Michigan’s Historic 13-10 Upset Over Ohio State in Columbus, 2024
Background and Stakes
In arguably the biggest upset in Michigan-Ohio State rivalry history, 21-point underdog Michigan shocked No. 2 Ohio State 13-10 in Columbus on November 30, 2024. The stunning victory gave Michigan its fourth straight win over the Buckeyes—something that hasn’t happened since 1988-1991. Here’s how the Wolverines pulled off this historic upset.
In years past, the odds were stacked against Michigan. In 2021, the Wolverines were the underdogs, and the country was, I think, shocked that we won. In 2022, we were the underdogs playing in Ohio, and again, Michigan’s win made headlines. In 2023, Michigan’s victory could not be called an upset; however, our ranking went down from #2 to #3 before the Purdue matchup while Ohio’s went up. Thus #3 beat #2.
Key Players and Injuries
This year’s “The Game” was the Maize and Blue’s largest upset win (21-point underdogs) since 1978, and the largest upset in the history of our rivalry since 1969–maybe ever. We were again missing key players: Will Johnson, the best cornerback in the country, and Colston Loveland, the best tight end in the country, were both out with injuries, and they weren’t the only ones.
Both of our starting safeties were out, as was starting receiver Amorion Walker. Unranked Michigan had a 6-5 record coming into the game, and we had virtually no offense to speak of. Finally, during the first half of our rivalry game, one of our star running backs, Donovan Edwards, had to leave with an injury.
Ohio State, meanwhile, went to work in the off-season. They spent $20 million to try and beat Michigan this year, putting together the best players money can buy. Still not satisfied, Day persuaded renowned coach Chip Kelly to leave his head coaching position at UCLA and become his offensive coordinator. The Buckeyes likely have the best receiver corps in the country in Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka, and Carnelle Tate. They also have two of the best running backs in the country and one of the best safeties.
Ohio also has the best defense in the country in total defensive yards, scoring defense, red zone defense, and the 2nd best passing defense. They are also a top 10 rushing defense team. Buckeye fans must have been thinking not if they will win, but rather by how much? Would Ryan Day go for 2 on the multiple TDs they would undoubtedly score, and really humiliate Michigan? Surely the only reason That Team Up North won the past three years was because of sign stealing…
Game Highlights
Highlights of the game are easy to find online. Here are some. Both offenses were pretty ugly, but Michigan won the game, 13-10, in arguably the greatest upset in the rivalry’s history. The last time an unranked Michigan defeated Ohio in Columbus was 1950. Michigan’s defense, kicker Dominic Zvada, and running back Kalel Mullings all had season-best performances. Head coach Sherrone Moore’s plan and DC Wink Martindale rounded out the chief reasons they took down Ohio for the fourth time running.
The last time Michigan had beaten OSU four consecutive times was 1988-1991. Michigan now has its longest combined win streak against Michigan State and Ohio State (seven games) since winning nine straight in the rivalries in 1945-49. Think about that! How and why did we do it? I’d offer my analysis, but frankly, it pales in comparison to Sam Webb’s. Here is a link to it. It’s one of the best I’ve ever read, give it a look.
Postgame Drama
What happened after the game is a sad commentary: Michigan players went to plant our flag on their 50-yard line, which we did two years ago, and it is common practice today. An extremely frustrated senior and team captain, Jack Sawyer, grabbed one of his coaches, yelled and shook him around, and then charged in to grab the flag. See it for yourself. People were pepper-sprayed as a result, which was ridiculous.
Sideline reporter (former Michigan and NFL receiver) Jason Avant had some postgame heroics, single-handedly wrestling the Michigan flag out of Ohio players’ hands. Here is a 20-second video of what he did. Watch it for yourself. Michigan was blamed for inciting it, but Ohio State was clearly the physical aggressor.
Earlier in the season, both Texas and Oregon planted flags on our field, and Michigan just went into the tunnel. The problem is that, to paraphrase Kalel Mullings, the Buckeyes do not know how to lose! He gave a perfect analysis of the problem. Here is his answer to a reporter’s question. On a positive note, some of the Michigan/Ohio State players, including Donovan Edwards and TreVeyon Henderson, knelt in prayer together while it was going on. Take a look, it’s the most impressive video of the entire day.
What This Means Moving Forward
What do I take from this extremely unlikely win? Simply that Michigan football owns Ohio State. We own them. We own Ryan Day, as he and OC Chip Kelly were outcoached.
I don’t wanna hear anything about illegal sign stealing anymore, as if that’s how Michigan won games. That conversation is dead. Ohio can’t say it was because of Harbaugh either, because it was Sherrone Moore who beat them last year and this year. Michigan will continue to rise.
Will OSU fire Ryan Day? I doubt it. To buy out the remainder of his contract would cost $37 million and the boosters have said they are not up for that in the era of NIL. This is good news for Michigan, because he doesn’t have the fortitude to beat us. The irony is, even if the Buckeyes go on to win a national championship, we still beat them; it’s like winning back-to-back Nattys for Michigan. Go Blue!
