The good and the bad from Michigan's 27-9 loss to Ohio State

No. 1 Ohio State snapped (12-0) snapped its four-game losing streak to No. 15 Michigan (9-3) with a 27-9 victory over the Wolverines on Saturday afternoon at the Big House in Ann Arbor.

Let's break down the "good" and the "bad" for Michigan from the loss.

The Good

Michigan comes out of the gate firing

The Wolverines got the ball first and wasted no time putting pressure on the OSU defense. On the game's first offensive play, Jordan Marshall burst through a hole on the left side for a 36-yard run to the Buckeye 39-yard line, which helped Michigan take a 3-0 lead early.

Then, on Michigan's first defensive possession, cornerback Jyaire Hill came up with an interception on QB Julian Sayin on a ball intended for Jeremiah Smith to put the Wolverines back at the OSU 39 with 12:22 left in the first quarter.

INTERCEPTED‼️

Jyaire Hill picks it off on No. 1 Ohio State's second play of the game.

📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/RBOvCs9LPN
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 29, 2025

Unfortunately for the Wolverines, they could not pay the turnover off with a touchdown and had to settle from three points, but it was an early surge of momentum that put Sherrone Moore's team in a good spot early on.

The Buckeyes would respond with a long 11-play drive on their next offensive series, but Michigan's defense came up with a huge goal line stop and stuffed OSU run plays on several occasions inside the five-yard line and forced a Buckeye field goal.

Not much went right in the game at that point for Michigan, but early on, the team seemed ready to play and came out firing.

Zvada gets back on track

Kicker Dominic Zvada has had an up-and-down season after being money from any distance last year. On Saturday, the Michigan specialist bounced back with a 3-for-3 day, including two makes from 45 yards or more out in conditions that weren't perfect.

In the end, the field goals didn't mean much as it came to the result of the game, but he did step up on a few occasions to help keep the Wolverines in the game in the first half.

The Bad

Bryce Underwood and the Michigan passing attack

Aside from a Bryce Underwood completion in the third quarter to Donovan McCulley over the middle of the field in what was a nice throw and catch in a tight window, there were almost no positives in the Wolverine pass game against an elite Ohio State defense.

With Michigan being able to establish the run early on, the success on the ground would have figured to take some pressure off Underwood and give the Wolverines some needed balance to keep OSU's defense guessing.

However, despite some early success in the run game, the Michigan passing game was just awful and couldn't get anything going all game long. While the Buckeyes' front did apply some pressure to Underwood at times, it really wasn't overwhelming as the Wolverine offensive line did a pretty good job in pass protection throughout the game.

The freshman QB finished just 8-of-18 for 63 yards and an interception, and there were multiple occasions where Underwood had time in the pocket but opted to check the ball down when he could have allowed routes to develop down the field, and other times where Underwood just flat out missed open receivers.

The speed and activity of Matt Patricia's defense seemed like way to much for Underwood to handle in this one. In the second half, the Buckeyes held the Wolverines to negative rushing yards and started to shut down the run game completely, which didn't help the offensive rhythm.

Underwood, as expected from a freshman, showed his potential in a lot of ways, but also struggled at times in what has been an up and down season for him in year one with the Maize and Blue.

Nov 29, 2025; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Wolverines quarterback Bryce Underwood (19) runs the ball in the second half against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Michigan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Michigan defensive line gets bullied

I don't think it's fair to say that Michigan got pushed around on both sides of the ball as I thought the offensive line was creating some movement early on, particularly before Jordan Marshall exited the game before trying to return later.

But the Wolverines' defensive line—and entire front seven, was a complete non-factor against OSU's offensive line.

It didn't matter whether Michigan rushed four and played in its based defense or brought a blitz—no matter what Wink Martindale tried to dial up, the Wolverines didn't come close to getting off a block and getting to Sayin all day.

Too often, that allowed Sayin to have a clean pocket to operate from and pick and choose where he wanted to go with the ball, leading to a 19-of-26 and three touchdown day for him.

Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin (10) takes a snap during the NCAA football game against the Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich. on Nov. 29, 2025. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Michigan's defensive backs did make several nice plays on balls in the air, but the front seven was going to have to apply much more pressure to slow down Sayin and the OSU receivers.

Against the run, it's not as if the front seven was much better in stopping that part of OSU's offense either, as the Buckeyes were able to milk the clock and run the ball right at the Wolverines at will once they got up two scores.

Bo Jackson finished with 117 yards rushing on 22 carries as OSU won the rushing battle 186-100, making it the 24th consecutive time the winner of The Game has come out on top in the rushing department.

Michigan misses the College Football Playoff

With the result of this one, Michigan will obviously miss the College Football Playoff and fall short of its goals for the second straight season under Sherrone Moore.

There is no doubt that this young Wolverines' team showed some progress in Moore's second year and likely have a very bright future if they continue to develop.

At the same time, the bottom line is, Michigan had an opportunity to come up with a big win today to likely play themselves into the playoff and ultimately fell up way short.

I think it's fair to say Moore needs to make the playoff next year to show the program is continuing to trend in an upward direction.

Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Carnell Tate (17) runs the ball against Michigan Wolverines defensive back Zeke Berry (10) in the first half of the NCAA football game at Michigan Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. | Samantha Madar/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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