ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- In the greatest rivalry in college football, Scarlet is squeezing the greatness out of Blue.
Ohio State beat Michigan for the 6th consecutive time Saturday and 3rd straight time in Ann Arbor with a 21-10 win before more than 110-thousand fans at Michigan Stadium. With the win OSU earned an outright Big Ten title.
Michigan freshman QB Tate Forcier had a forgettable induction into the rivalry. On the Wolverines' opening possession, Forcier fumbled in his own endzone and Buckeye Cameron Heyward recovered for an early 7-0 OSU lead. Michigan's Jason Olesnavage missed a short field goal later in the opening quarter.
Olesnavage redeemed himself midway through the 2nd quarter with a 47 yard field goal to pull within 7-3. The Buckeyes responded with an 80-yard drive, their first significant drive of the day. Brandon Saine ran 29 yards untouched to the endzone to give OSU a 14-3 lead with 5:22 to play in the half. That score stood through halftime. Total yards in the first half were nearly even, with Michigan outgaining the Bucks 166-163.
The second half began in miserable fashion for the Buckeyes. Terrell Pryor threw an interception to UM's Jonas Mouton at the OSU 49. The Wolverines hustled downfield and Forcier cashed in a clever roll out and TD toss to Vincent Smith. With OSU's lead cut to 14-10, the Bucks answered with an 80-yard march to the endzone. On 3rd and goal from the 12, Pryor lobbed a pass over a Michigan blitz and found Boom Herron for a touchdown. It was the only pass thrown on the drive and good for a 21-10 Ohio State lead.
OSU took that lead into the 4th quarter. Kurt Coleman intercepted two Forcier passes, including one that killed a 4th quarter drive in Buckeye territory. Michigan drove again to the OSU 10 but Forcier was again intercepted near the goalline, this time Devon Torrence. Forcier forced a 4th interception in the final minutes, this one to Thaddeus Gibson. The Buckeyes celebrated with a large Ohio contingent of fans.
"Turnovers and the running game are always gonna be key in this game."OSU Head Coach Jim Tressel said afterward. "Our kids try to get better and we knew November would not be easy... When you're undefeated in November you're gonna have a good Holidays."
OSU awaits its opponent for the Rose Bowl New Year's Day.
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