ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) 鈥� can rest easy. Julian Sayin and No. 1 Ohio State dominated The Game on Saturday.
threw three touchdown passes, including a 35-yarder to Jeremiah Smith on a fourth down in the second quarter, and the Buckeyes beat No. 15 Michigan 27-9 to give Day a sorely needed victory in one of college football’s biggest rivalries.
With Day on the sideline, Ohio State had lost four in a row to Michigan. Not so much this time around, not with Sayin and Bo Jackson powering the offense, and the defense shutting down and the Wolverines.
鈥淣obody wants to win this game more than me,鈥� Day said. 鈥淭o win this game, it鈥檚 just a great moment. It鈥檚 one of those moments that you want to just grab on for a while and just enjoy it.鈥�
The defending national champion (12-0, 9-0 Big Ten, No. 1 CFP) likely earned a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff. They can keep their top seed with a win against No. 2 Indiana (12-0, 9-0, No. 2 CFP) in the conference championship game Saturday night in Indianapolis.
It was quite a performance by Ohio State a year after it was a big favorite for The Game and ended up losing to Michigan in Columbus. That sparked speculation that Day might lose his job.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a great win when you think about the point where we were at last year,鈥� Day said.
As much as Day tried to redirect the focus to his players, they knew the win meant a lot to him.
鈥淚 could see the joy on his face,鈥� said Jackson, a freshman who rushed for a season-high 117 yards.
The Wolverines (9-3, 7-2) started strong with two field goals and an interception on the first three possessions of the game, but couldn’t generate pressure when Ohio State wanted to pass.
Just Sayin.
After throwing an interception on his second snap, the redshirt freshman took advantage of the time and space he had to throw.
Sayin was 6 of 6 for 68 yards with two touchdowns on third and fourth down in the first half, including a 4-yard throw on third down to Brandon Inniss with 16 seconds left that made it 17-9 at the break. He finished 19 of 26 for 233 yards and threw for at least three touchdowns for the sixth time this season.
Like a savvy veteran, Sayin gave credit to his offensive line.
鈥淎ll season long they鈥檝e just had an edge them and played nasty,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e hand it off, we get 7 yards. You see guys getting thrown on the ground, it looks like carnage out there.鈥�
His clutch throw to Smith early in the second stirred some controversy.
Smith bobbled the ball as he went into the end zone and Fox鈥檚 officiating expert, Mike Pereira, questioned the call during the TV broadcast.
鈥淭hey said that he had control of it 鈥� didn’t look like he had control of it,鈥� Michigan coach Sherrone Moore said. 鈥淭hey told me that it was inconclusive.鈥�
Michigan might have gotten a break early in the game when edge rusher Jaishawn Barham was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct, but wasn鈥檛 ejected, after appearing to make contact with an official.
鈥淭he official grabbed him and he shouldn’t have reacted,鈥� Moore said.
In the end, the calls were moot because Ohio State put together a convincing performance.
Sayin helped the Buckeyes pull away with a perfect pass to Carnell Tate for a 50-yard touchdown in the third quarter, lofting a ball over the receiver’s shoulder after he got past Michigan鈥檚 secondary.
That put the game out of reach for the Wolverines, who couldn鈥檛 catch up after being relegated to kicking three field goals in the first half and failing to get their defense off the field in the second half.
The Buckeyes removed all doubt with a field goal midway through the fourth, capping a 20-play, 81-yard drive that took nearly 12 minutes off the clock.
Underwood, the nation鈥檚 No. 1 recruit a year ago, was 8 of 13 for a season-low 63 yards with an interception late in the game.
The Wolverines ran for just 100 yards on 24 carries against the nation鈥檚 top-ranked defense.
鈥淚t’s got to be better,鈥� Moore said. 鈥淚 put it on me.鈥�
The takeaway
Ohio State: Day improved to 2-4 against the Wolverines, quieting any critics that were not convinced by the national championship he won.
鈥淭o tell you that the last four years have been easy is not true,鈥� Day said after beating Michigan for the first time since his debut season in 2019.
Michigan: Underwood鈥檚 uneven season as a passer proved to be costly because it limited big-play potential against a defense that didn鈥檛 give up a touchdown for the fifth time this year.
鈥淲e just couldn鈥檛 get a rhythm,鈥� Moore said.
Up next
The Buckeyes will face the Hoosiers for the first time since a little more than a year ago.
Michigan will find out next Sunday where it play in a bowl game with just pride at stake.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up and (AP 草莓传媒 mobile app). AP college football: and
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
