50 Fun Facts About Michigan–Ohio State Football Rivalry

Which future US president played for Michigan against Ohio State from 1932 to 1934?

Gerald Ford played center on Michigan teams that won national titles in 1932 and 1933. Woody Hayes later gave him a signed football listing the scores of his three Ohio State games.

After Michigan planted a flag at midfield in Ohio Stadium in 2024, what did police use on brawling players?

Pepper spray hit several players as officers from both states broke up the fight. The Big Ten fined each school $100,000 the next day.

What miniature gold charm has every Ohio State player received after a win over Michigan since 1934?

A pair of pants, in gold, recalls a 1934 Ohio State coach's remark that Michigan players dress one leg at a time like anyone else. His teams then shut Michigan out four years running.

According to legend, Woody Hayes would rather push his car to the Ohio line than buy what in Michigan?

Gasoline, in the story, was something Hayes refused to buy even on an empty tank, so Michigan would never get a nickel of his money. He also said "that state up north" to avoid its name.

Which Michigan quarterback threw the winning touchdown pass against Ohio State in 1999?

Tom Brady hit Marquise Walker with five minutes left for a 24–17 win. It evened his record against Ohio State, after a loss as Michigan's starter the year before.

Which Ohio city was at the center of an 1835 border 'war' with Michigan, long before the football rivalry?

Toledo and the strip of land around it went to Ohio after rival militias did little more than taunt each other. Michigan entered the Union with the Upper Peninsula instead.

Which Michigan receiver struck the Heisman pose after a punt-return touchdown against Ohio State in 1991?

Desmond Howard, a Cleveland native, planned something special as a shout-out to people back in Ohio. He wanted to do a backflip but, by his own account, chickened out and posed instead.

In dreadful weather in 1950, Michigan beat Ohio State 9–3 without gaining a single what?

A first down never came for Michigan, which also missed all nine of its passes. Its points came from two blocked punts: one for a safety, one recovered for a touchdown.

Michigan Stadium, the largest stadium in the United States, hosts Ohio State under which nickname?

The Big House drew the series' first crowd of more than 100,000 in 1957. Broadcaster Keith Jackson is credited with popularizing the nickname.

Woody Hayes's Ohio State career ended in 1978 after he punched a player from which school in the Gator Bowl?

Clemson's Charlie Bauman had just intercepted a pass and been run out of bounds at the Ohio State sideline when Hayes struck him. Hayes was fired the next morning.

Which Michigan cornerback's punt-return touchdown against Ohio State in 1997 helped him win the Heisman?

Charles Woodson also intercepted a pass in the end zone and caught a 37-yard pass in the 20–14 win. He became the first primarily defensive player to take the trophy.

Which Ohio State quarterback threw four touchdown passes in the 42–39 win over Michigan in 2006?

Troy Smith's 316 passing yards all but clinched his Heisman Trophy. He was the first Ohio State quarterback to start three straight wins over Michigan.

Which Michigan quarterback guaranteed a 1986 win over Ohio State, delivered, and later returned as head coach?

Jim Harbaugh backed up his promise with a 26–24 win. As Michigan's coach he lost his first five games against Ohio State before breaking through in 2021.

Which coach never lost to Michigan, going 7–0 against the Wolverines from 2012 to 2018?

Urban Meyer signed off with a 62–39 rout, the most points ever scored on Michigan in regulation. He had first worked at Ohio State as a graduate assistant in the 1980s.

Which Ohio State running back, who faced Michigan four times in the 1970s, is the only two-time Heisman winner?

Archie Griffin won the trophy in 1974 and 1975. Michigan held him to 46 yards in 1975, ending his record run of 31 straight 100-yard games.

In Ohio State's Script Ohio formation, a veteran player of which instrument struts out to dot the i?

Sousaphone players took over the honor after a player of a much smaller brass horn dotted the first i in 1936. Michigan's band had formed a cursive Ohio four years earlier, at a 1932 game between the schools.

Which color pairing does Michigan wear against the scarlet and gray of Ohio State?

Maize and blue were painted onto Michigan's winged helmet when the design arrived in 1938. Ohio State's scarlet and gray were picked by a committee of three students.

Which mascot crossed out the M in a Michigan Stadium end zone during the 2025 game against Ohio State?

Brutus Buckeye then wrote "Ohio" in cursive beside it before the grounds crew erased his work. The mascot dates from 1965, when his name was picked in a campus-wide contest.

Since 1935, Michigan and Ohio State have almost always met in which part of the regular season?

The final week has been the game's home with only a handful of exceptions. Fans' emails helped keep it there when the Big Ten split into divisions in 2011.

What nickname is given to the 1950 Michigan–Ohio State game, when foul weather forced 45 punts?

Snow Bowl weather was so bad that Ohio State was offered the chance to cancel and take the Big Ten title by default. It chose to play, lost, and its coach resigned amid the criticism.

What name do fans give the clashes between Woody Hayes's Ohio State and Bo Schembechler's Michigan?

The Ten Year War ended with Schembechler ahead 5–4–1. The two teams shared the Big Ten title six times in that span, and Schembechler had once worked on Hayes's staff.

Which new Ohio State coach promised fans in 2001 that they would be proud 'in 310 days' at Michigan?

Jim Tressel kept his word with a 26–20 win, Ohio State's first at Michigan in 14 years. Nicknamed "The Vest" for his sweater vests, he lost to Michigan only once.

Which Ohio State coach was fired after the 2000 season with a 2–10–1 record against Michigan?

John Cooper never won at Michigan, and three of his unbeaten teams were upset by the Wolverines. Michigan students held a mock celebration on 2/10/01, the date that matched his record.

Which coach lost four straight games to Michigan from 2021 to 2024, then won that season's national title?

Ryan Day's Ohio State lost 13–10 as a 20.5-point favorite in 2024, the biggest upset in series history, then won the College Football Playoff. He beat Michigan again in 2025.

Which Michigan running back rushed for 313 yards in a 1995 upset of unbeaten Ohio State?

Tim Biakabutuka ran wild after Ohio State receiver Terry Glenn said there was nothing special about Michigan. The 31–23 result spoiled a perfect season for that year's Heisman winner, Eddie George.

Which team was picked over Michigan to face Ohio State in the BCS title game after the 2006 season?

Florida edged Michigan in the closing BCS standings, ending talk of a rematch, and then beat Ohio State 41–14. Michigan lost its own bowl game to USC.

Which Ohio State quarterback's disputed fourth-down spot in the 2016 game is still argued over by Michigan fans?

J. T. Barrett was tackled almost exactly at the line to gain; had he been ruled short, Michigan would have won on the spot. He finished 4–0 against Michigan as a starter.

For decades the Michigan–Ohio State winner often earned the Big Ten's place in which New Year's Day game?

The Rose Bowl took the Big Ten champion for decades, and Michigan and Ohio State settled that title between themselves 22 times through 2010.

After a 10–10 tie in 1973, whose secret vote gave Ohio State, not Michigan, the Big Ten's bowl berth?

Athletic directors of the other Big Ten schools cast the ballots, and Bo Schembechler said Michigan had been robbed. Both teams had come into the game unbeaten.

Which Michigan running back scored five touchdowns in the 2021 win that ended eight straight losses to Ohio State?

Hassan Haskins set a record for any running back in the rivalry in the 42–27 win. It sent Michigan to the Big Ten Championship Game for the first time.

Who served as Michigan's acting head coach for the 2023 win over Ohio State during a Big Ten suspension?

Sherrone Moore, the offensive coordinator, won 30–24 to keep Michigan unbeaten on its way to the national title. He took the job outright in 2024 and won at Ohio State as a 20.5-point underdog.

Which Michigan staffer was at the center of the 2023 sign-stealing scandal and resigned that November?

Connor Stalions, a low-level staffer, was the focus of an alleged scheme to scout future opponents in person. The Big Ten suspended Michigan's head coach for three games, the Ohio State game among them.

Until 2015, Ohio State students marked Michigan week with a night-time jump into which campus body of water?

Mirror Lake drew about 12,000 jumpers and onlookers in 2009. The university began enforcing a ban after a student died in 2015.

Which Michigan fight song did student Louis Elbel write on a train home from an 1898 win over Chicago?

The Victors got an early boost when John Philip Sousa performed it at an Ann Arbor concert in 1899. Elbel returned every homecoming to lead the band in it until his death in 1959.

Which alma mater of Michigan's biggest rival was reportedly written on the train home from an 86–0 loss?

Carmen Ohio is sung by the team and the crowd after every home game, win or lose. Its author later recalled writing it for the glee club, so the train story may be an exaggeration.

Which network took over the Michigan–Ohio State broadcast from ABC in 2017, bringing its Big Noon Kickoff show?

Fox won the Big Ten's top-tier rights, and its 2023 broadcast drew more than 19 million viewers, then the biggest regular-season college football audience in 12 years. ESPN's College GameDay had often visited in the ABC years.

Which coach brought the winged helmet to Michigan in 1938, having first used the design at Princeton?

Fritz Crisler thought the bold pattern would help his passers spot receivers downfield. He had first ordered winged helmets out of a Spalding catalog.

Which Ohio State coach, fired days before the 1987 Michigan game, still coached it and won an upset?

Earle Bruce watched his players take the field in sweatbands bearing his first name and beat the heavily favored Wolverines. Bo Schembechler told him this was one loss he didn't mind so much.

The 2016 Michigan–Ohio State game, a 30–27 Buckeye win, was the first in series history to need what?

Overtime came after Ohio State kicked a tying field goal in the last seconds of regulation, and a second extra period settled it. Both teams were ranked in the nation's top three.

Which third-string quarterback took over when Ohio State's starter broke an ankle against Michigan in 2014?

Cardale Jones then won the first three starts of his college career, against Wisconsin, Alabama and Oregon, to bring Ohio State the first College Football Playoff title.

Which Michigan Heisman winner drew a standing ovation from Ohio State fans after a 40–0 win in 1940?

Tom Harmon ran for three touchdowns, passed for two more and intercepted three passes in his last college game. The Columbus crowd applauded him off the field.

Which halfback led Ohio State to its first win over Michigan in 1919 and inspired the building of Ohio Stadium?

Chic Harley intercepted four passes in that 13–3 win, still a team record. He so excited fans that a $1.3 million funding drive followed, and the stadium opened in 1922.

Which Ohio State halfback punted 21 times and kicked his team's only points in the 1950 loss to Michigan?

Vic Janowicz punted for 685 yards that day and won the Heisman Trophy that season. He later became the first Heisman winner to play major league baseball.

Bo Schembechler came to Michigan in 1969 after six seasons as head coach at which Mid-American Conference school?

Miami University, in Oxford, Ohio, is also where Schembechler played tackle for Woody Hayes. He then worked on Hayes's Ohio State staff before facing him ten times as a rival.

Which nickname did Fielding Yost's Michigan teams of 1901–1905, 86–0 winners over Ohio State, earn?

Point-a-Minute was no exaggeration: those teams outscored opponents 2,821–42 over five seasons and lost only once. Ohio State did not beat Michigan until 1919.

Which Michigan defensive end had three sacks in the 2021 win over Ohio State and finished second for the Heisman?

Aidan Hutchinson's three sacks took his season total to a school-record 13. He was the only defensive player among that year's Heisman finalists.

Which Michigan quarterback, nicknamed 'Shoelace', produced five touchdowns in the 2011 win over Ohio State?

Denard Robinson piled up 337 yards running and passing in the 40–34 win, Michigan's first in the series since 2003. He got the nickname as a boy for playing with his shoes untied.

Which freshman running back ran for 119 yards as Ohio State beat Michigan 14–9 in its 2002 title season?

Maurice Clarett also caught a key pass to set up the winning score. Six weeks later he scored the deciding touchdown in the Fiesta Bowl to win Ohio State the national championship.

Leading Michigan 50–14 in 1968, Ohio State attempted what after its last touchdown?

A two-point try failed, and Hayes is said to have explained afterward that the rules wouldn't let him go for three.

Furious at the officials late in the 1971 loss at Michigan, Woody Hayes tore up what on the sideline?

The yard markers were ripped apart after no interference call came on a late Michigan interception, and Hayes drew a 15-yard penalty for his tirade. Michigan held on to win 10–7.