The Ohio State Buckeyes, under head coach Ryan Day, have finally beaten the program’s longtime rivals, the Michigan Wolverines, on Saturday afternoon, 27-9.

However, it’s clear that any game during Rivalry Week must have some sort of controversy throughout the contest.

On 4th and 5 in the second quarter, Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin managed to find star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith for a massive 35-yard touchdown to give the Buckeyes their first lead of the game.

Before the referees officially confirmed the call on the field, the play was reviewed to see if Smith maintained possession before stepping out of bounds. Through video review, fans could see that Smith bobbled the football before stepping out of bounds, which, if the call was overturned, the play would have resulted in a touchback.

Luckily, the call on the field was upheld, and the Buckeyes’ offense managed to rip off multiple touchdowns to secure the win. When asked about the call, Big Ten Referee Kole Knueppel claimed that there was no sufficient evidence to overturn the call on the field.

“We did not have a camera angle to determine when the ball was loose as opposed to when it crossed the goal line," Knueppel said. "So by rule, if we don't have an angle to confirm by obvious video evidence that the ball was loose before he crossed the goal line, then the play is going to be upheld.”

Obviously, the Buckeyes were able to take the lead from this place and did not look back on offense, which poses the million-dollar question: Would an overturned call have prevented Ohio State from winning on Saturday?

Looking at the situation as a whole, the touchdown provided a significant boost to the Buckeyes’ efforts, as the defense forced Michigan to punt on the ensuing drive and scored another touchdown to give Day a 17-9 lead with less than six minutes left in the half.

To say that this play caused the Buckeyes to win the contest, however, is simply wrong. Sure, Michigan would have kept a 6-3 lead with the ball on their own 20-yard line. But Ohio State’s combination of stout defensive play and strong offensive showing after the first quarter was the reason why Day was able to win his first game over the Wolverines.

In sports, there is no such thing as “one game-defining” play that determines the outcome of a matchup. This was proven in Week 14 by the Buckeyes, who simply outplayed the Wolverines on offense. The defense held freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood to eight completions on 18 attempts for 63 yards and one interception, which was truly the reason for Ohio State’s victory.