Going into Rivalry Week, many individuals did not believe that Michigan vs. Ohio State would be one of the games on upset alert. Everyone thought that Ohio State would take care of business in their home and begin to make the argument that they deserve to be one of the four teams in the playoff.
The game started out excellent for Ohio State, picking off Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner on their first possession. Ohio State quickly took advantage of the turnover and marched down the field and scored a touchdown on quarterback J.T. Barrett’s throw to Nick Vannett. Within the first four minutes of the game, Ohio State had a 7-0 lead and it looked liked a rout would be on. However, Michigan said “not so fast” and settled down, making the first half a battle.
The Wolverines took a 14-7 lead and it looked like they would take that lead into the half. However, Barrett scored a 25-yard touchdown run on a broken play with 23 seconds remaining in the half and the teams went to the locker room all tied up with the boos raining from the stands.
Urban Meyer may have put a smack down on his players at the half, because they came out firing on all cylinders when they hit the field. They took the opening drive and marched all the way down the field. Barrett led them both through the air and on the ground and began to stake his claim that he wanted to be invited to the Heisman party.
Michigan did not fold, though. They fought back with a long drive and added a trick play on the 11th play of the drive, running a flea-flicker which gained 22 yards, setting up a 2-yard touchdown run by Drake Johnson to tie the game at 21 apiece. A 12-play, 73-yard drive against the Buckeyes’ defense did not make Coach Meyer happy. He was fired up on the sideline and knew that his team was on the ropes.
The Ohio State offense answered back with Barrett and Ezekiel Elliot using their legs to do the damage. Going back to their old-school style and implementing their power running game, they seemed determined to wear down the Wolverines. After the touchdown to take a 28-21 lead, the defense stepped it up and forced Michigan to register their first 3-and-out. The Buckeyes seemed poised to take control of the game and advance to the Big Ten Championship.
However, early in the 4th quarter, Barrett went down with a leg injury and was carted off the field. On a 3rd down play, the Buckeyes could not pick up the 1st down and had to punt the ball away. It looked like it was going to be up to the defense to hold on and win the game for them. Looking ahead and wondering how Barrett’s leg would be for future games could not enter their mind.
When Barrett left the game, here were his game stats:
Passing: 12 of 20 (60%) for 170 yards. He had 1 TD throw and 0 INT’s for a QB rating of 147.9
Rushing: 16 rushes for 85 yards (5.3 yard average) with 2 TD’s
Cardale Jones replaced Barrett at quarterback. With him coming into the game in the 4th quarter and a 7-point lead, the Ohio State offensive philosophy had to change. It looked like they were shifting to more of a “don’t worry about winning; just don’t lose it” mindset. The offense was not on fire, but it did chew up some clock. On a crucial 3rd down with 5 minutes left, they came up a yard short on Michigan’s 47-yard line and they had a big decision. Do we attempt it and chew up more time or do we play it safe, punt it away and let our defense win it for us? They took a big gamble and rolled the dice in going for it on 4th and 1. And how – Ezekiel Elliot rumbled all the way to the end zone from 44 yards out to make it a two-score game. The play was a misdirection play. All of Michigan went to their left to go after Marshall and Elliot went the other way untouched.
Michigan’s hopes looked extremely small and any hope that they held onto were quickly slammed shut when Gardner fumbled the ball. Darron Lee scooped it up and ran the fumble back for a 33-yard touchdown. With the touchdown, Ohio State doubled up their rivals 42-21.
Michigan did tack on a touchdown at the end of the game to close the gap to 14 but it still ended up looking like a lopsided game with a 42-28 finish. The Wolverines needed to remember that the game of football is four quarters, and not three. The Michigan offense played a good game but not a great game. They did rack up 373 yards of offense but Drake Johnson going out in the 3rd quarter may have been too much for them. Gardner played his last game as quarterback and finished 22 of 32 for 233 yards. However, he threw a costly interception and fumbled the ball away once. He was also ineffective as a runner as he gained only 21 yards on 14 carries.
Impressive Facts:
Ohio State defense has scored four defensive touchdowns this year and all four have come from freshmen.
Ohio State has not lost or tied in a conference game the last three years.
Ohio State spread the football with eight different players posting at least one reception.
(Featured image: Marvin Fong/The Plain Dealer)