The Game
It's Ohio State vs. Michigan.

The Scene
The Buckeyes and the Wolverines will meet for the 108th time Saturday at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich., in a 12 noon game that will be televised nationally by ABC. Ohio State is 6-5 overall and 3-4 in the Big Ten Conference Leaders Division. Michigan is 9-2 overall and 5-2 in the Legends Division.

One & Done...at Least This Year
The Ohio State/Michigan game will always be the regular season finale for both teams. When the Big Ten moved to its divisional format and split Ohio State and Michigan into separate divisions, the thought of the two teams meeting in the regular season final and then meeting again a week later in the Big Ten championship game was a trending topic. The teams will meet once this year. That's because...

Back-to-Back Buckeye Ls
Ohio State was 6-3 and in control of its Leaders fate three weeks ago, but it has dropped two consecutive games to fall out of the championship picture. Michigan can actually tie Michigan State for first-place in the Legends - it would need a Spartans loss against Northwestern as well - but Michigan State will head to Indianapolis (against the winner of the Penn State at Wisconsin game) by virtue of its 28-14 win over UM in October.

Turn of the Century Stat
One has to go back to the 1999 season to find consecutive November losses by the Ohio State Buckeyes, a program that has feasted in November with a record of 15-3 since 2005 and a record of 28-7 since the 2000 season with six Big Ten championships earned. Michigan State, Illinois and Michigan defeated the Buckeyes in November of 1999 to end the Buckeyes last non-bowl and non-winning season at 6-6.

More Scene
While Michigan holds the overall lead in the series against Ohio State with 57 wins against 43 losses and six ties, Ohio State has won six consecutive games over Michigan. And over the last 60 years, dating to the 1951 season and the first year of coach Woody Hayes' 28-year run as head coach, Ohio State actually leads the series 31-26-2 with one win vacated by Ohio State. (Note: Ohio State's 2010 victory over UM in Columbus, 37-7, was vacated. All series records, streaks, etc., in this release do not include the result of the 2010 game).

Where Six Ranks
Six consecutive wins by the Buckeyes in this series is the longest winning streak for Ohio State against Michigan. It ties for the second-longest winning streak for either team in this series and it is the longest streak in 84 years. Michigan owns the longest such streak - nine games between 1901-09 - and it also has a six-game victory streak between 1922-27.

OSU / UM Series Win Streaks
9 - Michigan, 1901-09
6 - Ohio State, 2004-current
6 - Michigan, 1922-27
4 - Michigan, 1988-91
4 - Ohio State, 1960-63
4 - Michigan, 1945-48
4 - Ohio State, 1934-37

Trend before This Trend
In addition to winning six consecutive games over Michigan, Ohio State has won eight of the last nine games in the series dating to 2000. Prior to this Ohio State edge, Michigan had won 13 of the previous 18 games in the series with one tie, dating back to the 1983 season.

1st-Year Ohio State Coaches: 5-10-1
Ohio State coaches in their first year at the helm of the program - as Luke Fickell is this season - are 5-10-2 in games against Michigan. Sam Willaman (1929), Francis Schmidt (1934), Carroll Widdoes (1944), Earle Bruce (1979) and Jim Tressel (2001) are the only Ohio State coaches to have their first Ohio State team defeat Michigan.

Only Third Meeting of "Firsts"
Luke Fickell and Michigan coach Brady Hoke are each in their first seasons, thus making this week only the third time that the two schools have each had a first-year coach at the helm for The Game. In 1897 Gustave Ferbert's UM team defeated David F. Edwards' Buckeyes, 34-0, in Ann Arbor, and in 1929 Sam Willaman's Buckeyes defeated Harry Kipke's Woverines, 7-0, also at Ann Arbor. Fickell is Ohio State's 23rd head coach. Hoke is Michigan's 19th.

Lore and More
Since Ohio State's first win over Michigan in 1919, the series is virtually even with Michigan holding a one-win lead, 44-43-4. Here's more good stuff through the years ...

Just Some Facts
The Ohio State vs. Michigan rivalry was named the greatest rivalry of the 20th century by ESPN.com in 1999. Ali vs. Frazier was No. 2 ... Michigan has a Big Ten-best 42 conference championships; Ohio State is second with 34 ... Ohio State has the longest winning streak of Big Ten games (20 between 2005-07) and Michigan is second with 19 ... The two schools are tied for the Big Ten record with 28-game regular season winning streaks.

Home & Away
Ohio State is 20-30-4 vs. Michigan in Ann Arbor and 23-27-2 in games played in Columbus.

The 10-Year War
Between 1969-78 the Big Ten Conference championship was on the line for all 10 of these games between Ohio State and Michigan. The name for this era was The 10-Year War.

"Boom" vs. The Maize & Blue
In three career games vs. Michigan, Dan "Boom" Herron has rushed for 358 yards on 49 carries (7.3 ypc) with three touchdowns. Last season Herron rushed for 175 yards on 22 carries and a score, including an 89-yard run.

OSU Falls to PSU, 20-14
Ohio State is coming off a 20-14 Senior Day loss to Penn State Saturday at Ohio Stadium, a game in which there were no points scored in the second half. Stephfon Green scored two rushing touchdowns and kicker Anthony Fera kicked consecutive career-best field goals for Penn State's points. Braxton Miller had a 24-yard run and he connected with Jake Stoneburner on a 7-yard touchdown pass to account for the Buckeyes' points.

Shazier Named Big Ten Freshman of the Week - Nov. 21
In his first career start, true freshman linebacker Ryan Shazier earned himself Big Ten freshman of the week honors with his 15-tackle performance against Penn State. Filling in for the injured Andrew Sweat, Shazier recorded seven solo tackles and had a large role in Ohio State's goal line stand in the third quarter.

First-Half Deficits
For the third consecutive game Ohio State trailed 10-0 in the first quarter. The deficit marked the seventh time in 11 games this season that the Buckeyes have trailed in the first quarter.

Miller Hits 100 Again
Braxton Miller topped 100 yards rushing for the second time in three games, tying his personal best with 105 yards off 18 carries. He now leads the Buckeye rushers with 595 yards on the season. Dan Boom Herron has 559 yards rushing and Carlos Hyde 549.

Welcome Back
DeVier Posey immediately tied the Ohio State receiver's season's best total with four receptions in his first game of the 2011 season (Verlon Reed had four vs. Michigan State and Corey Brown had four vs. Wisconsin). His grabs went for 66 yards and three first downs. Included was a spectacular one-handed catch near the Penn State sidelines.

No Sweat
Linebacker Andrew Sweat, an 18-game starter, missed the Penn State game and, although on the two-deep for this week, his status for the Michigan game will be determined as the week progresses. Freshman Ryan Shazier made his first career start and recorded a personal and 2011 team-best 15 tackles. This is the most tackles by a Buckeye since Ross Homan had 15 in 2009 vs. Wisconsin.

Making a Stand
Ohio State's defense produced an inspiring goal-line stand in the third quarter vs. Penn State, stopping four tries from inside the 2 yard line in a one-score game (Penn State led 20-14 at the time).

Two Stands in 1972
Ohio State's defense produced two goal-line stands in the 1972 game against Michigan; one in the first half and one in the second. The Buckeyes prevailed, 14-11 in that game.

Storm Warning
Junior linebacker Storm Klein assisted on all four of Ohio State's goal line stops during its third quarter stand. That effort helped Klein amass a career-best nine tackles against the Nittany Lions.

News, Notes, Stats & Stuff...
The last time Ohio State lost two Big Ten Conference games at Ohio Stadium was coach Jim Tressel's first season, 2001 (Wisconsin and Illinois) ... Ohio State lost five Big Ten home games between 1999 and 2001, but has lost only four since ... 2011 is the 94th consecutive year that Ohio State and Michigan will meet on the gridiron ... Senior WR DeVier Posey has at least one catch in each of his last 28 games.

Boom Climbs into Top 10
Dan "Boom" Herron had his streak of 100-yard rushing games this season end at three at Purdue. And after rushing for 76 more vs. Penn State, his per-game average is now at 111.2 yards per game (5.2 ypc). Herron moved into Ohio State's all-time Top 10 rushers with 2,750 yards. He needs 195 to pass Antonio Pittman (2,945 yards) for ninth.

"O" Yes!
Orhian Johnson recorded his third interception of the season and the fourth of his career vs. Penn State. He is now tied with Travis Howard for the most among Buckeye defenders.

Active Career Leaders - Interceptions

Shugarts Start Streak Snapped
J.B. Shugarts had started 24 consecutive games at right tackle before missing the Purdue game with a leg issue. Antonio Underwood started in Shugarts' place and Corey Linsley also spent considerable time at the position. Ohio State had started the same offensive line crew of LT Mike Adams, LG Andrew Norwell, C Mike Brewster, RG Jack Mewhort and LG Shugarts four consecutive games - since Adams' return - and had averaged 267.0 rushing yards per game in that stretch.

Seven Frosh Have Now Started
With Ryan Shazier making his first start vs. Penn State and T.Y. Williams and Antonio Underwood doing the same at Purdue, Ohio State has now had seven different freshmen start a game this season. RS frosh Bradley Roby leads all with 10 starts at CB. He is followed by QB Braxton Miller (8), WR Verlon Reed (five before season-ending knee surgery), DE J.T. Moore (three) and then Williams and Underwood.

A Mountain of Youth
All those freshmen starters only begin to tell the story of the number of young Buckeyes seeing playing time in 2011. So far 14 true freshmen have played in at least one game (10th-most nationally) and seven red-shirt freshmen have played for a mountain of youth totaling 21 freshmen (19th nationally) who have played this season.

True Frosh on the Field:
Michael Bennett, Brian Bobek, Jeremy Cash, Curtis Grant, Doran Grant, Joel Hale, Jeff Heuerman, Braxton Miller, Steve Miller, Ryan Shazier, Devin Smith, Evan Spencer, DerJuan Gambrell and Antonio Underwood.

Redshirt Frosh on the Field:
David Durham, Chad Hagan, J.T. Moore, Verlon Reed, Bradley Roby, Rod Smith and T.Y.Williams.

15-Year Best 346-Yards Rushing
Dan Herron (141), Braxton Miller (105) and Carlos Hyde (105) each ran for 100 yards against Indiana and the end result was a 15-year best 346-yard rushing game by the Buckeyes. The last time an Ohio State team rushed for more was Nov. 9, 1996 at Illinois when Pepe Pearson, no doubt running behind Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award winner Orlando Pace all day, led a 348-yard team effort with 165 rushing yards.

Seventh-Best Per Carry Avg. Ever!
Ohio State averaged 7.52 yards per carry vs. the Hoosiers (46-346), a figure that ranks seventh-best all-time for a single game.

Miller Big Ten Freshman of the Week Oct. 31
The best game of Braxton Miller's collegiate career vs. Wisconsin - three TDs accounted for including a game-winning TD pass with 20 seconds to play - earned the quarterback from Huber Heights, Ohio, the Big Ten Conference Freshman of the Week honor Oct. 31. Ohio State defeated No. 15 Wisconsin, 33-29. Miller scored the first two touchdowns of his career before capping the game with his most important TD pass to date. He coasted in from the 1 yard line in the third quarter for his first collegiate score to give Ohio State a 10-7 lead. Then he burst off the left edge for a 44-yard sprint in the fourth quarter to extend the lead to 26-14. And then after Wisconsin scored two touchdowns inside of the final four minutes to take a 29-26 lead, Miller threw his sixth touchdown pass of the season, a 40-yarder to fellow freshman Devin Smith with 20 seconds to play to give Ohio State the come-from-behind victory. For the game, Miller rushed for a career high 99 yards and passed for 89 on 7 for 12 passing for a career high total offense day of 188 yards.

Simon Named Big Ten Defensive POW Oct. 17
John Simon's aggressive, relentless pursuit of all things Blue and Orange Oct. 15 in Champaign, Ill., earned the junior defensive tackle from Youngstown, Ohio, with the Defensive Player of the Week Award from the Big Ten Conference. The Big Ten award, the first by a Buckeye this season, was one of numerous awards for Simon last week. On a national scale, Simon was named the Lott IMPACT Player of the Week and the College Football Performance Award's National Defensive Lineman of the Week. Simon spearheaded an Ohio State defense with a career-high eight tackles, including a career-high four tackles-for-loss, in the team's 17-7 road win over 16th-ranked and previously unbeaten Illinois. Simon's TFLs included two quarterback sacks and totaled 16 yards in losses. The TFL total was one off the school record of five held by Andy Katzenmoyer (vs. Arizona State in 1996), Jayson Gwinn (vs. Indiana in 1993) and Judah Herman (vs. Iowa in 1991).

Stoneburner Second in Career TDs
Jake Stoneburner is tied for second place among Ohio State tight ends with nine career touchdown receptions. The junior caught his fifth touchdown this season - a 32-yard screen pass from Braxton Miller with blocking assistance from Mike Brewster and Mike Adams - in the first quarter against Nebraska and his sixth with a 17-yarder from Miller at Illinois. His seventh was a 7-yarder from Miller vs. Penn State.

Tight End Touchdowns
10 - John Lumpkin (1996-98)
9 - Jake Stoneburner (2009-present)
9 - John Frank (1980-83)
9 - Rickey Dudley (1994-95)
9 - Charles Bryant (1959-61)
9 - Darnell Sanders (1999-01)
8 - Jan White (1968-70)
8 - Robert Grimes (1950-52)

Brewster Reaches 47 Straight
All-American center Mike Brewster has started 47 consecutive games. The senior from Orlando, Fla. made his first start in Game 4 of the 2008 season vs. Troy and started the final 10 games of the season. He started all 13 games in 2009 and 2010, respectively.

Red Zone Efficiency
Officially, Ohio State has scored 29 of 33 times (87.9 percent) this season inside the 20 with 21 touchdowns and eight field goals. The only four times the Buckeyes have failed to score came on a fumble and on three end-of-game possessions against Akron, Colorado and Indiana while running out the clock. So if you take out those three instances, Ohio State is really 29 of 30 (96.6 percent).

Since Rod Smith's fumble in the first quarter against Akron, Ohio State has scored on 27 consecutive red zone possessions if you don't count the three possessions in which the Buckeyes took a knee to run out the clock.

Buchanan a Wuerffel Award Finalist
Junior punter Ben Buchanan, a strategic communications major from Westerville, Ohio, has been named a finalist for the Wuerffel Trophy, which is presented by the All Sports Association of Fort Walton Beach, Fla. The award is presented to the college football player who best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement.

Simon a Lott IMPACT Trophy Semifinalist
Junior defensive lineman John Simon is among eight semifinalists for the annual Lott IMPACT Trophy, which was announced by the Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation.

The Silver Bullet Defense
The Buckeyes have a long-standing tradition of producing the best defenses in the Big Ten and the nation year in, year out. Here are some bullets that put into perspective the Silver Bullets dominance:

Fewest 100-yd rushers allowed
(FBS Teams Since 2005)

Fewest 100-yd rushers allowed
(FBS Teams Since 2007)

Last nine opponents to rush for 100 yards since 2007:

Head Coach Luke Fickell

Team/Miscellaneous Notes

Not Since 1922-24
Ohio State ranks second among all NCAA Div. I programs with 85 consecutive seasons since last posting back-to-back losing records. The Buckeyes have not been under .500 for two or more consecutive seasons since 1922-24, which trails only Tennessee; the Vols have not had back-to-back losing seasons since 1909-11, a span of 98 consecutive seasons.

Game Captains
Ohio State has been selecting game captains this year with overall season captains to be selected at the conclusion of the campaign.

2011 Game Captains
Akron: Mike Brewster, John Simon, J.B. Shugarts
Toledo: Joe Bauserman, Nate Ebner, Andrew Sweat
Miami: Brewster and Tyler Moeller
Colorado: Zach Boren, Simon
Michigan State: Ebner, Jordan Hall, Nate Oliver
Nebraska: Brewster, Sweat, Moeller
Illinois: Brewster, Sweat, Stoneburner
Wisconsin: Brewster, Sweat, Simon, Dan Herron
Indiana: Mike Adams, Sweat, Moeller, Boren
Purdue: Brewster, Herron, Moeller, Simon
Penn State: Brewster, Herron, Moeller, Sweat