Police use pepper spray when large brawl breaks out after Michigan upsets No. 2 Ohio State

Players from both teams engaged in a massive brawl after Michigan pulled off a shocking 13-10 upset of No. 2 Ohio State in Columbus Saturday, prompting officers to deploy pepper spray.

The incident appeared to have started when Michigan defensive end Derrick Moore attempted to plant a team flag at midfield in Ohio Stadium, and was confronted by several Ohio State players. The situation escalated when an Ohio State player tore the flag off the pole.  

Several skirmishes broke out, with players from both teams throwing punches.

A spokesperson for Ohio State confirmed to CBS News in an email that law enforcement officers deployed pepper spray during the fight.

“Following the game, officers from multiple law enforcement agencies assisted in breaking up an on-field altercation,” the school spokesperson said. “During this scuffle, multiple officers representing Ohio and Michigan deployed pepper spray.”

The school spokesperson said that the Ohio State University Police Department was the lead agency patrolling the game and will investigate the fight. It’s unclear if there were any serious injuries.

“For such a great game, you hate to see stuff like that after the game,” Michigan running back Kalel Mullings told reporters, according to CBS Sports. “Just bad for the sport, bad for college football. But at the end of the day, some people got to learn how to lose, man. Can’t be fighting and stuff just because you lost a game. All that fighting, we have 60 minutes, we have four quarters to do all that fighting and now you want to talk and fight. That’s wrong. It’s just bad for the game. Classless, in my opinion. People got to be better.”

With the upset, the 7-5 Wolverines ended the 10-2 Buckeyes’ hopes of returning to the Big Ten title game. Michigan’s Dominic Zvada kicked the game-winning 21-yard field goal with 45 seconds left.

Ohio State got the ball back but couldn’t move it, with Will Howard throwing incomplete on fourth down to seal the Wolverines’ fourth straight win over their bitter rival.

This Ohio State loss in the “The Game” might have been the toughest of the past four because Michigan was unranked and wrapping up a disappointing season. The Wolverines were also playing without a couple of top players: tight end Colston Loveland and cornerback Will Johnson.

The Buckeyes were favored by 21 points, the widest point spread for this rivalry since 1978, according to ESPN Stats and Info.