The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1513253
JANUARY 2024 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 25 regarding the emotions surging through him at the time. "I wasn't surprised at all, that they were all out there. But it was a scene you don't ever want to have to deal with, because of the situation. Continu- ing prayers for him, and I know the players are doing the same." One week after that scene, Petitti handed the silver football, the Big Ten championship trophy, to Zinter, at Har- baugh's behest. Zinter raised it aloft, completing an unimaginable week. Two days after the OSU game, Moore himself discovered his status changed by the head coach. "Coach Sherrone Moore called a great game," Harbaugh declared. "He coached the offensive line, and made the decisions as the head coach. I'm not saying I'm in a position of granting who a Michigan Man is or isn't, or who a Michigan legend is or is not. I'm not the maker of those two lists. But I have nominated people before, and I nominate [pounds lectern three times] Sherrone Moore as a Michigan legend." "I'm not the legend," Moore insisted. "HE is the legend!" And that's how far the Michigan- Ohio State series has evolved in a scant few years. Instead of fair-weather fans assigning the greatest share of blame in Michigan's most recent shortfall against the Buckeyes, it's who's the biggest leg- end following the most recent scrapbook- worthy thriller. That just enrages the Michigan haters. And for those who wish to throw shade on Michigan's revival by equating advanced scouting potentially outside of NCAA bounds with the severity of death-row crimes, it's highly unfortunate. Ari Wasserman, the national college football writer for The Athletic, spent 10 years covering the Buckeyes for The Athletic and Cleveland.com. He captured what the narrative could have been, had the Wolverines lost to Ohio State this sea- son. Wasserman tweeted: "One thing that needs to be said that I haven't heard any- one say is this: Ohio State didn't just lose the game, it missed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to really knock your hated opponent into a dark spot. "Imagine if Ohio State won, how we'd be talking about Michigan and the cheat- ing scandal today. It would have dele- gitimized everything Michigan accom- plished the last three years. Now, it's the opposite. "Ryan Day may win the Michigan game next year, but that missed opportunity in one of the biggest games in rivalry his- tory can never be salvaged. Day could have hurt Michigan's program more in this one than any other individual game in rivalry history. He didn't. "That has to be the toughest pill to swallow for Ohio State fans." Instead, the worm continues to turn, as new legends are fashioned. Instead, folks are talking about Michigan — the No. 1 team in the land — squaring off against Alabama in a potentially epic Rose Bowl. They're talking about Corum tying the Michigan record for touch- downs scored, the MVP status of Big Ten Championship Game stalwart Mikey Sainristil, the grad defensive back. They're absolutely talking about Michigan-Ohio State — 3-0 (and 0-3), and counting. ❏ Highlights Not To Miss A host of facts and figures arose out of Michigan's third straight victory over Ohio State. Here's a sampling of the bullet points emanating from the high-noon showdown at Michigan Stadium. • For the first time in 119 all-time meetings, the teams squared off for the second straight season as undefeated squads. Michigan won both of the consecutive 11-0 versus 11-0 matchups. The Buckeyes do still hold a slim 7-5-1 edge in battles between top-five Michigan and Ohio State squads. • Michigan leads in the overall series, 61-52-6. The Wolverines captured three in a row in the series for the first time since 1995-97. • Drew Henson served as Michigan quarterback the last time the winner of the ground-game battle did not emerge victorious in the annual showdown. The year was 2000 — since then, whoever rushed for the most yardage has not lost — and the streak stands at 22 straight. • Ryan Day has compiled a 39-3 record against the Big Ten since coming to Ohio State in 2019. Day's only three league losses have come at the hands of the Wolverines, against whom he now stands 1-3. • Ohio State became Michigan's 22nd straight victim at The Big House. That long of a winning streak hasn't been matched in Ann Arbor since 1969-73, when Bo Schembechler's Wolverines went 28 consecutive games at home without a loss. The current streak is the third-longest in Michigan football history. • The Buckeyes never managed a lead in the game all day. That means they never led in the second half, giving Michigan a regular season in which it never once trailed after halftime. • Ohio State tailback TreVeyon Henderson entered the game averaging 124.8 yards per contest in the month prior to going against the Michigan defense. He wound up rushing for 60 yards. • The Wolverines more than doubled the 11 points per game OSU allowed during the regular sea- son. Michigan wound up with 30, a field goal away from tripling the Buckeyes' defensive average. The Buckeyes entered the game allowing 9.3 points per contest, No. 2 in the nation. • Ohio State threw only 5 interceptions in 11 games prior to encountering the Wolverines. Michigan picked off a pair of passes, sophomore cornerback Will Johnson's interception setting up the first score of the contest and junior safety Rod Moore's effectively sealing the win late in the fourth quarter. • If Michigan wins next year at Ohio State, it would match the longest win streak by the Wolverines in The Game since 1988-91, the close of the Schembechler era and the beginning of Gary Moeller's stint as head coach. • The teams have played 44 games determined by a single score. Ohio State holds the edge in the close ones, but this year's 30-24 Michigan win closed that gap to 20-18-6. • The 2023 version of The Game represented the 26th time both teams were ranked in the top 10 of the Associated Press poll. Michigan's victory tied the series in this type of big-game showdown, 12-12-2. — John Borton Ohio State head coach Ryan Day had no answers against Michigan again this year. He has compiled a 39-3 record against Big Ten foes since 2019, with all three losses coming at the hands of the Wolverines, against whom he now stands 1-3. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN