COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Big Ten Conference announced an institutional fine for both the University of Michigan and Ohio State University after a fight broke out following the football game on Nov. 30.
When Michigan's 13-10 win over Ohio State stunned the crowd, the Wolverines attempted to plant their flag on the field. They were then met by Buckeyes who tried to stop it.
Police used pepper spray to break up the players, who had begun to punch and shove each other in the incident.
According to the conference, the actions of both of the teams violated the Big Ten Sportsmanship Policy.
"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 conference said in a statement.
As a result, both universities have been issued an institutional fine of $100,000 each.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day said he understood the actions of his players.
“There are some prideful guys on our team who weren't going to sit back and let that happen,” Day said.
The two Ohio State players made available after the game brushed off questions about it.
Michigan running back Kalel Mullings, who rushed for 116 yards and a touchdown, didn't like how the Buckeyes players involved themselves in the Wolverines' postgame celebration. He called it “classless.”
“For such a great game, you hate to see stuff like that after the game," he said in an on-field interview with Fox Sports. “It’s just bad for the sport, bad for college football. But at the end of the day, you know some people got to — they got to learn how to lose, man. ... We had 60 minutes, we had four quarters, to do all that fighting.”
Michigan coach Sherrone Moore said everybody needs to do better.
“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.”
Ohio State police said in a statement “multiple officers representing Ohio and Michigan deployed pepper spray.” Ohio State police will investigate the fight, according to the statement.
The conference said it considers the matter concluded and has no further comment.
