ANN ARBOR, Michigan - Before Ohio State could take a ceremonial bow, Urban Meyer had to take a breath.
Barely, yet perfectly in the category that counts, this Ohio State run continues.
Meyer was numb as Michigan marched, again and again, and a different kind of numb when Tyvis Powell dove in front of a two-point conversion pass and when Bradley Roby recovered an onside kick. He was still numb in the postgame madness as the teams shook hands, as Carlos Hyde waved goodbye to Michigan fans and as fans of both sides stood and felt a bit of what Meyer was feeling -- that all that really happened and Ohio State found a way to win. Again.
An Ohio State-Michigan game that didn't look like it would be much of one on paper turned into a game for the ages Saturday. And an Ohio State defense that got gashed all day got that interception from Powell with 32 seconds left to preserve a 42-41 win and keep Ohio State's really big dreams alive. The Buckeyes are 12-0 this season and 24-0 since Meyer showed up and everything changed.
Twenty four and oh.
Oh, was this latest one wild.
The Game, as it's called in this part of the country, started with Michigan dictating the tempo, a fight that resulted in three ejections, and three touchdowns for each side by halftime. Ohio State jumped out to a 35-21 lead in the third quarter as Hyde proved tough to tackle and Braxton Miller showed off his talents in the open field, too.
Michigan moved at will, scoring on drives of 99, 84, 83, 78 and 70 yards. Hyde bulled and bullied the Michigan defense for 226 yards, and Miller ran for 153 and threw two touchdown passes on just six completions. The offenses won, and that's why Brady Hoke went for two at the end.
And Ohio State got the stop -- the one that counted.
"I would have done the same thing," Meyer said of Michigan's two-point try. "Both offenses were in unstoppable mode."
Hyde was a little less modest about it, saying Michigan knew what was coming if the game went to overtime.
Few would argue.
No. 3 Ohio State has flaws, and Michigan exposed just about every one of them in a fast-paced first half. But the Buckeyes hadn't been in a fight -- figuratively speaking -- since the first weekend of October, and what happened here could serve them well.
This was a big game. The next one is bigger. The next one, whatever it is, is even bigger.
These Buckeyes keep answering, keep surviving, keep finding ways, making plays and riding Hyde in just about any direction he chooses to push the pile. Both teams have plays they'd like to have back, but Ohio State took Michigan's best shot and gets to dance on to Indianapolis for a date with Michigan State in the Big Ten championship game.
That will bring yet another chance for Ohio State to extend the streak and possibly what it calls The Chase, too.
Teams don't win 24 straight, even on schedules as soft as Ohio State's this year (and last), because too much can go wrong. Because too many other teams bring their A-game. Because the ball takes funny bounces, field goals get missed, players get hurt and ejected, and crazy things happen.
No. 24 was the craziest of all. It goes in the books in the same column as all the others.
Meyer has been working like crazy to keep his team focused on the moment, not what might be ahead with the BCS or any other distractions good teams encounter at this time of year. He undoubtedly has a good team, one that has looked great in stretches against inferior competition and one that needed to go into "unstoppable mode" on Saturday and did. Hyde, Miller and the Buckeyes' offensive line are game changers.
Meyer likes to tell his team that the best part of each win is the chance to get another, the chance to go back to practice and tighten things up and look to improve. Last year he'd say the best part of five was the chance at six, of 10 was the shot at 11. In both years, he has acknowledged that Michigan week is different.
Oh, it sure was. But even if Ohio State can't control its own BCS fate, it tempted fate in Ann Arbor and came out on top. Again. The best part of 12-0? The chance to go for 13.
For the moment, the best part of 24-0 is that two of the wins came against Michigan. And with the way Saturday unfolded, there's a chance this team just isn't going to lose at all.
