ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Julian Sayin threw three touchdown passes, including a 35-yarder to Jeremiah Smith on a fourth down in the second quarter, and No. 1 Ohio State beat No. 15 Michigan 27-9 in a dominant performance on Saturday.
The defending national champion Buckeyes (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.
Ryan Day should sleep well, a year after losing The Game when his team was favored by about three touchdowns. The upset extended his losing streak in the series to four games and sparked speculation he might also lose his job.
“We’re going to win with humility,” Day said, choking up, on the field in an interview with Fox.
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 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.
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’s officiating expert, Mike Pereira, questioned the call during the TV broadcast.
“They said that he had control of it — didn’t look like he had control of it,” coach Sherrone Moore said. “They told me that it was inconclusive.”
Michigan might have gotten a break early in the game when edge rusher Jaishawn Barham was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct, but wasn’t ejected, after appearing to make contact with an official.
“The official grabbed him and he shouldn’t have reacted,” 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’s secondary.
That put the game out of reach for the Wolverines, who couldn’t 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 quarter, capping a 20-play, 81-yard drive that took nearly 12 minutes off the clock.
Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood, the nation’s 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’s top-ranked defense.
“It’s got to be better,” Moore said. “I put it on me.”
The takeaway
Ohio State: Day earned a win he desperately needed and improved to 2-4 against the Wolverines, quieting any critics that were not convinced by the national championship he won.
Michigan: Underwood’s uneven season as a passer proved to be costly because it limited big-play potential against a defense that didn’t give up a touchdown for the fifth time this year.
Up next
The Buckeyes will face the Hoosiers for the first time since beating them 38-15 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 here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
