There is nothing quite like Michigan and Ohio State, and the biggest shocks in this rivalry have a way of landing with the force of a knockout punch.
The Wolverines and Buckeyes have played plenty of games that felt bigger than football. The source of that heat has not changed, even if the new era of college football may keep us from seeing the kind of winner-take-all showdowns that defined 2021, 2022 and 2023. Those years joined other heavyweight editions of The Game from 1997, 2003, 2006, 2016 and 2018.
Michigan still treats beating Ohio State as the top priority, and Jim Harbaugh put that mindset in plain language when he said, "We are going to beat Ohio or die trying."
Harbaugh backed it up by winning his final three games against the Buckeyes, including two times as a more than a touchdown underdog. Looking back at the 21st century, these are the five biggest upsets in the series.
The most eye-opening line in the bunch may be 2018, when Michigan entered The Shoe as a 4.5-point favorite and got flattened in a 62-39 Ohio State win. The Wolverines had won 10 straight before that matchup, and they came in believing they could bully a Buckeyes team that had just been run over by Maryland the week before. Instead, Urban Meyer’s final home game turned into a blowout, and Michigan walked straight into a buzzsaw.
The rivalry flipped hard in 2001, when Jim Tressel’s debut season produced an Ohio State upset as a 7.5-point underdog. Michigan had dominated the matchup from 1995 through 2000, winning five of six and taking games in Columbus in 1996 and 2000.
The Buckeyes, though, were the ones who landed the first punch that year. They built a 23-point first-half lead and held on for a 26-20 win that changed the feel of the series.
Michigan would win again in 2003, but that was the lone victory from 2001 through 2010.
Then came 2021, the day Michigan finally ended the streak as a 6.5-point home dog. A few months after Harbaugh’s “Beat Ohio or die trying” line, the Wolverines did exactly that in a 42-27 win at the Big House.
Hassan Haskins powered the offense with five touchdowns, Michigan controlled the second half, Aidan Hutchinson had three sacks, and David Ojabo added one more. CJ Stroud threw for 743 yards across two games against Michigan, but the Buckeyes could not run it, stop the run, or protect him.
The 2022 rematch was even more lopsided in Michigan’s favor. The Wolverines went into Columbus as a 9-point underdog and ended a 22-year drought there with a 45-23 win.
Ohio State was still ranked No. 2 and still wanted payback after the 2021 loss, but Michigan answered with a second straight beatdown. Donovan Edwards scored twice on fourth-quarter runs, J.J.
McCarthy accounted for four touchdowns, and Michigan outscored Ohio State 28-3 in the second half. McCarthy threw two first-half touchdown passes to Cornelius Johnson and later hit Colston Loveland for a third-quarter score that put Michigan ahead for good.
The latest shock came in 2024, when Michigan stunned Ohio State as a 19.5-point underdog in a 13-10 win. Ohio State went on to win the national championship, but it still could not handle a 6-5 Michigan team.
The Wolverines also knocked the Buckeyes out of Big Ten title contention, and Ryan Day still has not won the conference since 2020, when the Big Ten had to change its rules so Ohio State could reach the title game. Michigan did it with former walk-on Davis Warren at quarterback, without Colston Loveland or Donovan Edwards, and still looked tougher.
Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant controlled the Ohio State offensive line in one of the most surprising wins this rivalry has ever seen.
In Other News...
Michigan Recruiting Momentum Suddenly Includes A Familiar Name
Michigans 2028 recruiting board is starting to take on a familiar shape, and it comes with a name Wolverines fans already know well. Carson Graham, the younger brother of former Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham, is among the prospects looking at Ann Arbor, while four-star backs Cartae Ligon and Xander Edwards are also showing real interest as the Wolverines continue building relationships early in the cycle.
For Michigan, the appeal is obvious: a family connection in Grahams case, and established ties with running backs coach Tony Alford for both Ligon and Edwards. Ligon has long had Michigan near the top of his list because of that relationship, and Edwards is set to see the program in person this fall after earning an offer and lining up a game visit, giving the staff a chance to keep momentum going with a pair of highly regarded backs. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Cannot Let This 2028 Receiver Slip Further South
Michigan has a familiar angle in the chase for Jarvis Stevenson, and it is one that can matter with a prospect this early in the process. The 6-foot-5 dual-sport athlete out of John Curtis Christian School in New Orleans has roots in Grand Rapids, giving the Wolverines a built-in hometown connection as they try to keep him from drifting deeper into SEC territory. Michigan identified him early and put a scholarship on the table while he was still beginning to build his profile, which at least gives the Wolverines a foothold in a recruitment that already has plenty of national attention.
The challenge now is holding that position against the usual heavyweight crowd. LSU, Auburn, Florida, Arkansas and Alabama are all in the mix, and for Michigan the pitch has to be about more than geography alone. The Wolverines will need to lean into how Stevenson could fit their offense and why Ann Arbor offers a different path than the one being laid out by the schools farther south, because once a receiver with his size and upside becomes a priority for that many programs, the race tends to move quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan May Be Building Something Dangerous In Ohio
Michigans new staff under Kyle Whittingham is wasting little time treating Ohio like a priority territory, and the early signs suggest the Wolverines want more than just the occasional border-state win. With coaches who know the state well, Michigan has started leaning into relationships there and has already added four-star cornerback Monsanna Torbert in the 2027 class while staying active with a growing list of younger prospects.
The next wave could matter even more. Michigan is in the mix for Ohio talent such as Asa Burch in the 2028 class, and four-star running back Carte Ligon is expected back in Ann Arbor for a Gameday visit this fall after seeing campus once already this spring. For a program trying to build something lasting, the real question is whether this is a one-off burst of momentum or the start of a pipeline that keeps sending Ohio prospects north. [Read more 🡒]