Overlooked: Six under-the-radar plays that helped shape Ohio State's loss to Michigan
We know the obvious plays that were huge in Ohio State's 30-24 loss to Michigan on Saturday.
The early interception that set up Michigan's first touchdown. The Roman Wilson touchdown catch in which Denzel Burke wrested the ball free near the goal line, but the score was allowed to stand after replay review. The game-clinching interception.
But in a game with as many tipping points as Saturday's, there are many important ones that slip under the radar.
More: Reporters roundtable: What doomed Ohio State in third straight rivalry loss to Michigan?
Here are six overlooked plays that, in hindsight, loom larger now than they did at the time in shaping the game's outcome.
Ohio State dropping the first opportunity
On Ohio State’s first series, the Buckeyes faced third-and-1 at their 31-yard line. Kyle McCord’s pass on a short slant to Emeka Egbuka was slightly low but certainly catchable. It looked like Egbuka might have lifted his head before cradling the ball in, and the ball fell incomplete.
Ok, on to the game. Bad tone set on first possession. McCord’s pass is slightly low but certainly catchable by Egbuka. How much would that have given early confidence? pic.twitter.com/C1tYUzXDhv
— Bill Rabinowitz 🗞 (@brdispatch) November 27, 2023
It’s hard to know how significant this play was, but it was an early tone-setter. At the very least, it could have helped in the field-position battle early in the game.
More: After Michigan loss, where will Ohio State play in 2023 bowl season?
Questionable spot
Later in the first quarter, Xavier Johnson caught a swing pass on third-and-10, headed upfield and was tackled near the first-down marker. He was ruled down one yard short of the marker, but on replay, it looks as if he extended the ball past the marker before his knees hit the ground.
Wow. I did not notice this live and haven’t seen this talked about. But Xavier Johnson’s knee did not hit the ground before the first-down mark. He was ruled short, OSU didn’t challenge and Day punted on fourth-and-1. I think Day was right to punt there. But another pivotal play. pic.twitter.com/XBW6ntklzH
— Bill Rabinowitz 🗞 (@brdispatch) November 27, 2023
It’s hard to tell on the TV angle whether his elbow hit. Ohio State didn’t challenge, and Ryan Day elected to punt from the OSU 46. Might that have been the start of an OSU scoring drive?
Clutch punt by Michigan
With 3½ minutes left before halftime, Ohio State got its only sack of the game to force a punt from the Michigan 46. Tommy Doman then hit a high punt that took a Michigan-friendly high bounce, and the ball was downed at the 2. Ohio State drove to the Wolverines’ 34 before Ryan Day’s fateful decision to let the clock wind down to attempt a (missed) 52-yard field goal. If the ball had been a touchback, OSU’s drive would have, at a minimum, put the ball in easy field-goal range. Special teams were an underrated factor in the outcome.
A sign of defensive troubles to come
On Michigan’s first snap of the third quarter, Tommy Eichenberg had a chance to tackle Colston Loveland for a short gain. Instead, Eichenberg uncharacteristically whiffed on the tackle, allowing Loveland to gain 21 yards.
OSU’s defense played great in the first half. Not in the second. First play, a rare Tommy Eichenberg missed tackle, is a sign of things to come. pic.twitter.com/ltYRrVQS4F
— Bill Rabinowitz 🗞 (@brdispatch) November 27, 2023
The defense played so well in the first half, but this was a harbinger. Michigan would kick a field goal to extend its lead to 17-10. Ohio State failed to force a punt in the second half.
Missed offensive pass interference?
Michigan was able to milk the clock for seven of the last eight minutes of the game before kicking a field goal. But on the first of Michigan’s four first downs, Cornelius Johnson appears to get away with a push on OSU cornerback Jordan Hancock.
Michigan’s last drive. Could this third-down conversion been called offensive pass interference? He pushes off to get open. pic.twitter.com/G5qpWu0Vcv
— Bill Rabinowitz 🗞 (@brdispatch) November 27, 2023
That allowed Johnson the space to come back to make the catch. If that’s called interference, Michigan would have faced third-and-long and Ohio State would have probably gotten the ball back with plenty of time to score.
Unwise decision to return kickoff
This might be more quibbling, but at the end of the game every yard and every second mattered. Xavier Johnson played a terrific game, but his decision to return the kickoff after Michigan’s last field goal with 1:05 left was not wise. He was tackled at the 19-yard line, which meant he cost the Buckeyes 6 yards and five seconds for not making a fair catch. Ohio State’s kickoff returns have been nondescript this season. Johnson should have been instructed to make a fair catch and save some precious seconds.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Six under-the-radar plays that shaped Ohio State's loss to Michigan
