Was This Michigan's Biggest Upset Win Over Ohio State?

Wolverines were 19.5-point underdogs this time and 17.5-point underdogs in 1969. Mullings sees to it that Michigan wins fourth straight in 'The Game.' It's been 1,827 days since the Buckeyes beat U-M.

Photo Courtesy of University of Michigan Photography

Wolverine defensive back Aamir Hall intercepts a pass by Will Howard intended for Carnell Tate (No. 17) and returns it to the 1-yard line, where Kalel Mullings ran it in for Michigan’s only touchdown.

By Steve Kornacki

Wow. Where did that come from?

The Wolverines, unranked and undermanned and on the road in Columbus, not only pulled the 13-10 upset of the Buckeyes but looked like the better team in doing so.

Michigan coach Sherrone Moore was being interviewed on the field, a bundle of joyful emotion, when he began slapping defensive tackle Mason Graham on the chest, proclaiming, “This is why you come to Michigan. Right here – guys like this!”

Michigan played with more heart and more determination than the 19.5-point favorites. And, so, this is why they play the games on the field and not with statistics and odds.

Where does this rank with Michigan’s greatest upset in the Ohio State series?

There are only two games that rival what the Wolverines did Saturday in their win over the No. 2 Buckeyes.

That would be the classic 1969 game, which Michigan won, 24-12, the year after Woody Hayes went for two points to make it a 50-14 win in Columbus. No.1 OSU was a 17.5-point favorite, but it was new coach Bo Schembechler and captain and All-America tight end Jim Mandich who got carried off on the shoulders of the victorious Wolverines.

The other unlikely upset came in 1993, when Michigan was unranked at 6-4 and OSU was No.5 in the nation. Final score in Ann Arbor: UM 28, OSU 0. That game was the beginning of the end for Buckeyes coach John Cooper, a wonderful coach and man who could do anything except beat his biggest rival more than twice in 13 tries.

This game could be the end for OSU coach Ryan Day, who has lost four consecutive times to the Wolverines. But we won’t dwell on that.

What we will focus on is that this game was the program’s greatest upset of the Buckeyes – all things considered.

As formidable as Woody’s juggernaut was that year (a Sports Illustrated article suggested their best competition would be the Minnesota Vikings, then the NFL’s most powerful team), Michigan was ranked No.12 and had firmly established itself as the second-best team in the conference.

These Wolverines (now 7-5) had just become bowl-eligible last week.

They were playing without two of their three possible NFL first-round draft picks with cornerback Will Johnson and tight end Colston Loveland out. Graham, an Outland Trophy finalist, was the only one of that trio who suited up. And then tailback Donovan Edwards – who had 75- and 85-yard touchdown runs in the blowout win two years ago in Columbus – was injured in the first half and couldn’t return to action.

However, Kalel Mullings got rolling in the second half and finished with 116 yards on the ground and a first-half TD. His gutsy, determined 27-yard run on third-and-6 in the fourth quarter set up Dominic Zvada’s game-winning, 21-yard field goal with 45 seconds left.

After the Buckeyes took exception to Michigan offensive lineman Raheem Anderson planting the huge Block M flag in the middle of the field with tailback Tavierre Dunlap providing escort, an ugly fight broke out as the losers rushed out to protest.

“It was such a great game” Mullings told Fox sideline reporter Jenny Taft on the field afterward. “You hate to see something like that after the game. That’s just bad for the sport, bad for college football.

“But at the end of the day, some people just got to learn how to lose.”

When Moore was asked about the importance of losing gracefully, he told reporters, “We didn’t lose, so…”

So, don’t ask Moore about a feeling none of his current players have ever experienced. OSU has not beaten U-M since Nov. 30, 2019. That’s exactly five years – 1,827 days to be most precise.

We’ve had a pandemic, two Presidential elections and those four Michigan wins in “The Game” in that time.

Things unfortunately got out of hand on the field after the game – which ended with Ohio State throwing an incomplete pass on fourth down as time expired – and all of it was pretty sad. Ohio State University Police, in a Columbus Dispatch report, said they are investigating the incident involving police pepper spraying players.

Dunlap and linebacker Jason Hewlett could be seen wincing and struggling with pain on the sideline from the spray. Numerous Wolverines such as Josaiah Stewart commented on getting sprayed.

It’s also unfortunate that these incidents will take some of the focus away from the game – which Michigan fought so hard to win against great odds.

Here’s an interesting connection to the biggest upsets the Wolverines have had in this series.

They beat Iowa, 51-6, the game before upsetting Woody’s team.

Michigan beat Northwestern, 50-6, the week before upsetting Day’s team.

Something began clicking down the stretch run for those two teams separated by 55 years.

In terms of historical significance, nothing will probably ever top the 1969 U-M upset of OSU. That set the tone for the Schembechler era, when the Wolverines became relevant in the rivalry and became a national power again.

But in terms of a team that was totally unlikely to spring the big upset – this was the ultimate Wolverine upset of the Buckeyes.

10 Things Worth Noting

OSU ripped down the “M Club Supports You” sign before “The Game” in Ann Arbor in 1973, and legendary Michigan announcer Bob Ufer said the Buckeyes would “pay for their dastardly deeds” in what turned out being a 10-10 tie.

The Buckeyes were held 28.9 points below their 38.9 scoring average.

This is Michigan’s fourth consecutive win in the series, and it hasn’t had a streak that long since 1988-91. Then it was a 13-13 tie in 1992 and another U-M win in 1993. That produced a six-game unbeaten streak in the years before overtimes.

The Wolverines also upset OSU teams ranked No. 2 in 1995, 1996, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

The team with the most rushing yards has now won 23 straight games. Michigan had 172 to 77 for the Buckeyes in this one.

Zvada hit field goals of 54 and 21 yards, and is now 17-for-18 with his lone miss coming on a blocked kick. He’s made all seven 50-yarders attempted – the most in both a single season and career by a Michigan kicker. Fox analyst Joel Klatt said he couldn’t believe Zvada didn’t get voted in as a finalist for the Lou Groza Award going to the nation’s top placekicker.

The Wolverines have allowed zero points in the second halves of their last two games – producing a 33-0 advantage against Northwestern and 3-0 edge on OSU.

Former Michigan and NFL receiver Jason Avant, now the sideline reporter for the Wolverine radio network, was responsible for pulling the Block M flag away from Buckeyes cornerback Davison Igbinosun and protecting it before returning it to the team.

Day is 1-4 against Michigan and 47-1 against the rest of the Big Ten.

Michigan is now 2-0 since Belleville quarterback Bryce Underwood – the nation’s No. 1 recruit – flipped his commit from LSU to Ann Arbor.