COLLEGE FOOTBALL RECORDS

First game:  1897 (Michigan won, 34-0)
At stake:  The Game; The Big Game; The 100-Yard War
When:  late November 
Where:  Michigan Stadium or Ohio Stadium

Misc.:  
Jim Tressel became only the second Buckeye head coach to win
his first game, Earle Bruce was the last Ohio State coach to win his
first game against Michigan, in 1979.

When Ohio Stadium opened in 1922, Michigan spoiled the party with a 22-0
victory. The rivalry was heated in the early days as both have been
long-time college football powers. But it got even hotter in 1969, when Bo
Schembechler took over as Michigan's coach and upset Woody Hayes' No.
1-ranked, undefeated Buckeyes. Four times in the next six years, both
teams were ranked in the top five when they met. In 1970 and 1973, both
were undefeated (they tied 10-10 in '73). From 1970 through 1975, Michigan
entered without a loss every year. The Wolverines won just once. Ohio
State was 9-0-1 in 1993, 11-0 in 1995 and 10-0 in 1996. The Buckeyes lost
each time.

The 2003 game was the 100th meeting between these two schools.
In it, Michigan's Chris Perry ran for 154 yards and two touchdowns and John
Navarre threw a pair of touchdown passes to Braylon Edwards as Michigan won,
35-21. The game drew 112,118, the largest crowd in college football history.

Ten games to remember: 
1) 1950--The temperature hovered near 10 degrees, and winds whipped the snow
at 28 mph. Columbus was paralyzed on Nov. 25, 1950, by one of the worst
snowstorms ever to hit the area. Yet Michigan and Ohio State played on.
Several inches of snow had obliterated the yard lines at Ohio Stadium.
Long snappers said when they looked back between their legs they couldn't
even see the punter. And punters played a huge role.
Michigan's Chuck Ortman punted 24 times for 723 total yards, and Ohio State's
Vic Janowicz--who won the Heisman Trophy that year--had 685 yards on 21 kicks.
The teams frequently punted on first down, just to avoid a turnover. Ultimately,
it was a turnover--on a blocked punt--that provided the difference.
On third and 6 at the Ohio State 13, Buckeyes coach Wes Fesler instructed Janowicz
to punt with Ohio State holding a 3-2 lead. Only 47 seconds remained in the half
and it is likely that Ohio State could have run out the clock. But Michigan's
Tony Momsen--whose older brother Bob played for the Buckeyes--blocked the kick
and then fell on it in the end zone, closing the scoring in a 9-3 Michigan win.
Michigan won the infamous "Snow Bowl" despite not having a first down and
misfiring on all nine passes.
Fesler was fired, and a young coach from Miami of Ohio named Wayne Woodrow
Hayes eventually was hired.

2) 1969--This was the first meeting between Michigan's Glenn "Bo" Schembechler,
and his former boss and good friend, Hayes. A year after Hayes' Buckeyes cruised
past the Wolverines 50-14 on their way to a national championship,
Schembechler denied No. 1-ranked Ohio State a second consecutive title with
a stunning 24-12 upset in Ann Arbor.

3) 1972--No. 9 Ohio State was 8-1, while Michigan was ranked No. 3 and was 10-0.
On two dramatic series, Ohio State kept the Wolverines out of the end zone on
fourth and goal from the 1-yard line. A field goal on either possession would
have tied the game, won 14-11 by the Buckeyes. Schembechler would say
afterward, "No, I didn't go for the field goal from the 1 because I thought
we could score from there. We should have scored from the 1!"

4) 1973--No. 4 Michigan had outscored its opponents 235-48. No. 1 Ohio Stat had
a 297-27 scoring edge on its victims. Both were 10-0 and they played to a 10-10
tie.
After the game, the Big Ten's athletics directors met to select the
conference's representative to the Rose Bowl. Even though Michigan's Mike
Lantry missed two field goals in the last two minutes and the Wolverines easily
won the statistical battle, the ADs voted for Ohio State, driving Schembechler
into a frenzy.

5) 1975--Ohio State scores twice in the last two minutes to pull out a 21-14
victory and hold onto the No. 1 spot. Buckeyes then go to the Rose Bowl and
are upset by UCLA, losing another national title.

6) 1978--No. 6 Michigan beats No. 16 Ohio State 14-3 in the last meeting
between Schembechler and Hayes. A month later in the Gator Bowl, Hayes throws
a punch at Clemson linebacker Charlie Baumann and is fired. Schembechler stays
on another 11 years, preserving the legacy of "The Game."

7) 1987--Fired five days earlier, Ohio State coach Earle Bruce took his team to
Ann Arbor for a game that had no national or Big Ten implications. Just before
game time, while standing on the sidelines, Bruce turned around to see every
member of the team take off his helmet. Each wore a white headband with the
word EARLE written on it in black marker. Ohio State pulled off the 23-20 upset.

8) 1995--Ohio State is 11-0 and ranked No. 2, but is undone by Tim Biakabutuka's
313 yards on 37 carries. The Wolverines hold on, 31-23.

9) 1996--Second-ranked Ohio State was unbeaten and needed a win to take over the
No. 1 spot. Michigan had three losses and was a heavy underdog at Ohio Stadium.
The Wolverines' 13-9 shocker--aided by a slippery field when OSU
All-American cornerback Shawn Springs slipped on Tai Streets' long touchdown
catch and run--dropped Ohio State far enough in the polls that even when the
Buckeyes won the Rose Bowl they ended up a close No. 2.

10) 1997--Michigan came in No. 1 and stayed that way, beating fourth-ranked
Ohio State 20-14 as Ohio native Charles Woodson starred on both sides of the
ball to seal the Heisman Trophy.