For most of Saturday, Ohio State certainly looked like it was going to lose its first game to Michigan at home in over 15 years.
But after Tyler Durbin kicked a game-tying field goal with 1 second remaining to send the game to overtime, the Buckeyes pulled out a thrilling 30-27 win in double overtime.
Michigan got the ball to start the second overtime and the Buckeyes' defense held the Wolverines to a 37-yard field goal from Kenny Allen. After Ohio State converted a 4th-and-1, Curtis Samuel scored on a 15-yard touchdown to win the game.
It took just two plays for Ohio State to score in the first overtime. Curtis Samuel ripped off an 18-yard run on the first play from scrimmage and then J.T. Barrett punched it in from there on a 7-yard keeper. Michigan answered, however, with a 5-yard touchdown pass from Wilton Speight to Amarah Darboh on fourth-and-goal.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | 2OT | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MICHIGAN | 0 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 27 |
| OHIO STATE | 0 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 30 |
With 5 minutes, 36 seconds remaining, the Buckeyes got the ball on their own 18-yard line and drove down the field to kick a game-tying field goal. Tyler Durbin, who had missed two attempts earlier in the game, connected from 23 yards out to send the game into overtime at 17-17.
Trailing 17-7 late in the third quarter, Ohio State sophomore linebacker intercepted Michigan quarterback Wilton Speight to set up the Buckeyes at the Wolverines' 13-yard line. Two plays later, running back Mike Weber found the end zone from 1 yard out to trim the deficit to 17-14.
With two top-notch defenses, points were always going to be difficult to come by and in the first half, that's exactly what happened.
Ohio State found success on its opening drive, but not much afterward. The Buckeyes marched right down the field for 72 yards on 10 plays, but Tyler Durbin's 37-yard field goal was wide left. The first points of the day didn't come until the second quarter when Michigan's Kenny Allen connected on a 28-yarder to put the Wolverines ahead, 3-0.
With Ohio State's offense sputtering, Cameron Johnston pinned Michigan back inside its own 10-yard line with 4:10 remaining in the first half. On the very first play, Speight was hit by Raekwon McMillan and intercepted by Malik Hooker, who promptly returned it 16 yards for the go-ahead touchdown as Ohio Stadium erupted.
But Michigan responded exactly the way it needed to. A 44-yard kickoff return by Jabrill Peppers gave the Wolverines great field position and Michigan capitalized by going 55 yards on 11 plays as the drive ended in a 1-yard touchdown run by Khalid Hill with just six seconds remaining in the first half.
The Wolverines led 10-7 at halftime.
Ohio State gained 72 yards on its opening drive but finished the first half with just 81 as Michigan's defense dominated. The Wolverines controlled the clock and had the ball for over 18 minutes in the first half.
With the win, the Buckeyes finish the regular-season 11-1.
| Ohio State | Stat | Michigan |
|---|---|---|
| 330 | NET TOTAL YARDS | 310 |
| 206 | RUSHING YARDS | 91 |
| 50 | RUSHING ATTEMPTS | 43 |
| 4.1 | AVERAGE PER RUSH | 2.1 |
| 3 | RUSHING TOUCHDOWNS | 1 |
| 124 | PASSING YARDS | 219 |
| 15–32 | COMPLETIONS–ATTEMPTS | 23–36 |
| 8.3 | AVERAGE PER COMPLETION | 9.5 |
| 0 | PASSING TOUCHDOWNS | 2 |
| 23 | 1st DOWNS | 16 |
| 13 | RUSHING 1st DOWNS | 7 |
| 7 | PASSING 1st DOWNS | 9 |
| 3 | PENALTY 1st DOWNS | 0 |
| 82 | TOTAL PLAYS | 79 |
| 4.0 | YARDS PER PLAY | 3.9 |
| 2–3 | RED ZONE | 1–1 |
| 3–16 | 3rd DOWNS | 9–19 |
| 2–3 | 4th DOWNS | 1–1 |
| 2–6 | PENALTIES | 7–59 |
| 28:47 | POSSESSION | 31:13 |
Game Notes
- Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer improved to 165-28 in his career, continuing to hold the highest winning percentage among active coaches with at least 10 years of FBS coaching experience at .855.
- The attendance of 110,045 broke the Ohio Stadium attendance record previously set at 108,975 against Michigan State Nov. 21, 2015.
- The game went to overtime for the first time in 113 meetings between Ohio State and Michigan.
- Ohio State improved to 10-2 when trailing at the half under Meyer.
- Meyer is 19-1 in the month of November at Ohio State and 5-0 vs. Michigan at Ohio State.
- Meyer improved to a perfect 8-0 in his career in overtime games.
- Ohio State won its fifth-consecutive game against the Wolverines, one shy of the school record of six-consecutive wins against Michigan from 2004-2009.
- Malik Hooker’s 16-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter was his program-record third of the season and third of his career. Neal Colzie previously held the season record with two interception returns for touchdowns in 1973 while Hooker and Colzie tied nine other Buckeyes for the career record.
- The interception return for a touchdown was the Buckeyes’ seventh of the season, marking the most nationally.
- J.T. Barrett’s third-quarter interception was his first since the third quarter of the Buckeyes’ game at Wisconsin, marking 207 passes thrown without an interception.
- Mike Weber’s one-yard touchdown run in the third quarter marked his team-high ninth rushing score of the year. Barrett later tied him with a seven-yard touchdown run for his eighth rushing touchdown of the year.
- Jerome Baker recorded a career-high 15 tackles while Chris Worley tallied a career-best 11 stops. Raekwon McMillan tied his career high with 16 tackles.
