ANN ARBOR, Mich. — As he left the field, Ryan Day pumped both fists and grinned, urging the Ohio State fans lingering above the Big House tunnel to cheer louder before throwing up the familiar “O-H” signal with his arms.
After four straight losses to Michigan, Day finally wiped away the one blot on his otherwise stellar record.
On a snowy Saturday, No. 1 Ohio State rolled to a 27-9 win over Michigan to reach the Big Ten championship game for the first time since 2020. The Buckeyes will travel to Indianapolis next weekend to face No. 2 Indiana with the top overall College Football Playoff seed at stake.
“There’s no question that the fans and all of our supporters, what this means — means a lot to us,” Day said. “That’s what hurt the last couple of years, more than anything. You could see it in my face. … You just feel like you’re letting everybody down — that’s just not a good feeling. So you work like hell just to make sure that you do everything you can to get your guys prepared. … And our guys really captured the moment and played great.”
Ohio State stumbled early, surrendering a 6-0 lead to Michigan, but dominated after that.
Sophomore quarterback Julian Sayin, who threw an interception on his second pass, rebounded to finish with 233 yards and three touchdowns. Wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate, both questionable coming in with lower-body issues (Tate had missed three straight games; Smith missed last weekend), each caught touchdown passes. Day called their returns “gutsy” and praised their effort to get back on the field.
The Buckeyes controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides. Freshman Bo Jackson rushed for 117 yards as Ohio State outgained Michigan on the ground 186-100, extending to 24 years the streak that the rivalry’s winner also wins the rushing battle.
After yielding a 37-yard run by Jordan Marshall on the first play from scrimmage, Ohio State’s defense tightened, allowing just 127 total yards the rest of the game. Michigan’s nine points were the fewest they’ve scored against the Buckeyes in 15 years.
“Coach Day is an amazing leader. He’s an amazing coach,” linebacker Sonny Styles said after leading Ohio State with six tackles. “A lot of people had stuff to say about this game when it comes to him, and I think he proved the point today. … I’m so happy for him.”
The win also delivered personal relief for Day. After last year’s 13-10 loss to Michigan at the Horseshoe, which included chants of “F— Ryan Day,” threats against him and the placement of armed guards at his home, Ohio State hasn’t lost. The Buckeyes rebounded from that setback to win four playoff games and the national title.
This season, Ohio State has posted 11 straight victories by 15 or more points, the longest such streak in program history, per ESPN Research.
As the crowd thinned out of the Big House, Buckeye fans took over in the fourth quarter, trading “O-H” and “I-O” calls across the field. Unlike last year, when Michigan players planted a flag on the Block O and sparked a scuffle, Ohio State’s players did not plant a flag after the game; several instead made snow angels on the turf before celebrating with the band in the end zone.
“I’m happy for our players. I’m happy for the coaches, all the fans who were at the game,” Day said. He is 82-10 as Ohio State’s head coach, giving him the second-best winning percentage in college football history behind Walter Camp, according to ESPN Research. “The fans even who weren’t here, they’ll be able to wear that Block O and stand a little prouder. And so that means a lot to me, means a lot to the coaching staff, to the players and my family.”
Day admitted the losses to Michigan were among the worst days of his life and said he had visualized what he’d say after beating Michigan. But he opted for restraint.
“I’m going to save all those comments because I think the best thing to do is win with humility,” he said. “We wanted to take this rivalry game back. The way our guys played spoke to that. They played with great passion and physicality.”
He called the visiting locker-room celebration a “great memory” and a moment that will stick with his players.
“They know how important this is. This is the No. 1 goal of our program,” Day said. “They had a great look in their eye — I don’t think there was any doubt when we walked into the stadium today what was going to happen next.”
