The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: No. 1 Ohio State’s 27-9 win over No. 15 Michigan

After four long years and a national title run, Ryan Day finally exorcised his final demon on Saturday, going into Ann Arbor and defeating Michigan, 27-9.

The Buckeyes fell behind early, but Julian Sayin, Bo Jackson and the rest of the Ohio State offense was too much for the Wolverines, and on the other side the Silver Bullets suffocated the opposition for 60 minutes in a cathartic rivalry victory.

With so much of the conversation focusing on toughness and winning the rushing battle over this four-game losing streak, Ohio State was the far more physical team this time around, and largely bully-balled its way to a much-needed win to move to 12-0 on the season and set up a date with Indiana in the Big Ten Championship Game next weekend.

Here is the Good, the Bad and the Ugly from The Game…

Bo Jackson

There is a long history of freshmen making a name for themselves in The Game. Guys like Maurice Clarett, Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson and a host of others have made their mark in the greatest rivalry in sports, and on Saturday we got a new entrant into the history books.

Freshman running back Bo Jackson was sensational against Michigan, rushing for 117 yards on 22 carries while also hauling in four catches for 49 yards. The Ohio native kept the Buckeyes’ offense on schedule throughout the game, making guys miss and picking up extra yardage time and time again.

Jackson had four carries of at least 10 yards, including a long 36-yard run on Ohio State’s first scoring drive of the game, and had only one carry that went for negative yardage — a loss of one.

After being called ‘soft’ by their opponent so often over the past few years, it was the Buckeyes who came out as the far more physical team in Ann Arbor, out-rushing the Wolverines overall 186-100.

Offensive Line

Speaking of physicality, Ohio State’s offensive line completely dominated in the trenches.

All five guys up front played perhaps their best game of the season, allowing zero sacks and paving the way for that prolific rushing attack. There was no better example of that stellar performance than on Ohio State’s 20-play, 81-yard field goal drive, which ate up 11:56 of clock. Of those 20 plays, 16 of them were runs, accounting for 72 of those 81 yards.

On the pass blocking front, Julian Sayin played with a clean pocket for the entirety of the afternoon. The Buckeyes ran a handful of long-developing pass plays, including the electric 50-yard touchdown to Carnell Tate, and Sayin had all day to step into the pocket and make his throws.

For a group that came into the day with some question marks, they passed the test with flying colors and maybe even a little bit of extra credit on top.

Julian Sayin

You can’t talk about this Ohio State offense without getting into the quarterback play, which after a brief blip at the beginning of the game — we will get to that later — was nothing short of excellent.

Sayin went into a snowy, hostile environment and completed 19-of-26 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns. The first-year starter never looked phased and maintained his accurate, methodical play even despite some less-than-ideal elements.

Sayin seemed to be at his best when times got tough, beginning the game a perfect 6-of-6 on third down. On top of being efficient overall, he was also incredibly clutch, hitting on that perfect pass over the top to Jeremiah Smith for a touchdown on fourth-and-5 and also scrambling for a first down on third-and-short late in the game.

If there were any worries that Sayin wouldn’t be able to handle a little bit of adversity, given Ohio State hasn’t exactly faced much this year, those went out the window by the end of the first half.

The Entire Defense

Matt Patricia, take a bow!

This Ohio State defense has been historically good from the onset, and that was no different against Michigan. The Buckeyes held the Wolverines to 163 total yards, including only 63 yards passing. The Silver Bullets were especially locked in during the second half, allowing only 39 total yards and -8 yards rushing over the final two quarters.

Michigan managed a few chunk plays, with a long pass of 26 yards and three rushes of at least 20 yards, but Ohio State’s defense never wavered, holding the Wolverines out of the end zone completely while giving up just three field goals.

A handful of guys really stood out on Saturday, including of course the linebacker duo of Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese. Styles posted a team-high six tackles with a tackle for loss, while Reese was only officially credited with two tackles but played a huge role in keeping Michigan’s offense out of sync.

Kayden McDonald and Tywone Malone were man-eaters up the middle, and Davison Igbinosun put the finishing touches on the game with his interception. Kenyatta Jackson also played one of his best games of the year, recording the only sack for either side and adding two tackles for loss.

Jayden Fielding

I wanted to throw Fielding in here as well, because while neither of his kicks were anything that jump off the page — a 24-yarder and a 23-yarder — they both played a huge role in the final outcome.

Fielding’s first field goal got Ohio State on the board, and while it was frustrating to see the Buckeyes fail to get into the end zone from down near the goal line, it was important that they got points early to cut the Michigan lead to 6-3. Fielding’s second make gave Ohio State a three-score lead with eight minutes to go, virtually icing the game.

Obviously, the two misses by Fielding in last year’s matchup were the difference in the final score, so to have Fielding come into this one and get a little bit of redemption in harsh conditions was great to see.

Sayin’s interception

This was the only real negative for Ohio State on Saturday, and early on it felt like a bit of deja vu.

In each of the last two losses to Michigan, the Buckeyes’ quarterback has thrown a brutal first half interception deep in their own territory to set up the Wolverines with a short field and an eventual scoring drive. History seemed to be repeating itself on Ohio State’s first drive again, as Sayin’s second pass attempt of the game was picked off by Jyaire Hill at the 40-yard line.

This time, however, the Silver Bullets were able to hold Michigan to only a field goal, and so while the home team had all of the momentum in the first few minutes of action, they only held a 6-0 lead.

It was an uncharacteristically poor choice from Sayin, who clearly did not see the guy underneath in what was double-coverage on Jeremiah Smith. From that point on, the Ohio State quarterback was lights out, showcasing the poise and the talent that has him as one of the favorites for the Heisman Trophy.

Bryce Underwood’s NIL Deal

While one first-year starter had himself a day, the other one did not. Luckily for Ohio State, that guy was wearing maize and blue.

True freshman Bryce Underwood had a miserable time going up against the Buckeyes’ defense, completing only eight of his 18 pass attempts for 63 yards with no touchdowns and an interception. For all the talk that maybe Michigan had been saving Underwood’s legs to be unleashed in The Game, the dual-threat QB managed only a single rushing yard.

It was a fitting end to a rough day for Underwood, whose final pass of the afternoon was intercepted by Davison Igbinonsun.

The former five-star prospect can still go on to have a successful collegiate career, but Underwood did not look worth the reported $12.5 million or so Michigan had to pay him to convince him to stay in-state.

What a shame! /s