The No. 1-ranked Buckeyes will face the No. 18 Wolverines on Saturday to keep their undefeated record intact. According to ESPN Research, this is the 50th time since the AP Poll’s inception in 1936 that both Ohio State and Michigan have been ranked at the time of “The Game”. The Wolverines hold a slight lead in the series heading into the matchup, ranked 23-22-4. However, fortunately for Day, he doesn’t have the same success when facing the No. 1 seed. Michigan is 3–18–1 when facing AP No. 1 opponents, including a 1–3–1 record when Ohio State was the top-ranked team. Overall, the Wolverines are losing nine consecutive games against AP No. 1 opponents.
Even coming off a national championship, Buckeye fans won’t feel complete satisfaction until they defeat their arch-rivals. Unfortunately for them, that has not been the case under Dey.
Here’s a look at the key stats behind Day’s struggles against Michigan.
Zero: Games are often won in the trenches, and the Buckeyes’ problems against the Wolverines start there. Ohio State has recorded zero sacks in two of its last four games against Michigan (2021 and 2024) – it had only two such games from 1996 to 2019.
In fact, the Buckeyes have recorded only four total sacks in “The Game” during the Day era.
Four: Although the Buckeyes have won one national championship since hiring Day, they have also lost four in a row against the Wolverines.
It looked like that streak would end last season when No. 2-ranked Ohio State hosted unranked Michigan. According to ESPN Research, the Buckeyes were favored by 21 points, the widest point total for this rivalry since 1978, but they were stunned by a 13–10 loss.
Ohio State has not lost five consecutive games against Michigan since a six-game losing streak from 1922 to 1927. Its longest losing streak in “the game” is nine from 1901 to 1909.
Day’s record as the Buckeyes coach is a remarkable 81–10 in eight seasons, but he is just 1–4 against the Wolverines. Therefore, their winning percentage against opponents other than Michigan is 93%, while otherwise the rate is 20%.
52: This has been a completely different offense for Ohio State as it has faced one of its biggest rivals with head coach Day. The Buckeyes average 52 fewer total yards, 66 fewer rushing yards and one yard less per play against the Wolverines than other opponents.
Even more troubling is that they have scored an average of 13 fewer points – last season’s 10-point loss was their fewest in a rivalry game since 1996. It was also Ohio State’s fewest points scored in a game since the 2011 season.
112: The same difference can be seen on the defensive side.
The Buckeyes defense is allowing a total of 397 yards per game when facing the Wolverines since 2019, compared to 285.4 against other opponents – a 112-yard difference.
ESPN Research contributed to this story.
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