Michigan and Ohio State first met in 1897 and have played 121 times; officially, Michigan leads 62–52–6; as played, 62–53–6. Over the last 10 meetings it’s Ohio State 6–4. It has closed both teams’ regular seasons since 1935. There was no game in 2020: it was canceled after a COVID-19 outbreak in Michigan’s program. The NCAA vacated Ohio State’s win (2010); it doesn’t count officially. This page counts every game as it was played. Share
Michigan won Ohio State won TieDeeper color: bigger margin Vacated or forfeited
Every meeting by decade, colored by the winner
’0
’1
’2
’3
’4
’5
’6
’7
’8
’9
W–L
1890s
1–0
1900s
9–0–1
1910s
3–1–1
1920s
6–4
1930s
5–5
1940s
6–2–2
1950s
5–5
1960s
3–7
1970s
4–5–1
1980s
6–4
1990s
7–2–1
2000s
2–8
2010s
1–9
2020s
4–1
Both ranked
49 meetings: Michigan 23, Ohio State 22; 25 both in the top 10
Average margin
14.3 points; 41 decided by one score (8 or fewer)
At Michigan
34–25–2 Michigan’s record at home
At Ohio State
28–28–4 Ohio State’s record at home
Shutouts
35
Every meeting on file, as played. Ranks are the AP poll’s going in.
Games that tell the story
The Snow Bowl1950: Michigan 9, Ohio State 3Michigan beat Ohio State 9–3 in Columbus in a blizzard, without a first down; the teams punted 45 times between them, often on first down, and Michigan went to the Rose Bowl.
No. 12 vs. No. 11969: Michigan 24, Ohio State 12Bo Schembechler’s first season: No. 12 Michigan beat No. 1 Ohio State and Woody Hayes, the start of the Ten-Year War.
No. 4 vs. No. 11973: Michigan 10, Ohio State 10 (tie)A 10–10 tie between unbeaten rivals; Big Ten athletic directors then voted to send Ohio State, not Michigan, to the Rose Bowl.
No. 4 vs. No. 181991: Michigan 31, Ohio State 3Michigan beat Ohio State 31–3; Desmond Howard returned a punt 93 yards for a touchdown and struck the Heisman pose in the end zone, two weeks before he won it.
No. 1 vs. No. 41997: Michigan 20, Ohio State 14No. 1 Michigan beat No. 4 Ohio State 20–14 to finish 11–0 and go to the Rose Bowl; Charles Woodson returned a punt 78 yards for a touchdown and intercepted a pass in the end zone, and won the Heisman three weeks later.
The 2010 game2010: Ohio State 37, Michigan 7Ohio State won 37–7, but the NCAA later vacated the Buckeyes’ 2010 wins, so the official series leaves this game out. This site counts it as played.
The 2024 game2024: Michigan 13, Ohio State 10Michigan, a 19.5-point underdog, won in Columbus for a fourth straight win in the series; a brawl followed when Michigan players tried to plant a flag at midfield. Ohio State went on to win the national title.
Head-coach pairings with three or more meetings on file, the series read from Michigan’s side (Yost 4–0 against Herrnstein). A season split between coaches goes to the one credited with the game.
Both programs through the years
Michigan Ohio StateTicks under the axis: each meeting, in the winner’s color
Our Elo rating at the end of each season, a measure of how strong a team was, not a forecast; 1500 is an average FBS team.
1901 · The Indianapolis journal, Indianapolis [Ind.], Nov 10, 1901
1902 · The Topeka state journal, Topeka, Kansas, Oct 27, 1902
1904 · The Saint Paul globe, St. Paul, Minn., Oct 16, 1904
1905 · The Minneapolis journal, Minneapolis, Minn., Nov 12, 1905
Public-domain newspapers from the Library of Congress’s Chronicling America, found through the American Stories dataset (Dell and Harvard, CC BY 4.0). The earliest meetings with a story on file; each game’s page has the full text.
Brandon Minor eludes James Laurinaitis during the 2008 Michigan – Ohio State rivalry gamePhoto: flickr user scott stuart, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Brandon Graham (American football) and Terrell PryorPhoto: flickr user scott stuart, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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