The Big Ten Conference announced it fined Michigan and Ohio State $100,000 each for violating the conference’s sportsmanship policy for the on-field melee at the end of the Wolverines’ win in Columbus on Saturday.
“Not only did the actions of both teams violate fundamental elements of sportsmanship such as respect and civility, the nature of the incident also jeopardized the safety of participants and bystanders,” the Big Ten said in a statement Sunday.
A fight broke out at midfield after the Wolverines’ 13-10 victory when Michigan players attempted to plant their flag on the OSU logo and were confronted by the Buckeyes.
Police used pepper spray to break up the players, who threw punches and shoves. One officer suffered a head injury when he was “knocked down and trampled while trying to separate players fighting,” a police union official said. The officer was taken to a hospital and has since been released.
After the Ohio State players confronted their rivals at midfield, defensive end Jack Sawyer grabbed the top of the Wolverines’ flag and ripped it off the pole as the brawl moved toward the Michigan bench.
“We respect the Big Ten Conference’s decision in this matter,” Ohio State said in a statement. “What happened post-game yesterday was unfortunate. Good sportsmanship is always important in everything we do at Ohio State. Moving forward, we will continue to examine and address our post-game protocols to ensure our student-athletes, coaches, visiting teams and staff safely exit the field.”
Ohio State police said in a statement that “multiple officers representing Ohio and Michigan deployed pepper spray.” Michigan players could be seen rubbing their eyes after exposure to the chemical irritant.
Michigan coach Sherrone Moore said after the game both teams could have handled the situation differently.
“So much emotions on both sides,” he said. “Rivalry games get heated, especially this one. It’s the biggest one in the country, so we got to handle that better.”
A Michigan athletic department spokesman said Sunday night the football program would have no comment beyond the team’s remarks Saturday.
The scuffle was one of many that broke out Saturday in rivalry games across the country.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.