Ohio State Police confirm the use of pepper spray during a scuffle with Michigan after the game

Michigan’s dramatic 13-10 win at Ohio State turned ugly after the game when a fight broke out at midfield after Wolverines players attempted to place a flag on the Buckeyes’ midfield logo.

Shortly after the altercation was finally resolved, reports emerged that police on scene used pepper spray to break up the altercation. Ohio State Police confirmed this in a social media post Saturday evening.

“After the game, officers from multiple law enforcement agencies helped break up an altercation on the field,” the post said. “During the altercation, several officers from Ohio and Michigan used pepper spray. OSUPD is the lead agency for gaming and will continue the investigation.”

A video posted by Michigan outlet UMGoBlue.com appears to show the use of pepper spray as police attempted to separate the players.

Buckeyes coach Ryan Day, who has now lost four straight games to the rival Wolverines, appeared to rationalize his players’ mindset during his postgame press conference.

“I don’t know all the details,” Day said. “But I know these guys wanted to plant a flag on our field and our guys weren’t going to let that happen.”

With the loss, Michigan is now undefeated against Ohio State since 2019 (the rivalry did not take place during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season). At 10-2, the Buckeyes will likely still make the College Football Playoff, but they will miss the Big Ten Championship – a possible rematch against Oregon – unless both Penn State and Indiana suffer surprising defeats on Saturday afternoon.