Inflection Point: Ohio State 2018

Despite everything that had happened, Michigan was within a score of Ohio State midway through the third quarter.

Dwayne Haskins throwing for 211 yards and three scores in a half. Shea Patterson eating two sacks, as well as numerous other pressures. Ninth-leading Buckeye receiver Chris Olave beating Brandon Watson like a drum for two touchdowns.

Despite all that, the Wolverines got the ball back down 27-19 with eight minutes left in the third quarter.

After a couple of first downs, Zach Gentry dropped a seam route to force a punt. Olave blocked it, Sevyn Banks returned it for a score and the ensuing scarlet blood bath drowned Michigan for good.

On the next drive, Patterson tossed a batted pass into the arms of Jordan Fuller. Two plays later, former Wolverine commit Mike Weber slammed into the end zone for a 41-19 cushion.

The wheels had officially fallen off the wagon. The humiliation of three more touchdowns was barely offset by three Michigan ones in garbage time.

The final carnage was complete. Haskins finished 20-of-31 for 398 yards and six touchdowns. The previously stagnant Ohio State ground game churned out 171 yards at nearly five a pop.

Most shockingly, the 62 points is the worst defensive performance in Michigan history, considering that the 2010 Illinois game went into triple overtime before the score read 67-65.

In the quarter and a half following Olave’s block, “The Game” turned into “The Joke.”