Dominant 2nd half lifts Michigan past Ohio State: ‘It feels great to sing “The Victors” in Columbus’

COLUMBUS, Ohio – It’s not so much that No. 3 Michigan defeated No. 2 Ohio State 45-23 in Ohio Stadium, where the Wolverines had not won since 2000, or that the Wolverines clinched the Big Ten East, or put themselves one victory away from securing a second consecutive berth in the College Football Playoff.

It’s the way Michigan won, as in the sheer dominance of the second half, when Michigan scored four touchdowns while holding an offense led by the Heisman Trophy favorite to one field goal.

It’s the way that Michigan scored five of its six touchdowns on big plays, passes by J.J. McCarthy of 69, 75 and 45 yards, and, in the fourth quarter, runs of 75 and 85 yards by Donovan Edwards. Find another team that gained 530 yards of total offense yet made only 16 first downs. According to ESPN, to find another team that scored three touchdowns of 70-plus yards against a highly ranked team, you have to look to 2004.

It’s the way the Michigan players looked across the field at the start of the fourth quarter and saw the Ohio State players hanging their heads, or how Michigan fans chanted “Let’s Go Blue!” with 2:07 left to play and Buckeyes fans among the 106,787 in attendance were too busy filing out of the Horseshoe to respond, or how the Wolverines literally planted a flag on the field after the game.

“I was thinking about that since January,” Michigan defensive back Mike Sainristil said. “Coming down here, having the opportunity to win this game at this stadium, the first time since 2000. Last year, all I was thinking about was fans rushing the field. This year I was thinking about planting the flag. Speaking it into existence. Being able to do that feels great.”

Here’s the Ohio State cheer that would have best reflected the Buckeyes’ play:

“O-H!”

“N-O!”

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh and his players tried to answer questions attempting to capture the enormity of the victory. Harbaugh, who quarterbacked the Wolverines to a victory here in 1986, reminded everyone of the most profound of his team’s pleasures. “It feels great to sing ‘The Victors’ in Columbus,” Harbaugh said. “Our team really earned it in every way.”

The Wolverines’ play showcased a remarkable depth of talent that Harbaugh has collected. Sainristil, who played wide receiver before this season, moved to the secondary this year and made the defensive play of the game. With Michigan leading 31-20 early in the fourth quarter, on third-and-4 from Michigan’s 9, Sainristil caught up to Buckeyes tight end Cade Stover on the left side of the end zone and punched a touchdown catch out of his hands.

That may not have outdone Michigan junior Kalel Mullings, who this week made his second move of the season from linebacker to running back. Late in the third quarter, on third-and-1 at the Buckeyes’ 38, Michigan lined up in what looked like a goal-line offense, pulling the Buckeyes into crowding the line of scrimmage. Mullings took a handoff from McCarthy and floated a pass to tight end Luke Schoonmaker for 15 yards.

Mullings returned to offense because Michigan didn’t have Blake Corum, the nation’s sixth-best rusher with 1,457 yards and 18 touchdowns. Corum, wearing a brace on the left knee he injured last week against Illinois, carried the ball on two of Michigan’s first four snaps and was never seen again.

The Wolverines’ offense struggled to find its footing. Midway through the second quarter, Michigan had run 17 plays for a total of 48 yards. The Wolverines had eight rushes for exactly 1 yard. Corum’s absence may have had something to do with the Wolverines’ early offensive struggles. Harbaugh without a running game is like Taylor Swift not singing about her exes.

Trailing 10-3, a third-and-9 away from a third consecutive three-and-out, Michigan landed its first big punch. On Michigan’s 31, Ohio State rushed six, trying to rattle what appeared to be an already rattled McCarthy. He completed only three of his first nine throws. “I was a little amped up because I’ve been waiting to play this game for so long,” said McCarthy, who threw for 263 yards and three scores and rushed for 27 yards and another touchdown.

McCarthy flicked it wide to Cornelius Johnson, who spun out of Cameron Brown’s grasp, proved too fast for linebacker Tommy Eichenberg, and took the ball down the sideline for a 69-yard touchdown.

After Ohio State kicked a field goal to go ahead 13-10, McCarthy and Johnson picked up where they left off. On first down from Michigan’s 25, Johnson made safety Cameron Martinez turn his hips to the outside, then cut inside on a post pattern. He had about 10 yards of clearance when he caught McCarthy’s pass and raced untouched into the end zone.

“He’s been open all year,” McCarthy said. “I was just so happy to finally connect with him.”

Ohio State blanketed McCarthy’s favorite target, wide receiver Ronnie Bell, who caught only three passes for 46 yards. So McCarthy looked to Johnson. No Corum? Hand it to Edwards. Asked what it felt like to score such a long TD, Edwards said, “Which one?” Breaking through the line, Michigan had answers at every position, answers that got louder and clearer as the game went on.

Ohio State had no answers, particularly when Michigan began to pull away. Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud, who came into the game as the Heisman favorite, was 31-of-48 for 349 yards and two touchdowns, but in the fourth quarter, with Ohio State falling farther and farther behind, Stroud threw uncharacteristic interceptions on the Buckeyes’ last two possessions.

They reflected the Buckeyes’ lack of composure. But then, they had never been here before. Michigan beat the Buckeyes in consecutive seasons for the first time this century. Michigan won by its biggest margin and scored the most points it had scored in this rivalry since a 58-6 victory in 1946.

No Corum, so Edwards. No Bell, so Johnson. Linebackers throwing passes, and wide receivers breaking them up. Michigan is deep and versatile. And at the end of the regular season, Michigan is undefeated. Ohio State is not.