legrandangle-lgm

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day offered a defense of his players after a huge brawl that broke out at midfield after the Buckeyes were upset by Michigan in the Saturday edition of The Game.

The altercation began when Michigan players attempted to plant their M flag in Block O at the 50-yard line but were interrupted by OSU players who tried to stop them, resulting in a huge fight that involved police and saw several players and other bystanders soaked. on pepper spray.

“I don’t know all the details of it,” Day said when asked about his players’ actions.

“But I know these guys want to put a flag on our field and our guys weren’t going to let that happen.”

Day added: “I will find out exactly what happened but this is our field and we are certainly ashamed of the fact that we lost the game but there are some proud guys on our team who didn’t just let that happen . .”

One of those proud boys was Ohio State defensive star Jack Sawyer, who tore the M flag from one of the opposing team, drawing a roar of approval from the fans left in the stands.

Sawyer returned to Ohio State for his senior season largely for the chance to beat Michigan, but instead he and the rest of his class will leave the school 0-4 against the Wolverines.

Photos from the Fox broadcast appeared to show players and other people on the field had been sprayed and a bystander was bleeding as he tried to escape the fight.

“I don’t know if I know all that right now,” Day said when asked about possible injuries. “Some crazy things happened there, but I think everything is fine.”

He added: “I spoke to the team just after the game and again, without knowing all the details, there are some proud guys in our team who are not going to just sit back and watch that happen.”

What happened on the field should have an impact on the future projection of the College Football Playoff selection committee, as Ohio State was eliminated from the Big Ten Championship Game as a result of the loss.

This week, the Buckeyes were the projected No. 5 seed and were set to host a first-round matchup against projected No. 12 seed Arizona State.

And while Saturday’s loss shouldn’t knock Ohio State out of the playoffs entirely, it could force the team into a first-round road game in the coming weeks.

–

More college football from SI: Top 25 rankings | Schedule | Teams

Follow College Football Headquarters: Bookmark | Rankings | Choices