Defense / ST notes: 'Second-half team' Michigan puts together masterful performance in Ohio State win

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Michigan Wolverines football allowed a touchdown and a field goal on Ohio State‘s first and second drives, respectively, and it looked like the nation’s No. 1 scoring offense (46.5 points per game) would be too much to handle early on.

But the Maize and Blue didn’t get flustered, despite allowing nine pass plays of 15-plus yards and three 10-plus yard rushes.

Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud completed 31 of his 48 pass attempts for 349 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a 42-yard deep ball to stellar sophomore Marvin Harrison Jr.

That put Ohio State up 20-17 late in the second quarter. Little did spectators know, that would be the Buckeyes’ final touchdown of the game, a 45-23 rout in Columbus.

“Let’s go finish this out. Second-half team,” Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh told the Wolverines before taking the field for the second half, according to senior cornerback Mike Sainristil.

“And for the first time this year, I thought to myself, ‘You know what? We might be a second-half team, and that’s fine. Just finish the game,'” Sainristil said. “That’s what we’ve been doing, and we’re gonna continue doing that.”

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Michigan outscored Ohio State 28-3 in the second half, after trailing 20-17 at the break. OSU accumulated 315 yards in the first half — 191 through the air and 124 on the ground. The second-half numbers were a stark contrast — 177 total yards, 158 passing and 19 rushing. The Buckeyes averaged just 5.7 yards per play in the third and fourth quarters.

It started with forcing 3 straight punts to begin the half, then holding the Buckeyes to a field goal in the red zone. Two interceptions — one from graduate EDGE Taylor Upshaw and and another by junior safety Makari Paige — sealed the deal, and that was all she wrote.

As mentioned, the Buckeyes put up outstanding passing statistics and ran the ball well early on. Entering Saturday, the most passing yards any team had gained on Michigan was 269 by Maryland. Only four opponents hit the 200-yard mark through the air.

The Maize and Blue got off the field on third and fourth downs and forced three field goal attempts, though. That limited the Buckeyes to just 23 points, the third-fewest they’ve scored all year long. That’s the lowest amount OSU has scored on Michigan since 2009, a 21-10 win over the Wolverines in Ann Arbor.

“Defense did another really tremendous job,” Harbaugh said. “[Coordinator] Jesse Minter and [co-coordinator and secondary coach Steve] Clink[scale] and the defensive staff, [defensive line coach] Mike Elston, [linebackers coach] Geroge Helow, [safeties coach] Jay Harbaugh. Another great job [with] second-half defense.”

Michigan defense uses ‘next-play mentality,’ wears down Ohio State throughout game

Ohio State tested Sainristil, Michigan’s converted wide receiver, and had some success, including on a 4-yard touchdown pass to slot receiver Emeka Egbuka. But he, like the rest of the unit, used a “next-play mentality” to not hang their heads.

Sainristil had one of the plays of the game, a pass breakup on Ohio State tight end Cade Stover in the end zone on third-and-4 with 9:21 left in the fourth quarter. The Michigan defensive back was beat to the corner of the end zone but made a great play on the ball to jar it loose.

“He released late, and I was kinda in the trail position,” Sainristil explained. “The only thing running through my head at the time was, ‘Don’t give up another touchdown, strain to the ball and get it out any way you can.’

“When I saw the ball in the air, I saw the ball get thrown, and I was like, alright, I saw the ball get floated a little bit so I had time to get there, and I saw the ball go into the tight end’s hands. The only thing I was thinking was, punch it out and don’t give up that touchdown.”

Added Sainristil, discussing his overall performance, admitting that Ohio State was testing him: “There were a few I gave up, but that’s just the game of football, just having that next-play mentality, being ready to make the next play that comes to you.”

Michigan displayed its high-level mental toughness, while the high-octane Ohio State offense wilted in the second half. The Wolverines noticed in the moment that they had more juice as the game got later. The Buckeyes, meanwhile, got tight.

“Going into the fourth quarter, we had a quick defensive talk, and the first thing we did was look over at their sideline,” Sainristil said. “They were over there hanging their heads a little bit, so we knew, we were like, ‘Alright, they’re vulnerable right now. Let’s go out there, keep pouncing on them, keep taking away the run game, the pass game — and take advantage of every opportunity.’”

“You can feel how their will breaks, when they haven’t been used to getting hit or getting as physical as we came to play,” Michigan graduate linebacker Michael Barrett added. “You could kinda just feel it go out of them.”

Miscellaneous Michigan defense / special teams notes

• Michigan won at Ohio State for the first time since 2000, a 38-26 win.

• Michigan is now 25-24-2 at Ohio Stadium.

• Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh is now 2-5 against Ohio State. The Wolverines have won two straight games in the rivalry for the first time since 1999-2000.

• The Buckeyes went 5-of-17 on third- and fourth-down conversion attempts.

• Michigan won the Big Ten East for the third time in the last five seasons.

• Both of Ohio State head coach Ryan Day‘s Big Ten losses have come against Michigan.

• Ohio State drove into Michigan territory on eight of 14 drives.

• Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud threw 3 or more touchdown passes in six games this season but was held to 2 by Michigan. His 349 yards were the fifth-most he had in a game this season.

• Ohio State’s 143 rushing yards were the fourth-fewest it has racked up in a game this season. The Buckeyes registered 200 or more rushing yards in six contests.

• Ohio State’s 492 total yards were the most Michigan allowed during the regular season and since Georgia recorded 521 yards of offense in last year’s Orange Bowl.

• Paige’s interception was the first of his career.

• Upshaw’s interception was the first of his career.

• Senior EDGE Mike Morris played early on but was not spotted in the game during the second half. He leads the team and entered the day second in the Big Ten with 7.5 sacks.

• Michigan graduate kicker Jake Moody made a 49-yard field goal in the first quarter and attempted a 57-yarder in the fourth quarter but missed. He’s up to 26 makes for the season — the program record.

• Michigan graduate punter Brad Robbins punted 5 times for a 40.6-yard average (none of 50-plus yards and none that pinned Ohio State inside its own 20-yard line).