Ohio State-Michigan football rivalry history, head-to-head record

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The Game, college football’s biggest rivalry and one of the most notable annual battles in North American sports, is back.

Ohio State and Michigan will play on Nov. 29 in the 128th year of the rivalry, with Michigan in control of the matchup’s momentum with a four-game win streak. Ohio State enters the game with an undefeated record (11-0) while Michigan (9-2) has a chance to knock the Buckeyes out of the Big Ten Championship.

The two schools’ storied rivalry includes fights, historic upsets and longstanding traditions leading up to The Game, including Ohio State fans crossing out the letter ‘M’ in Columbus a decade ago.

When did the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry begin?

Some historians trace the rivalry to the “Toledo War,” a land dispute between Ohio and Michigan when Michigan was applying for statehood in the 19th century. Ohio and the Michigan territory disputed over the rights to the Toledo strip, a 450-square-mile area in the northwest region of Ohio’s border and Michigan’s established territory.

Michigan’s repeated applications for statehood were denied because it refused to give up the Toledo strip. After decades, the dispute ended in 1836 when a compromise was formed. Ohio claimed Toledo as well as the Maumee River and Maumee Bay; in exchange, the Michigan territory was given a region called the Upper Peninsula. Michigan became an official U.S. state in 1837.

At the time, Michigan residents believed they got the short end of the deal; the Michigan Territory was also believed to have been planning the University of Michigan in Toledo rather than Ann Arbor.

When was the first Ohio State-Michigan football game?

Ohio State and Michigan’s first recorded football game came 128 years ago on Oct. 16, 1897. Here is an account of the game published in the Ohio State student newspaper, The Lantern, published on Oct. 20, 1897 (via Ohio State University Libraries):

“The representatives of the Scarlet and Gray met the husky young men of the University of Michigan for the first time on the gridiron last Saturday, and when the dust had cleared away from the first half a score of 34 to 0 had been placed against O.S.U. In the second half U. of M. tried some new men and neither side succeeded in scoring. The game was hard fought from start to finish and entirely free from slugging and objectionable features.”

Here is an account from the 1897 edition of the Michigan Daily, Michigan’s student newspaper:

“Michigan had no trouble in defeating the Ohio State University representatives in Saturday’s game. Two halves of 20 and 1 minutes respectively were played and the score was 34-0. It was not so much Michigan’s strength as Ohio’s weakness that brought about the score. The visitors lined up with three of their best players absent, while Michigan put her best team on the field.”

What is the Ten Year War in the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry?

The Ten Year War is a reference to the 10 annual matchups between Ohio State and Michigan from 1969-78. The decade-long bout between Ohio State coach Woody Hayes and Michigan coach Bo Schembechler was one of the main catalysts for the rivalry’s intensity today.

Once a part of Hayes’ staff as an assistant coach, Schembechler was hired by Michigan in 1969 as the program’s head coach after a coaching stint at Miami (OH). In the first matchup between Hayes and Schembechler, No. 12 Michigan pulled off one of the greatest upsets in rivalry history, beating the No. 1 Buckeyes 24-12 in Ann Arbor.

The 1969 version of The Game stands as the only time Ohio State has lost to Michigan as the No. 1-ranked team in the AP Poll. A year before the upset, Ohio State beat Michigan at Ohio Stadium 50-14, even trying for a two-point conversion on the final touchdown.

The Ohio State loss in 1969 sparked a rivalry within the rivalry between Hayes and Schembechler. Hayes began labeling Michigan as the “school” or “team” a north in the 1970s, a phrase that has been adopted by Ohio State coaches, players and fans.

Ohio State beat Michigan 20-9 in 1970 before losing in 1971. The Buckeyes did not lose against Michigan again (three wins, one tie) until 1976, when the Wolverines countered and won three in a row.

After Schembechler beat Hayes in 1978 and took a 5-4-1 advantage in the series, Hayes was fired after the 1978 Gator Bowl for punching a Clemson player.

What is Ohio State football’s head-to-head record against Michigan?

The Buckeyes have a 51-62-6 record against Michigan in the fabled series (not including the vacated win from the 2010 season).

What is Ohio State’s record in the past 10 games against Michigan?

In the past 10 games, Ohio State holds a 6-4 record against Michigan, with all four losses in the past four games.

Below is a list of the final scores from each of the past 10 Ohio State-Michigan games.

2024: Michigan 13, Ohio State 10
2023: Michigan 30, Ohio State 24
2022: Michigan 45, Ohio State 23
2021: Michigan 42, Ohio State 27
2019: Ohio State 56, Michigan 27
2018: Ohio State 62, Michigan 39
2017: Ohio State 31, Michigan 20
2016: Ohio State 30, Michigan 27 (2OT)
2015: Ohio State 42, Michigan 13
2014: Ohio State 42, Michigan 28

What is Ohio State football’s longest winning streak against Michigan?

Ohio State’s longest win streak over Michigan football was from 2012-19, with the Buckeyes winning all eight annual games in the span.

Urban Meyer was the coach for Ohio State for the first seven matchups of the win streak before Ryan Day took over as acting head coach in 2019.

What is Ohio State football’s longest losing streak against Michigan?

Michigan holds the longest win streak of the rivalry and beat Ohio State nine times in a row from 1901-09. The games took place long before the Ohio or Michigan stadiums were constructed.

During that streak, Michigan beat Ohio State 86-0 in 1902, the largest scoring margin in the rivalry’s history.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State-Michigan football history, head-to-head record & more

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