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Michigan football had enjoyed a lot of success during the 1940s, especially against the rival team from Ohio. Yet the Wolverines only claimed two outright conference titles and shared two others. In 1950, head coach Bennie Ooosterbaan hoped his Michigan team could win another conference championship and a trip back to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
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SNOWFLAKES TO ROSE PEDALS
In 1950, Ohio State was ranked #8 in the nation and coming into The Game with a 6-2 record. The Buckeyes team had been led by Vic Janowitz, one of the best athletes in their program’s history. Michigan was off to a disappointing 5-3-1 start and fell out of the AP rankings earlier that year. However, because of a better conference record than the Buckeyes, they still had a chance at winning the Big Ten and a trip to the Rose Bowl. The night before The Game, a blizzard swept across the Great Lakes area and across northern Ohio. It was the beginning of the great Appalachian storm of 1950, that claimed the lives of dozens of people. Columbus was covered in a half-foot of snow by game time and gusting winds made it difficult to clear the field of snowdrifts. The contest was nearly called off. However, Michigan Athletic Director Fritz Crisler insisted that if the game wasn’t played, his team would not return the following week. Game on.
The Game became a slippery, windy, punting exhibition by both teams that day. Michigan took the strategy of punting on first and second down, playing the field position game to the extreme. On the other sideline, Buckeyes coach Wes Fesler decided to play it conservative too. The strategy backfired for him. With the score 3-2 in favor of the Buckeyes, and under a minute remaining in the first half, Coach Fesler chose to punt on third down instead of running out the clock. The Vic Janowitz punt was blocked and recovered in the endzone by center Tony Momsen for the game’s only touchdown. Tony’s brother, Bob Momsen, playing for Ohio State, had blocked a punt earlier in the game. That blocked punt led to the Buckeyes field goal and only score of the game. Michigan won the game 9-3 despite having 27 yards of offense, punting 24 times, and not converting a first down or completing a pass. Wes Fesler resigned two weeks later and Michigan went on to win the Rose Bowl 14-6 over California.
EVERY GOOD STORY NEEDS AN ANTAGONIST
The Michigan Wolverines and their fans have always seen themselves as the good guys in this rivalry. The higher class university, the more prestigious football program. Some say that is arrogance, but to Michigan fans, it’s simply the truth. As the Ohio State Buckeyes built upon their own traditions, they hoped to be recognized as being on the same level as their bitter rivals from up north. No single man contributed more to that goal for the Buckeyes than Wayne Woodrow Hayes.
Coach Woody Hayes was a rough-edged military man and had only been a head coach a few short years before being hired at Ohio State. His 33-11 record at Denison and Miami University in Ohio had turned heads. It was also his blue-collar, no-nonsense, push it to the limit style of player development, that made him a perfect fit in the Big Ten Conference. He also was known to have what we would refer to today as anger management issues. Hayes also had a difficult start to his tenure at Ohio State, having three losses in each of his first three years at the helm. His losses included shutout defeats at the hands of Michigan in 1951 and 1953, which was an unacceptable trajectory in Columbus. A win against the Wolverines, nay one series, one goal-line stand in 1954 that would save Woody Hayes’ career.
The 1954 match-up featured the No. 1 ranked Buckeyes versus the No. 12 ranked Wolverines. Bennie Ooosterbaan’s Michigan squad held Ohio State to a 7-7 tie going into the fourth quarter. Michigan had picked up a first down near the Buckeye goal line, poised to score the go-ahead touchdown, only to be stuffed on four straight downs. The Ohio State defense held in dramatic fashion at the 1-yard-line and then handed the ball over to the Buckeye offense. All-American Howard ‘Hopalong’ Cassidy and the Ohio State offense fed off the momentum of their defense, driving 99 yards for a touchdown and the lead. The Buckeyes won the game 21-7, finishing the year undefeated and giving them claim to the Associated Press national title.
Coach Hayes followed up with another win over the Wolverines in 1955, in the Big House. He became the first Ohio State coach to win in Ann Arbor since 1937, and only the third to win consecutive games against Michigan. Woody would rack up a 12-6 record in his first eighteen years at Ohio State, versus Wolverine teams led by coaches Bennie Oosterbaan and Bump Elliott.
Michigan had seen five losing seasons and only 1 conference title under Coach Bump Elliott. For a program like Michigan, the expectations were so much higher. The final nail in Elliott’s coaching coffin in Ann Arbor was a 50-14 loss to the Buckeyes in 1968. What started out as a close game, soon turned ugly for Michigan. At the end of the contest, after Ohio State scored a touchdown to take a 48-14 lead, Woody elected to go for two. When asked by a reporter after the game why he chose to go for the 2-point conversion, Hayes responded, “Because they wouldn’t let me go for three.” Ohio State went on to win another Rose Bowl and the national championship. For Michigan, it was a loss that would cut bone-deep. Despite having gone 8-2 on the season, the blowout loss to the Buckeyes led to just the eighth coaching change in Michigan program history.
BO WHO?
“Bo who?” That was the question everyone in Wolverine country was asking Don Canham in 1969. Glenn “Bo” Schembechler was an unknown to just about everyone around the Big Ten, except Woody Hayes. Schembechler played offensive tackle for Hayes at Miami of Ohio and later joined his Ohio State coaching staff as an assistant. Who better to defeat Woody Hayes than one of his disciples? Who better to beat ‘Ohio’ than a former Buckeye assistant?
Apparently, Joe Paterno. At least that’s what Canham originally thought. But when Paterno turned him down, Canham found a diamond in the rough in Schembechler.
Schembechler had some coaching credits of his own, compiling six winning seasons at his alma mater, Miami. He brought a hard-nosed, gritty attitude and an air of confidence, that could be contagious to a player if they were willing to work hard. Many players quit the team before the end of spring practices in 1969, but Schembechler challenged the remaining young men. Bo made a sign for the locker room that promised: “Those who stay, will be champions.” He later emphasized that he intended for them to be champions on the football field, in the classroom, as young men, and as fathers and husbands. It was also clear from the get-go, that Bo had studied Michigan tradition and was serious about beating Ohio State.
The 1969 Ohio State Buckeyes had been ranked at the top of the AP poll all season long. They were considered a juggernaut and by his own admission Woody Hayes’ best Buckeyes team up to that point. Bo Schembechler’s Michigan Wolverines dropped their third and fifth games of the season, entering the game ranked at #12 with a 7-2 record. The Wolverines had found a groove late in the year with four straight wins, averaging 44.5 points-per-game, outscoring opponents 178-22 during that stretch.
Schembechler and his staff spent all season preparing his team for the Buckeyes, little-by-little, week-by-week. He even changed the base defensive scheme at the beginning of the year from a 4-3 to a 50 front, because Ohio State ran a 50 front. He wanted his team to know the Buckeyes inside and out. Schembechler also would not allow his Wolverines to forget the 50-14 loss to Ohio State the year before. The score was written on signs, placed all over the Michigan football facilities, “50-14” stickers put on the players’ helmets, and every player on the scout team wearing number 50. All to remind the Michigan team how Woody Hayes had disrespected the entire Michigan program when he went for two points in 1968. Michigan was out for revenge, and on November 22, 1969, they finally had their chance.
The Buckeyes were a 17-point favorite and led the game 6-0 early on. Michigan answered with a Garvie Craw touchdown, taking a 7-6 lead on the Buckeyes. It was the first time Ohio State had surrendered a lead all year long. The lead would change two more times, first with the Buckeyes taking a 12-7 lead. Then Michigan running back Billy Taylor broke a 28-yard run to set up another Craw touchdown. The Wolverines defense forced a quick three and out, which resulted in a punt. Michigan senior Barry Pierson returned the punt 60 yards, setting up another touchdown for Schembechler’s team. They held a 24-12 lead at halftime, then shutout the Buckeyes in the second half to pull off what was the biggest upset in the history of the rivalry. Bo Schembechler’s players carried him off the Michigan Stadium turf, and Woody Hayes was crushed.
The rivalry heated up to its boiling point for the next decade, each team focused solely on winning a Big Ten title and winning that final regular-season game of the year. Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler waged a ‘Ten Year War’ against each other that pulled no punches and lost no love.
In 1973, both teams entered the final game of the season ranked in the top five in the nation. Ohio State at No. 1 and Michigan at No. 4 in the AP poll, both teams undefeated at 10-0 on the year. They had fought out nail-biting defensive battles in the previous two meetings, and the ’73 meeting was no different. The game ended in a 10-10 tie, leaving the two teams with the same record. Michigan had dominated the Buckeyes statistically and believed that they would be headed to the Rose Bowl to represent the Big Ten. Instead, a controversial vote by Big Ten athletic directors gave Ohio State the Rose Bowl bid. Bo Schembechler was furious, feeling slighted by the conference.
It would get worse before it got better on the Michigan side of the rivalry. The Wolverines defeated everyone on their schedule from 1973 to 1975, except for Archie Griffin and the Ohio State Buckeyes. Woody had earned a 4-2-1 advantage against Schembechler to that point. Early in 1976, Bo underwent open-heart surgery but was able to return to the team in the summer and lead them to a 9-1 start going into The Game. All-American running back Rob Lytle and quarterback Rick Leach sparked a second-half surge, leading the Wolverines to a 22-0 victory over the Buckeyes. Michigan would win The Game in 1977, and again in 1978 to make it three straight for the first time since Bennie Oosterbaan’s teams of the late 40s.
After losing to Michigan in 1978, Woody Hayes went on to have a meltdown in the Buckeyes’ Gator Bowl loss. His physical assault of a Clemson player in that game would be the end of his career and the end of the ‘Ten Year War.’
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HARBAUGH’S GUARANTEE, DESMOND’S POSE, AND WOODSON’S ROSE
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In his eighteenth season as Michigan head coach, Bo Schembechler’s starting senior quarterback was Jim Harbaugh. Jim was a confident captain, a leader, and the son of one of Schembechler’s former assistants. Leading up to the 1986 matchup with Ohio State, Harbaugh told reporters that he guaranteed a win that Saturday in Columbus. Michigan was 9-1, coming off a disappointing first loss of the year to Minnesota the week before. For only the second time since 1935, The Game was not the final regular-season game for Michigan. To the chagrin of many Michigan fans, a game with Hawaii had been added to the schedule the week after the yearly rivalry game. It did still provide them with an opportunity to redeem themselves, win a share of the Big Ten, and go to the Rose Bowl. The guarantee made by the Michigan quarterback was not going to make things easier.
The Buckeyes jumped out to an early lead, but Harbaugh and All-American running back Jamie Morris helped lead the Wolverines as they battled back. The Ohio State lead was just 14-6 at halftime, leaving opportunity for Schembechler’s squad to take the lead. The teams traded touchdowns in the second half, creating a 26-24 Michigan advantage with just over a minute to play. Ohio State had recovered a fumble but Michigan held at their own 28-yard-line, forcing a Buckeye field goal. Matt Frantz’s kick attempt was wide left, sealing a Wolverine win and backing up the guarantee made by the highly competitive Harbaugh.
In 1991, another Wolverine legend made a bold move against Ohio State. This time, it was after the dagger had been plunged in the heart of the Buckeyes. The fourth-ranked Michigan team outmatched their eighteenth-ranked rivals, winning 31-3. Heisman Trophy hopeful Desmond Howard returned a punt 93 yards for a touchdown, striking the Heisman pose in the endzone. Michigan claimed a share of the Big Ten title and Howard became the second Wolverine to bring home the Heisman Trophy award.
1997 – Another Michigan-Ohio State game, another top-five match-up with a Big Ten title and national championship on the line. Oh, and another Heisman Trophy on the line. This time, it was Lloyd Carr’s Michigan team looking to hold on to a No. 1 ranking and the Buckeyes playing spoiler. The guy looking to do the Heisman pose was primarily on the defensive side of the ball though. Wolverine cornerback Charles Woodson knew all about the rivalry with the Buckeyes, long before he attended the University of Michigan. He grew up in northern Ohio. He also knew what to do with the ball in his hands, having played running back in high school. Woodson returned a punt 78 yards for a touchdown and helped the Wolverines off to a 20-0 lead before the Buckeyes began a late surge. It was his defense, however, that thwarted the Ohio State rally. The Buckeyes were threatening to take the lead in a 20-14 game when Charles Woodson intercepted a Stanley Jackson pass in the endzone. Woodson would become the first (and still the only) primarily defensive player to win the Heisman Trophy and Michigan won the Rose Bowl to claim their 11th national championship.
‘THE GAME’ IN THE NEW MILLENIUM
Gary Moeller and Lloyd Carr were products of the Bo Schembechler coaching tree, and fully understood the importance of the Ohio State rivalry at Michigan. Lloyd Carr had won four of five against Ohio State to finish out the 20th Century. Then he kicked off the new millennium with another win over a John Cooper coached Buckeye team. Cooper was let go after the 2000 season to make room for a sweater vest clad villain to take the stage in the next act of this storied rivalry.
New Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel did not waste time throwing gasoline on the flames of the greatest rivalry in college football. After being officially introduced as head coach, he attended a Buckeyes basketball game in Columbus. Tressel declared to the Buckeye fans that his team would come away from Ann Arbor with a victory on the football field that November. He followed through on that promise and doubled down in 2002 with a second straight win over Lloyd Carr’s Wolverines.
2003 brought the 100th meeting of these two football programs and the stage was set for another classic between Buckeyes and Wolverines. Jim Tressel’s Ohio State team was ranked #4 in the BCS national rankings and Lloyd Carr’s Michigan squad came in ranked at #5. Michigan jumped out to a 21-0 lead early in the game and never relinquished it for a 35-21 victory and a trip to the Rose Bowl. It would be the last celebrating the Wolverines would do in this rivalry for a long time.
Ohio State came into the 2006 season expecting a shot at a Big Ten title and the national championship. Michigan however, just came off a 5-loss season and expectations were not high. The Wolverines proceeded to crank out 11 wins to begin the season, including a surprising Week Three dismantling of Notre Dame in South Bend. When rankings were released the week of The Game, Ohio State and Michigan were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the nation, respectively. It would be the first time in the history of the rivalry that the two teams were facing off from the top two slots. The winner would earn a bid to the national championship game.
The hype leading up to The Game is always feverish and full of lore. Jim Tressel invited former coach Earle Bruce to deliver an address to the team on Sunday night, and former Buckeye linebacker Jack Tatum gave a speech on Thursday night. Lloyd Carr had the great Bo Schembechler lined up to give a Thursday night speech to his team. But Bo was not in good health, prompting Carr to try and talk him out of speaking to the team. Schembechler insisted, skipping a cardiologist appointment to be there.
The anticipation was already unmatched for this historic match-up, and then a little over 24 hours before kickoff, tragedy struck. Bo Schembechler had died, leaving Michigan fans sad and yearning for a big win to honor their fallen legend. The Wolverines fought hard but lost a 42-39 thriller to the Buckeyes that would be dubbed ‘The Game of the Century.’
The passing of Bo Schembechler seemed to trigger a shift in the college football universe, casting a dark cloud of the Michigan side of the rivalry for years to come. Lloyd Carr left Michigan after the 2007 season and another loss to Ohio State. Rich Rodriguez lost all three of his match-ups with the Buckeyes and Brady Hoke mustered just one win — Michigan’s last in the series to date — in four tries. As Ohio State rose to possibly the highest plateau of their storied existence under coach Urban Meyer, Michigan suffered through mediocrity.
Former Michigan quarterback Jim Harbaugh was brought back to Michigan to restore the order of the football universe. To get Michigan back to competing with Ohio State for Big Ten championships. So far, Harbaugh is 0-4 against the Buckeyes. A blowout loss in 2015 was followed by a 2016 game that slipped away in double-overtime. Those first two losses to the Buckeyes could be forgiven by Michigan fans, understanding that it takes time to turn a program around. But after turning in three 10-win seasons in four years, the continued losses to rival Ohio State have become unacceptable to many in the fanbase. Some believe that The Game should be placed high above other games on the schedule, made a priority above all else. Others see it as just part of the puzzle to success in the landscape of Big Ten football today.
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What is painfully clear for Michigan fans in recent years, is that beating Ohio State has become increasingly difficult. While the Wolverines were struggling through coaching changes and scheme overhauls, the Buckeyes had developed arguably the most successful football program in the modern era.
In rivalries like this one, however, you won’t hear excuses. Jim Harbaugh is fully aware of what is at stake this coming Saturday in Ann Arbor. His players know that it’s time to cash in on all that trust they have put into the system.
It is clear that both programs have benefitted from this rivalry. Ohio State built its entire program on showing that it could compete with, and beat the mighty Michigan machine of the early 1900s. The ‘Ten Year War’ brought both teams to national attention just as television was becoming a viable way to distribute the game to homes around the entire country. And now the Ohio State dynasty has motivated the Wolverines to return their program to greatness under Jim Harbaugh’s guidance.
These two schools and programs strongly dislike each other, maybe even hate each other. But they also need each other more than either would like to admit.
This is the greatest rivalry in all of college sports. Wolverines and Buckeyes will never forget it.
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