Wolverine Digest

Joel Klatt breaks down how Michigan pulled off its stunning upset of Ohio State

The Wolverines' dictated the terms of play, and it led to a massive upset victory over the Buckeyes...

Matt Lounsberry

Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Entering its 120th meeting against Ohio State, Michigan pulled off the biggest upset in the rivalry game's history, beating the Buckeyes' 13-10 as a 19.5-point underdog.

Fox Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt dove into the reasons how the Wolverines pulled off their shocking upset on the latest episode of his podcast, The Joel Klatt Show.

"How did Michigan do this? How did they pull this off? This Wolverine team that has struggled for the better part of the year, all these new faces on their coaching staff, so many new faces on their team, and in particular in the lineup and more specifically offense, how did they pull this off?"

"Well, I think that the easiest way to say this is that, once again, the game was played on Michigan's terms rather than on Ohio State's terms. You see, when I first started to do this rivalry and broadcast this rivalry back in 2017, '18, '19, this game was always played on Ohio State's terms. Ohio State had the talent, and it was played on the perimeter. And Michigan could not catch up, and they would desperately try to win the matchup against Ohio State and they couldn't, because the game was played on Ohio State's terms."

"And now you go into 2021 and since, and all four of these matchups the last four years have been played on Michigan's terms. They want to get into a phone booth and get into a fist fight, and that's exactly what has happened over these last four years. And the reason that this one is so shocking is because it was so clearly out of character, and in terms of a mismatch, for the Ohio State Buckeyes."

Michigan Wolverines football defensive lineman Mason Graham
Michigan defensive lineman Mason Graham (55) celebrates a play against Ohio State during the second half at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Klatt pointed to Michigan's defensive line having a clear matchup advantage over Ohio State's offensive line heading into Saturday's game. The Buckeyes' O-line has been ravaged by injury this season, while the Wolverines' defensive front has been one of the best in college football throughout the year.

"Michigan's defensive line is just excellent, and I mean, excellent," Klatt said. "They are, I think, the best defensive line in the country. When you have the combination of the edge rushers that they have, as well as the defensive tackles."

"That was a huge advantage for Michigan, so they wanted the game to be played in the trenches. They wanted those front four to have their say in the outcome of the game, which is exactly what happened."

Michigan Wolverines football running back Kalel Mullings vs. Ohio State
Michigan running back Kalel Mullings (20) runs against Ohio State during the second half at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Klatt said that Ohio State's clear advantage came on the perimeter, with a wide receiver room full of future NFL guys matched up with a Michigan secondary that has struggled for much of the year. Yet, the Buckeyes did not lean into their advantage on the outside.

"What ends up happening? Well, the game was played on the inside rather than on the perimeter, and that's a huge mistake from Ohio State's part. A huge mistake," Klatt said, before pointing out the difference in the Buckeyes' strategy vs. the Wolverines to what other Top 5 teams — Texas and Oregon — did in their matchups with Michigan.

"They went and played Michigan...[and] they played a perimeter game, early in particular," Klatt said. "And what that did was that softened Michigan up a little bit. They played some tempo on offense, and they got that starting defensive line a bit tired for Michigan, and that was when they were able to start exploiting some of the runs later in the game.

"That's exactly the opposite of how the game played out against Ohio State. In my estimation, it's about terms and who's terms are played on, and for the fourth straight year, Michigan got to play a game that they were completely comfortable with, and actually in this case, desperately desired to play."

Michigan Wolverines football Kalel Mullings vs. Ohio State
Michigan running back Kalel Mullings (20) celebrates a touchdown against Ohio State during the first half at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Klatt followed up with the obvious question — why did Ryan Day and Ohio State choose or allow this game to be played on Michigan's terms?

"I think it comes down to two things," Klatt answered. "The first being, I think they had a tremendous amount of faith in their own defense, because Ohio State's defense is really good. Really good. And it was very clear that Michigan was not going to drive the length of the field in order to score points.

"The other factor of why...the second one is, it was pretty clear, based on the film that I watched after the game, that Will Howard was struggling and he was not seeing the game very well."

Klatt pointed to Howard's two interceptions, the first of which was due to a misread from Howard on what Michigan was doing defensively, and the second of which was a poorly thrown ball well behind the intended receiver.

"In general, even when he wasn't throwing interceptions, the ball was not going to the right spot [based on the coverage Michigan was playing on any particular play]. There were several times when Will Howard was playing the wrong side of the field — sometimes completing the pass, but it's like, that's not where the ball is supposed to go.

"Ryan [Day] and Chip [Kelly] were surely seeing what I was seeing, and I had to wait to see it on film. They were seeing it in real time, because as coaches, you call a concept and you see a coverage, and you know what the coaching points are and you think, this is probably where the ball is going to go. And when it's not going there it's a good indication that the quarterback is just not seeing it well."

Michigan dictated the terms of how 'The Game' would be played for a fourth consecutive season, and it's the reason why the Wolverines pulled off a stunning upset of the Buckeyes on Saturday.

Michigan Wolverines quarterback Davis Warren celebrates after final kneel down in win over Ohio State
Michigan Wolverines quarterback Davis Warren (16) celebrates a 13-10 win over Ohio State Buckeyes at the end of the NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium in Columbus on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. / Kyle Robertson/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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