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11/28 05:00 CST No. 1 Ohio State hoping No. 15 Michigan does not add to long
list of upsets in The Game on Saturday
No. 1 Ohio State hoping No. 15 Michigan does not add to long list of upsets in
The Game on Saturday
By LARRY LAGE
AP Sports Writer
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) --- The Game has had many upsets, including last year
when Michigan stunned Ohio State as nearly 20-point underdogs.
The top-ranked Buckeyes don't want the 15th-ranked Wolverines to add to the
long list Saturday at the Big House.
If Michigan wins a fifth straight games in the rivalry, it would rank as the
second-biggest upset in terms of point spreads in at least 30 years.
Michigan was a 10-point underdog on Thursday, according to BetMGM Sportbook.
Here's a look back at the top five upsets, based on point spreads, and two
other matchups with stunning results in the storied series that dates to 1897.
1969 Perhaps the most memorable game in one of the greatest rivalries in sports came more than a half-century ago. Bo Schembechler capped his debut season as Michigan coach by beating his mentor, Woody Hayes, and the top-ranked Buckeyes 24-12. Hayes later said that was the best team he ever had. "`You will never win a bigger game than that!'" Schembechler recalled Hayes shouting at him. "And he was right. I don't think I ever did." The matchup was the start of what became known as the "Ten Year War," with Bo beating his mentor five times, losing four games and finishing one matchup famously tied. 1973 There was enough drama in one game that it was the subject of "Tiebreaker," a documentary that looked back at the all-time classic. Undefeated and top-ranked Ohio State tied undefeated and fourth-ranked Michigan 10-10 after Wolverines kicker Mike Lantry missed two field goals late in the game. Big Ten athletic directors chose Ohio State, not Michigan --- perhaps because Wolverines quarterback Dennis Franklin was injured --- to represent the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl at a time when the conference would only allow one team to be in a bowl. The conference would later decide to allow more than one school to participate in the postseason. 1995 Michigan was a nine-point underdog and ranked 18th when it beat the second-ranked Buckeyes 31-23 because they could not stop Tim Biakabutuka, who ran for 313 yards and a touchdown in one of the greatest performances in series history. 2001 Most of the biggest upsets in The Game were wins for the Wolverines, but this year was an exception. The Buckeyes were 8 1/2-point underdogs in coach Jim Tressel's debut season --- and won. Ohio State led 23-0 at halftime against No. 11 Michigan and earned a 26-20 victory, backing up what Tressel said would happen at a Buckeyes basketball game when he was introduced as the new football coach. "I can assure you that you'll be proud of our young people --- in the classroom and in the community, and most especially, in 310 days in Ann Arbor, Michigan," Tressel told Ohio State fans on the day he was hired. 2021 Michigan was a 6 1/2-point underdog after Ohio State put together a school-record winning streak in the rivalry, taking 15 of 16 to turn The Game into its game before the Wolverines earned one of the most pivotal wins in the series. Hassan Haskins matched a school record with five rushing touchdowns and Aidan Hutchinson had three sacks, helping the sixth-ranked Wolverines finally beat the second-ranked Buckeyes 42-27. That gave Jim Harbaugh his first win as a coach against Ohio State after starting 0-5. 2022 The Wolverines were nine-point underdogs in the Horseshoe, a year after breaking an eight-game losing streak in the series, and routed Ohio State 45-23. 2024 In terms of point spreads available since 1995, last year's stunner was the largest by far. No. 2 Ohio State was favored to beat the offensively challenged, short-handed, five-loss, unranked Wolverines by 19 1/2 points --- and lost 13-10. The stunning setback dropped Buckeyes coach Ryan Day to 1-4 against Michigan with a fourth straight loss in the series, sparking some speculation his job was in jeopardy before he and his team silenced the talk with a resilient run to the national championship. ___ Follow Larry Lage on X ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football |
