The Game is here.
Ohio State hosts Michigan in a battle between two undefeated teams at the top of the Big Ten East on Saturday afternoon.
How did the Buckeyes and the Wolverines get to this point?
According to ESPN’s Football Power Index, Ohio state is ranked No. 55 on the nation’s schedule, while Michigan is ranked 73rd.
Here’s a look at how Ohio State and Michigan — No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, according to the latest College Football Playoff rankings — both got to this point ahead of their battle for a spot in the Big Ten championship game and possibly who endgames.
3 Sept
No. 8 Michigan 51, State of Colorado 7 – After an 11-31 loss to Georgia in the CFP semifinals, Michigan opened the season with 440 yards of offense and 51 points against Colorado State, scoring four quick touchdowns by four different players. The Wolverines also added 11 tackles for loss and seven sacks.
#2 Ohio State 21, #5 Notre Dame 10 – While CJ Stroud and Ohio State’s offense had just 21 points with 395 yards of offense, the redesigned Buckeye defense shut down Notre Dame’s offense. Ohio State limited the Fighting Irish to 10 points, 12 first downs and 253 total yards with the help of a two-sack performance from linebacker Tommy Eichenberg.
September 10
No. 4 Michigan 56, Hawaii 10 – After 51 points against Colorado State, Michigan exploded for 56 points, including five rushing touchdowns by five different players and three passing touchdowns by quarterback JJ McCarthy. The Wolverines’ pass defenses added seven pass deflections, allowing for 253 yards of offense.
No. 3 Ohio State 45, Arkansas State 12 – With Jaxon Smith-Njigba unavailable, Marvin Harrison Jr. stepped up and retained three of Stroud’s four touchdown passes against Arkansas State and led the team for 187 yards on seven catches. The Buckeyes recorded 12 tackles-for-loss and limited the Red Wolves to 53 rushing yards on 34 carries.
17 Sep
No. 4 Michigan 59, UConn 0 – With the help of five touchdowns by running back Blake Corum, Michigan scored 59 points and set the school record at 166 for most points scored in a three-game span. UConn’s offense failed to move the ball at all against the Wolverines, recording 110 total yards and six first downs.
#3 Ohio State 77, Toledo 21 – Ohio state misdemeanor set up clinic against Toledo. Stroud threw five of the team’s six passing touchdowns with 367 yards and 22 completions, while running back Dallan Hayden accelerated a Buckeyes running game that recorded 281 yards and five touchdowns by five different players.
September 24th
No. 4 Michigan 34, Maryland 27 – Michigan’s first taste of adversity came in the Big Ten’s opener against Maryland, when the Terrapins took the Wolverines’ lead to a single point with 45 seconds left after a touchdown pass by Billy Edwards Jr. to CJ Dippre and a two-point conversion shortened. The Wolverines secured a win with a botched on-side kick attempt. Michigan allowed 397 yards, including 269 passing yards. Corum added a career-high 243 rushing yards, becoming the first Michigan running back to rush for more than 200 yards since Karan Higdon in 2017.
No. 3 State of Ohio 52, Wisconsin 21 – Ohio State’s offensive streak continues with seven touchdowns for 281 passing yards and 258 rushing yards. Both TreVeyon Henderson and Miyan Williams broke 100 yards in the rush while Cade Stover recorded two touchdown receptions at the tight end. While Wisconsin’s offense recorded 296 yards and three touchdowns, it only recorded 11 first downs.
1 Oct
#4 Michigan 27, Iowa 14 — Michigan had two field goals and two touchdowns in its first five possessions to keep Iowa at bay, allowing for a Spencer Petras touchdown and a Kaleb Johnson touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Wolverines rushed for 327 yards and 24 touchdowns against Iowa’s top-ranked defense, including 133 yards ahead of Corum.
#3 Ohio State 49, Rutgers 10 – With Henderson unavailable, Williams was the centerpiece of Ohio State’s offense, recording five of the team’s seven touchdowns and 189 rushing yards on 21 carries. Linebacker Steele Chambers recorded two of Ohio State’s six tackles-for-loss on offense averaging 3.3 yards per game.
8 Oct
#4 Michigan 31, Indiana 10 – Amid running backs coach Mike Hart’s medical emergency, who collapsed on the sidelines in the first quarter, Michigan beat Indiana 21-0 in the second half and drove to a 21-point win. While McCarthy had 304 passing yards and three touchdowns and Corum added 124 rushing yards and a score, Michigan’s defense had seven sacks from seven different players with 10 tackles for loss.
No. 3 Ohio State 49, Michigan State 20 – In Ohio State’s first road game of the 2022 season, Stroud threw six touchdowns and completed 21 of his 26 pass attempts for 361 yards along with one interception. Michael Hall Jr. was a force down the middle of Ohio State’s defensive line, finishing with 2.5 sacks against an offense that recorded seven rushing yards on 20 carries.
15 Oct
#5 Michigan 41, #10 Penn State 17 – Corum and Donovan Edwards ran all over Penn State’s defense and combined for 339 rushing yards and four touchdowns, including consecutive touchdown carries of at least 60 yards, to help the Wolverines to a 24-point win over their only opponent in the seen whole season. Michigan limited Penn State to one offensive touchdown — one touchdown on a McCarthy interception — and one field goal.
Free week in the state of Ohio
22 Oct
Michigan week off
#2 Ohio State 54, Iowa 10 — Faced with Iowa’s top-10 defense, Ohio State hit five touchdowns — four of which came from Stroud in the passing game. Eichenberg recorded one interception and returned it for a touchdown, while safety Tanner McCalister recorded two interceptions against a Hawkeye defense that recorded 158 yards of offense and eight first downs.
29 Oct
No. 4 Michigan 29, State of Michigan 7 – Michigan was redeemed for its 2020 and 2021 losses to Michigan State with 177 rushing yards from Corum and five field goals from kicker Jake Moody. After the game, social media posts showed an altercation between Michigan State players and Michigan defenseman Ja’Den McBurrows in the Michigan Stadium tunnel, which was investigated and resulted in the suspension of eight Spartan players.
#2 Ohio State 44, #13 Penn State 31 – JT Tuimoloau proved the star of the show against Penn State, recording six tackles, three tackles-for-loss, two sacks, two interceptions — one of which was returned for a touchdown — and a pass separation that led to an interception. Three quick touchdowns, including two by Henderson, and a 185-yard tag for Harrison resulted in the Buckeyes’ second league win of the 2022 season.
5 Nov
#4 Michigan 52, Rutgers 17 — Trailing 17-14 at halftime, Michigan regrouped and beat Rutgers 38-0 in the second half to earn the 35-point win. Edwards and Corum each recorded 100+ yard rushes for the second time while McCarthy added two passing touchdowns. Michigan’s defense allowed 180 yards and five first downs for the Scarlet Knights offense.
#2 Ohio State 21, Northwest 7 – Ohio State battled Northwestern on the road. In heavy rain and high winds, the Buckeyes recorded just 283 yards of offense and 13 first downs, and grabbed three quick touchdowns, including two by Williams. Stroud finished the game with 76 passing yards, completing 10 of his 26 pass attempts and adding 79 rushing yards.
Nov 12
#3 Michigan 34, Nebraska 3 – Nebraska’s offense could muster just eight first downs and 146 offensive yards against Michigan’s defense, failing touchdowns for the second time in 2022. Corum added 162 yards rushing.
No. 2 Ohio State 56, Indiana 14 – Ohio State regrouped against Indiana when Stroud played five touchdown passes against the Hoosiers defense. But after a first half in which Williams rushed for 147 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries, he was sent off with a leg injury. Hayden took over and recorded 102 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. Eichenberg recorded three tackles for loss while safety Lathan Ransom showed up with 1.5 sacks, a pass break and a blocked punt.
Nov 19
No. 3 Michigan 19, Illinois 17 – Michigan broke away from Illinois with nine seconds left and secured the two-point win with a 35-yard field goal from Moody. Corum recorded 108 yards and a touchdown in the first half before leaving most of the second half with an apparent knee injury. Illinois running back Chase Brown recorded 140 yards and two touchdowns against the Wolverines defense.
No. 2 Ohio State 43, Maryland 30 — Ohio State was three times behind Maryland at halftime, finding their momentum but securing a win late on with a field goal from Noah Ruggles and a stripsack from defensive end Zach Harrison, which Chambers secured in the end zone. Hayden led the Buckeyes with 146 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries.
Nov 26
No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 3 Michigan, Columbus, Ohio, Noon, FOX
