There was a long, low sigh of relief emanating from the Ohio State sidelines after the Buckeyes had ended their four-game losing streak against Michigan with a 27-9 triumph. The top-ranked Buckeyes (12-0) needed to come through with a win in the series because their fans had grown sick and tired of losing to the Wolverines and they had taken out their frustration on head coach Ryan Day.

It didn't matter to a percentage of Ohio State fans that the Buckeyes won the national championship last year and were the top-ranked team in the nation this season. Ohio State dominated the second half and were able to unleash a powerful ground game that sucked the life out of Sherrone Moore's Wolverines and quieted much of the crowd at Michigan Stadium.

When the final seconds ticked off the clock and Day met Moore on the field for the postgame handshake, he told Moore that he was not interested in “planting a flag” on the “M” logo at the center of the field.

“If we don’t want a problem we gotta get them outta here,” Day said to the Michigan coach. “I’m not gonna plant any flags, none of that.”

When Michigan was victorious at Ohio Stadium last year, Michigan players attempted to plant a Michigan flag on Ohio State's block “O' in the center of the field. That set off a near-brawl between the two teams.

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Ohio State overcomes early deficit to remain undefeated

Michigan broke on top against the Buckeyes with a pair of field goals in the first quarter. One of those three-pointers came after Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin threw an interception on his second pass of the game.

Sayin shook off that adversity and came through with an excellent performance as he completed 19 of 26 passes for 233 yards with three touchdown passes. The Ohio State defense limited Michigan to a third field goal and that doomed Michigan from getting their fifth straight win the series.

The top-ranked Buckeyes will take on Indiana in the Big Ten title game prior to the start of the College Football Playoffs.