Full transparency here, I grew up an Ohio State fan. Someone who has lived, breathed and thought about this rivalry for more than 30 years of my life. I believe this is the greatest rivalry in all of sports. The passion, the history, Woody vs Bo, everything that goes with the rivalry makes it one of the best games of the year. While I have some implicit bias, I did my best to try and rank the five best games since 2000. My rankings reflect the magnitude of the game, star power, landscape of college football and trajectory of the rivalry.
5 – 2001: Ohio State 26, #11 Michigan 20
Ohio State was in a dark period with Jon Cooper. The team he put on the field was great almost every year but he could not beat Michigan. A 2-10-1 record did not cut it for the Buckeye faithful. Ohio State hired Jim Tressel from Youngstown State and he called his shot at halftime of an Ohio State basketball game. Tressel said, “I can assure you, you will be proud of our young people in the classroom, in the community and, most especially, in 310 days in Ann Arbor, Michigan.”
Michigan entered this game having a much better season than Ohio State. The Wolverines were 8-2 while Ohio State was 6-4. Ohio State had not won in Ann Arbor since 1987. Starting quarterback Steve Bellisari was arrested for drunk driving in November and was suspended for the Illinois and Michigan game. Craig Krenzel took the reins and mainly fed Jonathan Wells. Wells finished the game with 126 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Ohio State’s defense also forced four Michigan turnovers. The Buckeyes got their first win over Michigan since 1998 and it sparked a generational run for the Buckeyes. “The Senator” (ironic now that he is Lt Governor of Ohio) would go on to finish 9-1 against the Wolverines.
4 – 2022: #3 Michigan 45, #2 Ohio State 23
Michigan was coming off their first win over Ohio State in what felt like a century and now they had to travel to Columbus, a place the Wolverines had not won since 2000. Numerous media members around the country thought Ohio State would get it back after losing in Michigan the year prior. Blake Corum was injured, and he had been the focal part of the offense all season. Michigan was coming off a narrow win over Illinois while Ohio State had won every game on their schedule by at least two scores. Ohio State had a veteran offense led by Heisman candidate CJ Stroud plus Marvin Harrison Jr on the outside. The combo had been nearly unstoppable. Then the game started and all the talking stopped.
The first half was back and forth with Michigan hitting multiple big plays to Cornelius Johnson in the 2nd quarter. Johnson had over 140 yards and 2 touchdowns in the 2nd quarter alone. The Buckeyes and Wolverines also traded a few field goals. Ohio State led 20-17 at halftime, and that’s where the Ohio State happiness ended. Michigan outscored Ohio State 28-3 in the 2nd half. Michigan was more physical, more passionate and just looked like they wanted it more. Michigan’s defensive front abused Ohio State in the 2nd half. Michigan’s defense held Ohio State’s offense to only 147 total yards in the 2nd half as the Wolverines ate clock away. Donovan Edwards put the feather in the cap with an 85-yard rushing touchdown with less than 4 minutes left in the game to seal the victory.
3 – 2016: #2 Ohio State 30, #3 Michigan 27
If you want to talk about possibly the most iconic moment in the rivalry, 2016 has to be right there in the conversation. Ohio State and Michigan both entered this game with one loss and the winner was all but certain to be headed to the College Football Playoff. The teams ranked in the top five for the first time since 2006. Michigan had never made the playoffs and was resurging under Jim Harbaugh. Ohio State was two years removed from winning a National Championship and was looking to win another one under Urban Meyer.
The game was a defensive slugfest between the Buckeyes and Wolverines. It honestly was not the prettiest game either. Michigan had three turnovers: a fumble on the goal line and an interception from their own endzone which was returned by Malik Hooker for a touchdown. Ohio State missed two field goals. Michigan ran the ball 43 times for just 91 yards and had a long of 16. JT Barrett was just 15 of 32 for 124 yards and an interception. Ohio State faked a punt from their own 19 yard line and got stopped. Ohio State needed a 23 yard field goal on their final drive to tie the game and send it to overtime.
Once we got to overtime, the game’s intensity turned up a notch. Ohio State got the ball first and it took just two plays for them to score. Michigan had 4th and goal from the five yard line when Wilton Speight found Amara Darboh in the back of the endzone for a touchdown to send it to a 2nd overtime. Michigan had to settle for a field goal in the 2nd overtime. Ohio State opted to go for it on 4th and 1 after missing 2 field goals earlier in the game. The officials ruled JT Barrett got a first down, but ask any Ohio State and Michigan fan together and a debate will begin. Curtis Samuel scored on the next play, giving Ohio State the win and a spot in the College Football Playoffs.
2 – 2021: #6 Michigan 42, #2 Ohio State 27
The 2021 matchup between Ohio State and Michigan changed the program’s trajectory for Michigan. The Wolverines had not beaten Ohio State since 2011, and that was the sanction year for Ohio State. Michigan’s most recent win before 2011 was in 2003. Urban Meyer and Jim Tressel had a stranglehold on the rivalry where Michigan could not break free. Ryan Day had beaten Michigan in 2019, but he was still relatively new to the rivalry and had only been the head coach for one meeting (he had been an assistant in 2017 and 2018).
Michigan was physical early, but some mistakes allowed Ohio State to stay in the game. Cade McNamara threw an interception in the endzone where Michigan could have gone up 14-0 in the 1st quarter. Michigan’s rushing attack was their bread and butter all afternoon, feeding Hassan Haskins the football. Ohio State had relied upon their passing game all year, but the defense continued to show flaws. The flaws were exposed by Michigan, who continued to run it down Ohio State’s throat all afternoon. The Wolverines finished with 297 rushing yards, the most the Buckeyes allowed since 2018 vs Maryland.
The 2nd half is where Michigan really began to shine. Michigan did not punt or turn the ball over in the 2nd half. Four drives, four touchdowns. Each drive of at least 60 yards. Michigan brought physicality back and abused the Ohio State defense. This game was more than just their first win in a decade. It set the tone for Michigan. They announced they were back and they were here to stay. Michigan would go on to win the next 3 against Ohio State and also win a National Championship in 2023. Their run to a title really began in 2021 because they set the tone for how Michigan football would be played. Getting the win over Ohio State catapulted them to a new level of confidence. Suddenly Michigan believed it could beat anyone, anytime, anywhere.
1 – 2006: #1 Ohio State 42, #2 Michigan 39
It doesn’t get much more poetic than the 2006 edition of Ohio State vs Michigan. The Wolverines and Buckeyes had never met ranked number 1 and number 2. Early on in the season it appeared we were on a collision course for these two to meet undefeated at the end of the year with a spot in the National Championship on the line. Ohio State and Michigan had dominated their opponents all year and were led by familiar faces in the rivalry. Chad Henne and Troy Smith had already faced off two times prior. Mike Hart, Ted Ginn, Lamarr Woodley and James Laurinaitis were all very familiar with the rivalry at this point in their careers.
Just to add to the lore of this game, legendary Michigan coach Bo Schembechler passed the Friday before the game. Many fans liked to think that was Bo’s way of wanting to watch the game with Woody Hayes, as the two were known to be the best of friends outside of football. The game was also moved out of the traditional noon time slot to 3:30 due to the magnitude of the matchup.
The game kicked off and Ohio State jumped out to an early lead thanks to Beanie Wells. Wells scored on a 52 yard touchdown run early in the 2nd quarter to give Ohio State a 14-7 lead. The Buckeyes followed it up on the next drive with a play action fake by Smith hitting Ginn for a 39 yard touchdown. Ohio State entered halftime with a 28-14 lead and everyone knew this game was far from over. Michigan came out in the 2nd half and twice was able to cut the game down to a one score lead.
The biggest issue for Michigan was failing to capitalize on turnovers. Ohio State turned the ball over 3 times in the 2nd half. Once at their own 25, once at their own 9 and once at the Michigan 32 yard line. The Wolverines managed 10 points off turnovers but it just was not enough.
Ohio State scored with 5 minutes left in the game, putting the Buckeyes up 42-31. Michigan was able to drive the field and score on a Tyler Ecker touchdown, making the game 42-39. Ohio State recovered the onside kick and was able to run out the clock, sealing the victory and a spot in the National Championship.
