Michigan State and Ohio State will pay with their wallets for the ugly brawl that occurred on the field after their rivalry game.
The Big 10 announced Sunday that both schools will be fined $100,000 over the incident after Michigan beat No. 2 Ohio State 13-10 in Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday afternoon.
“The Big Ten Conference has determined that the actions of both teams following the Michigan-Ohio State football game on Saturday, November 30, 2024, violated the Big Ten’s Sportsmanship Policy,” the conference said. “Not only did the actions of both teams violate basic elements of sportsmanship such as respect and civility, but the nature of the incident also jeopardized the safety of participants and bystanders.
Things quickly escalated after Michigan rusher Derrick Moore attempted to plant a school flag on the Buckeyes logo at midfield.
It launched from both sides as chaotic pushing, shoving and grabbing occurred, with several individuals ending up on the ground.
“I don't know all the details of it, but I know those guys were looking to put a flag on our field and our guys weren't going to let that happen,” Ohio State head coach Ryan Day said after the game. “I'll find out exactly what happened, but that's our domain. We were certainly embarrassed by the fact that we lost the game, but there are some proud players in this team who wouldn't let that happen.
The police resorted to using pepper spray to control the incident.
The flag was eventually taken away from Moore by Ohio State linebacker Jack Sawyer, who intercepted a pass during the game, as things finally went downhill.
The win was Michigan's fourth straight over their archrival and came with the Wolverines (7-5) as heavy underdogs.
“For such a great game, you hate to see things like that after the game,” Michigan's Kalil Mullings said. “It's bad for sports, it's bad for college football. But at the end of the day, some people have to learn how to lose.”
“You can't fight and things like that just because you lost a match. All this fighting, we had 60 minutes, we had four quarters to do all this fighting. And now people want to talk and fight, and that's wrong. It's just bad for the game. Classless, in my opinion “People have to be better.”
