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List of historically significant college football games

Note: this list is incomplete. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Note: winning team is in bold type.

Game	Home	Visitor	Location	Final score	Notes
1879 Racine	Michigan	Racine College	Chicago, Illinois	1-0	On May 30, 1879, Michigan played its first intercollegiate football game against Racine College at White Stocking Park in Chicago. The Chicago Tribune called it "the first rugby-football game to be played west of the Alleghenies." Midway through "the first 'inning'," Irving Kane Pond scored the first touchdown for Michigan. According to Will Perry's history of Michigan football, the crowd responded to Pond's plays with cheers of "Pond Forever."
1880 Toronto	Michigan	Toronto	Toronto, Ontario	1-0	Possibly the first college football game played outside the United States.
1881 Harvard	Michigan	Harvard	Cambridge, Massachusetts	4-0	The first game between "western" and "eastern" teams marked the birth of intersectional foobtall. Western teams, including Michigan, played a more traditional form of rugby, while eastern teams played a more stylized predecessor to American football. In its report on the game, The Boston Journal wrote: "The Western college boys have long wished a chance to try their powers with Eastern opponents . . . As it was, Harvard won more by luck than by superiority in strength or skill . . ."
1883 Detroit Independents	Michigan	Detroit Independents	Ann Arbor, Michigan	40-5	The first game played by the Wolverines in Ann Arbor. The game was played at the Ann Arbor Fairgrounds.
1885 Penninsulars	Penninsulars	Michigan	Detroit, Michigan	42-0	The first Thanksgiving Day football game in Detroit (a tradition later revived by the Detroit Lions). Michigan made it a tradition to play annual Thanksgiving games, holding 19 such games from 1885 to 1905. The Thanksgiving Day games between Michigan and the Chicago Maroons in the 1890s have been cited as "The Beginning of Thanksgiving Day Football." In fact, Yale and Princeton began an annual tradition of playing against each other on Thanksgiving Day starting in 1876.
1887 Notre Dame	Notre Dame	Michigan	South Bend, Indiana	8-0	The first game in the Michigan–Notre Dame football rivalry. Players from the Michigan came to Notre Dame to teach them football, and Notre Dame established its first team. In their first game, Notre Dame suffered a decisive loss as each point was both a touchdown and a field goal. Michigan now holds the #1 and Notre Dame the #2 position for winningest programs in college football.
1890 Albion	Michigan	Albion College	Ann Arbor, Michigan	56-10	Michigan's first racially integrated football game. Fullback George Jewett became the first African-American to play football at Michigan. After the game, The Chronicle-Argonaut wrote, "Jewett, '94, showed up in good form though his work was not entirely perfect." Jewett was called "the Afro-American phenomenon of the University of Michigan." John Heisman described Jewett as a "superior athlete," and Amos Alonzo Stagg referred to him as "a very tough opponent."
1894 Cornell	Michigan	Cornell	Detroit, Michigan	12-4	The "first time in collegiate football history that a western school defeated an established power from the east." (Teams from the Ivy League were recognized as the national champions every year from 1869 to 1900.) Two-thousand students traveled to Detroit for the game, and Michigan players paraded down Woodward Avenue. After the game, "the Michigan men went wild" as blue and yellow were "all the colors that could be seen." An Indiana newspaper called it "the fiercest struggle at football that ever took place on Michigan soil" and opined that "the victory places Michigan in the position of worthy foeman of Yale, Harvard, Princeton or Pennsylvania."
1895 Chicago	Chicago	Michigan	Chicago, Illinois	12-0	With a victory over Chicago, the 1895 team "clinched their claim to the Western championship." After the game, a Chicago newspaper wrote: "The Michigan team is the finest set of football players Ann Arbor has ever sent out and completely out-classes any team in the West. . . . [T]he local team appeared like school-boys before them. It seemed almost wonderful that these giants could be kept from sweeping down the field and scoring as they willed."
1896 Chicago	Chicago	Michigan	Chicago, Illinois	7-6	The first college football game played indoors occurred at the Chicago Coliseum on Thanksgiving Day with the added novelty of a field lit with electric lighting. After the game, a Chicago newspaper proclaimed "indoor football is literally and figuratively speaking a howling success," noting that the game had been played "on its merits, without the handicaps of a wet field or a strong wind."
1897 Ohio State	Michigan	Ohio State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	34-0	First meeting in the Michigan–Ohio State football rivalry which is considered by many to be the fiercest in American sports. A newspaper account of the game reported that Michigan's points were scored in the first twenty minutes, "after which the play assumed the form of a practice game," as players were substituted and kicking and defense were the feature for the rest of the game. According to the report, the "Ohio players made no impression on the university of Michigan line."
1898 Chicago	Chicago	Michigan	Chicago, Illinois	12-11	Michigan's Thanksgiving Day victory over Chicago capped a perfect 10-0 season and gave Michigan its first Western Conference (now the Big Ten) championship. After watching the game, Louis Elbel wrote Michigan's fight song "The Victors" celebrating Michigan's first turn as the "Champions of the West."
1901 Buffalo	Michigan	Buffalo	Ann Arbor, Michigan	128-0	In the first season under head coach Fielding H. Yost, a lopsided victory over Buffalo drew national attention and marked the arrival of Yost's "Point-a-Minute" teams. The Buffalo team beat Ivy League power Columbia earlier in the year and was favored over a Michigan team the Buffalo newspapers had dubbed "Woolly Westerners." Michigan scored 22 touchdowns in 38 minutes of play, averaging a touchdown every one minute and 43 seconds. Buffalo quit 15 minutes before the game was scheduled to end. The New York Times reported that Michigan's margin of victory was "one of the most remarkable ever made in the history of football in the important colleges."
1902 Rose Bowl	Stanford	Michigan	Pasadena, California	0–49	First bowl game in American football history. Michigan dominated the game so thoroughly that Stanford's captain requested the game be called with eight minutes remaining. Neil Snow scored five touchdowns in the game, which is still the all-time Rose Bowl record. The Tournament of Roses Association held chariot races and other events in lieu of a football game for the next 15 years. With the victory, Michigan secured its first of eleven National Championships.
1902 Wisconsin	Wisconsin	Michigan	Chicago, Illinois	6-0	The widely anticipated game matched teams that were undefeated since 1900 and drew the largest crowd (20,000-22,000) ever to watch a football game in the west. During the first half, a temporary bleacher collapsed, throwing several hundred people to the ground. In the confusion, a crowd broke down the wire fence outside Marshall Field, and hundreds swarmed onto the field. "The few police were powerless to force them out, but the scrubs from both teams lined up against the crowd and shoved them away from the side lines so the game could be played." The Detroit Free Press called it "the greatest football game ever played on a western gridiron." The undefeated 1902 team outscored its opponents 644 to 12, earning Michigan's second national championship.
1903 Minnesota	Minnesota	Michigan	Minneapolis, Minnesota	6-6	The game began the tradition of the Little Brown Jug, the oldest rivalry trophy in America. Fielding Yost sent a student assistant to purchase a five-gallon water jug from a local store. After the game ended in a tie, Yost forgot the jug in the locker room. Custodian Oscar Munson discovered it and brought it to L. J. Cooke, who painted the jug brown and wrote "Michigan Jug - Captured by Oscar, October 31, 1903. Michigan 6, Minnesota 6." When Yost requested that the jug be returned, Cooke responded that "if you want it, you'll have to win it." Accepting the challenge, Michigan returned to Minnesota in 1909 and recaptured the jug 15-6.
1904 West Virginia	Michigan	West Virginia	Ann Arbor, Michigan	130-0	The most lopsided score in Michigan football history. In a game consisting of 25 and 20-minute halves, the Wolverines scored 22 touchdowns and 20 extra points (which would have resulted in a margin of 152-0 under modern scoring rules). Joe Curtis alone accounted for 49 points with six touchdowns and 19 extra points. The undefeated 1904 team won Michigan's fourth national championship and scored 567 points in 476 minutes of football, averaging a point every 50.3 seconds.
1905 Chicago	Chicago	Michigan	Chicago, Illinois	2-0	The game, dubbed "The First Greatest Game of the Century," broke Michigan's 56-game unbeaten streak and marked the end of the "Point-a-Minute" years. The 1905 Michigan team had outscored opponents 495-0 in its first 12 games. The game was lost in the final ten minutes of play when Denny Clark was tackled for a safety as he attempted to return a punt from behind the goal line. Newspapers described Clark's play as "the wretched blunder" and a "lapse of brain work." Clark transferred to M.I.T. the following year and was haunted by the play for the rest of his life. In 1932, he shot himself, leaving a suicide note that reportedly expressed hope that his "final play" would atone for his error at Marshall Field in 1905.
1908 Penn	Michigan	Penn	Ann Arbor, Michigan	29-0	Michigan played its annual rivalry game against Penn from 1906 to 1917. In 1908, both teams came into the game undefeated, and Penn went on to win the national championship. The Michigan team was led by Germany Schulz, rated the greatest center in football history in a 1951 poll. According to one account, Penn "put five men—center, both guards and both tackles—on the Wolverine giant". Schulz took the beating until he was "literally dragged off the field, tears streaming down his mud-spattered cheeks as he frantically protested his removal from the game". Fielding Yost called it "the greatest one-man exhibition of courage I ever saw on a football field". Grantland Rice wrote that Schulz held Penn in check for 50 minutes and "left the field a battered wreck".
1909 Notre Dame	Michigan	Notre Dame	Ann Arbor, Michigan	11-3	Michigan's first loss to Notre Dame after eight straight victories. The victory was considered "the greatest athletic achievement to that point in Notre Dame history." The Notre Dame team was comprised predominantly of Irish players. Detroit sports writer E. A. Batchelor opened his report on the game with this line that was embraced as the team's nickname: "Eleven fighting Irishmen wrecked the Yost machine this afternoon. These sons of Erin . . . not only beat the Michigan team, but they dashed some of Michigan's fondest hopes . . ." Yost refused to schedule another game against Notre Dame, and it was 33 years before the rivalry resumed in 1942.
1914 Harvard	Harvard	Michigan	Cambridge, Massachusetts	7-0	The game became famous due to the performance of Michgan's John Maulbetsch. Ring Lardner wrote that Maulbetsch had shot full of holes the theory of Eastern football supremacy. Damon Runyon wrote that Michigan used "the mighty Maulbetsch as their battering ram," and he "gained enough ground against Harvard to bury a German army corps." While official records are not available, Frank Menke reported that Maulbetsch gained 300 yards. A 1938 newspaper account said he "gained 350 yards from scrimmage."
1918 Chicago	Chicago	Michigan	Chicago, Illinois	18-0	After a month-long break in the season due to war-time travel restrictions and the 1918 flu pandemic, Michigan defeated Amos Alonzo Stagg's Chicago Maroons. The game was played as negotiations were underway to end World War I, and the Chicago Daily Tribune wrote: "While the nations of the world are hoping for an armistice, the resumption of hostilities between forces guided by Gens. Yost and Stagg brought joy to thousands of football fans . . ." The game was also Michigan's first meeting against its traditional rival since the Wolverines withdrew from the Western Conference after the 1905 season.
1922 Ohio State	Ohio State	Michigan	Columbus, Ohio	19-0	The official "Dedication Day" for Ohio Stadium. Ohio State fans recalled for years afterward how Michigan All-Americans Paul G. Goebel and Harry Kipke, who scored the game's only points, turned Dedication Day sour. The rotunda at Ohio Stadium is painted with maize flowers on a blue background due to the outcome of the 1922 dedication game.
1924 Illinois	Illinois	Michigan	Champaign, Illinois	39-14	In the dedication game for Memorial Stadium, Red Grange gained national prominence by scoring six touchdowns (four in the first quarter), including a 95-yard touchdown return on the opening kickoff, to break Michigan's 20-game unbeaten streak.
1925 Indiana	Michigan	Indiana	Ann Arbor, Michigan	63-0	The 1925 team featured a defense that gave up three points the entire season. The offense was led by quarterback Benny Friedman, often considered the first modern quarterback, and end Bennie Oosterbaan, considered one of the greatest athletes in Michigan history. The pair formed one of the best passing combinations in football history, and Fielding Yost began using the forward pass (legalized in 1906, but still used sparingly by most teams) not only in situations of desperation, but as a routine play. In a rout of Indiana, Friedman threw five touchdown passes, kicked eight extra points, and had a 55-yard touchdown run.
1926 Minnesota	Minnesota	Michigan	Minneapolis, Minnesota	7-6	Fielding Yost's last game as head coach of the Michigan Wolverines. He served the University for 25 years, with a combined record of 165-29-10, 10 Big Ten titles in only 15 years in the conference, and 6 National Championships. Additionally, he left an indelible mark on college football, with 40 men who had played or coached under him going on to become the head coach of a collegiate football squad.
1927 Ohio Wesleyan	Michigan	Ohio Wesleyan	Ann Arbor, Michigan	33-0	The first game played in Michigan Stadium. Halfback Louis Gilbert had a hand in every point scored, rushing for two touchdowns, kicking three extra points, and throwing three touchdown passes in the game. In the official dedication game, played three weeks later, Gilbert scored the only points on three touchdown receptions and three extra points as Michigan defeated Ohio State, 21–0.
1932 Minnesota	Minnesota	Michigan	Minneapolis, Minnesota	3-0	Michigan capped a perfect 8-0 season with a victory in the annual Little Brown Jug game with Minnesota. Led by College Football Hall of Fame inductees Harry Newman and Whitey Wistert, the Wolverines won the game with a shutout. The 1932 team won Michigan's seventh national championship and had six shutouts in eight games, concluding with the 3-0 victory over Minnesota.
1934 Georgia Tech	Michigan	Georgia Tech	Ann Arbor, Michigan	9-2	Georgia Tech refused to play if Willis Ward, an African-American player, took the field for Michigan. When the Michigan administration capitulated to the demand, mass demonstrations ensued. Teammate Gerald R. Ford reportedly quit the team in protest, but agreed to play at Ward's urging. Playwright Arthur Miller, then a reporter for The Michigan Daily, appealed to the Georgia Tech players who responded by threatening to kill Ward if he set foot on the field. Miller's account of the incident was refused for publication. The game was the only victory for the worst team in Michigan history (season record of 1-7).
1938 Michigan State	Michigan	Michigan State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	14-0	The game marked the debut of Michigan's new winged football helmet and its new head coach Fritz Crisler. Crisler had used similar winged helmets as the head coach at Princeton. He believed the design helped his halfbacks find receivers downfield. [In Crisler's single-wing offense the halfbacks did most of the passing. The quarterback was primarily a blocker or receiver.]
1940 Ohio State	Ohio State	Michigan	Columbus, Ohio	40-0	In his final football game, 1940 Heisman Trophy winner Tom Harmon led the Wolverines to a 40-0 victory, scoring three rushing touchdowns, two passing touchdowns, four extra points, intercepting three passes, and punting three times for an average of 50 yards. In an unprecedented display of sportsmanship and appreciation, the Ohio State fans in Columbus gave Harmon a standing ovation at game's end. No Wolverine player had or has been so honored, before or since.
1943 Notre Dame	Michigan	Notre Dame	Ann Arbor, Michigan	12–35	First college football game between the #1 (Notre Dame) and #2 (Michigan) teams in the nation, as determined by the AP Poll. The loss to Notre Dame was the only setback in an 8-1 season that left Michigan ranked #3 in the final AP poll.
1945 Army	Army	Michigan	New York, New York	28-7	Michigan played Army, ranked #1, at Yankee Stadium. To complete against a dominant Army team, Fritz Crisler innovated the platoon system that separated offense and defense and allowed for substitutions throughout the game. This format was later adopted by teams throughout American football.
1948 Rose Bowl	USC Trojans	Michigan	Pasadena, California	49-0	The 1947 team, nicknamed the "Mad Magicians", finished the regular season undefeated and untied. Although ranked #2 in the AP poll at the end of the regular season, the Wolverines defeated USC 49–0 in the Rose Bowl. In an unprecedented post-bowl AP poll, Michigan was selected #1 by a 226–119 margin over Notre Dame. The 1947 team has been selected as the best team in the history of Michigan football. Michigan's victory in the 1948 Rose Bowl still is tied for the most points scored, and the largest margin of victory, in Rose Bowl history.
1948 Northwestern	Michigan	Northwestern	Ann Arbor, Michigan	28-0	Michigan's decisive victory over #3 Northwestern propelled Michigan to #1 in the AP Poll and put Bennie Oosterbaan's Michigan Wolverines on track to go undefeated, 9-0-0, and capture the National Championship.
Snow Bowl (1950)	Ohio State	Michigan	Columbus, Ohio	9-3	The game was played in a blizzard with heavy snow and strong winds. The conditions dramatically altered the game, with the teams punting 45 times, sometimes on first down under the theory that it would be better to force a fumble near the end zone. Michigan won the game despite never getting a first down and failing on all nine pass attempts. Michigan's points came on a blocked kick that rolled out of the end zone for a safety and a blocked punt recovered by Tony Momsen in the end zone for a touchdown. The game determined the Big Ten title and sent Michigan to the 1951 Rose Bowl.
1964 Purdue	Michigan	Purdue	Ann Arbor, Michigan	21-20	The 5th ranked Wolverines came into the game undefeated on the heels of victories over #6 Navy and #9 Michigan State. With a chance to tie the game at the last minute, Michigan coach Bump Elliott called for a two-point conversion, which Bob Timberlake failed to carry over the goal-line. It would be the 9-1 Wolverines' only loss of the season that included a decisive 34-7 victory over #8 Oregon State in the 1965 Rose Bowl.
1969 Vanderbilt	Michigan	Vanderbilt	Ann Arbor, Michigan	45-7	Michigan's first game coached by Bo Schembechler.
1969 Ohio State	Michigan	Ohio State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	24-12	The 12th ranked Wolverines upset the undefeated, 1st ranked Buckeyes by 12 points, derailing Ohio State's National Title hopes and sparking the beginning of The Ten-Year War.
1972 Rose Bowl	Stanford	Michigan	Pasadena, California	13-12	After completing a perfect 11-0 season, Bo Schembechler's Wolverines looked poised to capture their first National Championship since 1948, being favored by 10 1/2 points, just three years into Bo's tenure. This was also the first meeting between the two schools since Michigan's 1902 49-0 dismantling of Stanford. Down 10-3 in the fourth quarter and facing 4th and 10 from their own 33 yard line, Stanford ran a fake punt for a 33 yard gain and a first down. Stanford scored a touchdown a minute later to tie the game, then sealed the victory with 31-yard field goal with 12 seconds left.
1973 Ohio State	Michigan	Ohio State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	10-10	One of the most controversial games in NCAA history, the #1 Buckeyes came to Michigan Stadium to face the #4 Wolverines, with both teams undefeated. A then-NCAA record crowd of 105,233 people gathered to see this game with National Title implications. With heavy rain, OSU failed to achieve a single first down in the first quarter, but took a 3-0 lead in the second. The Wolverines responded in the second half, outgaining the Buckeyes 209-91 in the second half to tie the game. With the tie, it was unclear who would represent the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl, and so a vote of Big Ten Athletic Directors was held, in which it is believed that Michigan State cast the deciding vote to send Ohio State to the bowl in retaliation against Michigan's 1949 vote against admitting them to the Big Ten.
1975 Purdue	Michigan	Purdue	Ann Arbor, Michigan	28-0	The first game in Michigan's ongoing record streak of more than 100,000 people in home crowd attendance.
1978 Indiana	Michigan	Indiana	Ann Arbor, Michigan	27-21	The game ended with what has been called "the greatest single play in the 100-year history of Michigan football." With the game tied and six seconds remaining, John Wangler connected with Anthony Carter on play made famous by Bob Ufer's emotional radio narration: "Under center is Wangler at the 45, he goes back. He's looking for a receiver. He throws downfield to Carter. Carter has it. [unintellibible screaming] Carter scores. . . . I have never seen anything like this in all my 40 years of covering Michigan football. . . . I hope you can hear me – because I've never been so happy in all my cotton-picking 59 years! . . . Johnny Wangler to Anthony Carter will be heard until another 100 years of Michigan football is played! . . . Meeeshigan wins, 27 to 21. They aren't even going to try the extra point. Who cares? Who gives a damn?"
1981 Rose Bowl	Washington	Michigan	Pasadena, California	23-6	The victory over Washington was the first bowl victory for Bo Schembechler after seven prior bowl game losses. Michigan did not allow a touchdown in the game, extending the 1980 team's streak to 22 consecutive quarters without allowing a touchdown. Butch Woolfolk was named the game's Most Valuable Player after rushing for 182 yards.
1984 Holiday Bowl	BYU	Michigan	San Diego, California	24-17	As the only undefeated team in Division I-A, BYU won its first and only national championship by defeating a 6-5 Michigan team in the Holiday Bowl. The game marked the only time in college football history that the eventual national champion played its bowl game in December.
1985 Iowa	Iowa	Michigan	Iowa City, Iowa	12-10	In a game matching #1 Iowa against #2 Michigan, Iowa won the game with a Rob Houghtlin field goal as time ran out.
1986 Fiesta Bowl	Nebraska	Michigan	Tempe, Arizona	27-23	Michigan concluded a 10-1-1 season ranked #2 in the Associated Press poll after a Fiesta Bowl victory that matched coaching legends Bo Schembechler and Tom Osborne. The win gave Michigan its highest ranking at the end of a season since its national championship in 1948. Jamie Morris and Mark Messner were named the co-MVPs of the game. Quarterback Jim Harbaugh scored two rushing touchdowns in the game.
1991 Ohio State	Michigan	Ohio State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	31-3	Michigan went into the game ranked #4 in the AP poll and secured a Rose Bowl bid by defeating Ohio State. Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard returned a punt 93 yards for a touchdown and struck "The Pose" in the endzone, indicating his belief that he had sealed his campaign for the Heisman with the return.
1993 Ohio State	Michigan	Ohio State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	28-0	The Ohio State Buckeyes entered the game undefeated with national championship hopes, but were shut-out by a Michigan team that went 5-3-0 in conference.
The Miracle at Michigan	Colorado	Michigan	Columbus, Ohio	27-26	The game ended with the play that became known as "The Miracle at Michigan." Colorado trailed Michigan 26–21 with six seconds left when Colorado quarterback Kordell Stewart heaved the ball more than 70 yards in the air into the end zone where Michael Westbrook caught it on a deflection from Blake Anderson for the game-winning touchdown. The play was Colorado's second touchdown in the last 2:16 of the game. The game was described as one of the two wildest finishes in Michigan football history.
1995 Virginia	Michigan	Virginia	Ann Arbor, Michigan	18-17	In the first game under College Football Hall of Fame coach Lloyd Carr, the Wolverines fell behind 17-0. The nationally televised season opener in August 1995 was one of the greatest comebacks in Michigan history. On the last play of the game, Scott Dreisbach completed a pass to Mercury Hayes in the endzone to give Carr his first victory as a head coach.
1995 Ohio State	Michigan	Ohio State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	31-23	Ohio State compiled an excellent 11-0 record going into the game, before Michigan played spoiler to their national title aspirations for the second time during John Cooper's stewardship of the Buckeyes. Michigan running back Tshimanga Biakabutuka, a native of Zaire who grew up near Montreal, rushed for 313 yards in the game, the second highest single-game total in Michigan history.
1996 Ohio State	Ohio State	Michigan	Columbus, Ohio	13-9	For the third time in four years, Ohio State entered the game undefeated with high hopes for a national championship. Throughout the season, the Buckeyes outscored opponents 455-131. However, #21 Michigan pulled off a narrow victory. Ohio State fired Cooper in 2000, despite his strong teams because of his 2-10-1 record against Michigan.
1997 Ohio State	Michigan	Ohio State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	20-14	The game, pitting #1 Michigan against #4 Ohio State, drew a record crowd of 106,982 to Michigan Stadium. Charles Woodson clinched the 1997 Heisman Trophy with his performance in The Game, catching a 37-yard pass from Brian Griese to set up Michigan's first touchdown, returning a punt 78 yards for a touchdown, and intercepting a pass in the third quarter after Ohio State drove to Michigan's seven-yard line.
1998 Rose Bowl	Washington State	Michigan	Pasadena, California	21-16	Michigan defeated Washington State to close out a 12-0 1997 season and capture Michigan's first national championship since 1948.
2000 Orange Bowl	Alabama	Michigan	Miami, Florida	35-34	The game was third meeting of the two traditional football powers, the first BCS bowl game for both teams, the first BCS bowl game to go into overtime, and the first overtime game in Michigan history. It was also Tom Brady's last game for Michigan. Brady threw four touchdown passes and passed for a Michigan bowl record 369 yards.
2001 Michigan State	Michigan State	Michigan	East Lansing, Michigan	26-24	In a game known as "Clockgate" or the "Clock Game", Michigan State quarterback Jeff Smoker ran the ball with 17 seconds remaining and was tackled inbounds, allowing the clock to run. After the Spartans frantically lined up and spiked the ball, the stadium clock showed one second remaining. Michigan argued that time had expired and that the timekeeper, thereafter known as "Spartan Bob", stopped the clock prematurely. On the ensuing play, Smoker threw a touchdown pass to T. J. Duckett, giving the Spartans a 26-24 victory. The controversy led the Big Ten to require time to kept by a neutral official and was one of the factors leading the conference to adopt instant replay in 2004.
2006 Ohio State	Ohio State	Michigan	Columbus, Ohio	42-39	Undefeated #1 Ohio State faced off against undefeated #2 Michigan for the first time in the history of "The Game." Two days before the game, former coach Bo Schembechler addressed the team and urged the players to work hard, listen to their coaches, stick together as teammates, so that one day they might be as good a Michigan man as Tom Slade, whose funeral Schembechler had attended earlier in the day. Schembechler died the next morning before taping his weekly television show.
2007 Appalachian State	Michigan	Appalachian State	Ann Arbor, Michigan	32–34	First ever win of a NCAA Division I-AA/FCS team over a ranked Division I-A/FBS opponent. Hailed as one of the biggest upsets in the history of American sports. Sometimes referred to by Michigan fans as "The Horror."
2008 Capital One Bowl	Florida	Michigan	Orlando, Florida	41-35	The game was Lloyd Carr's last as head coach. The Florida Gators, coached by Urban Meyer and featuring Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow, won the national championship the previous year and were heavily favored. Michigan's offense, led by Chad Henne, Mike Hart, and Jake Long, compiled 524 yards of total offense.
2010 Illinois	Michigan	Illinois	Ann Arbor, Michigan	67-65	The combined total of 132 points score was the highest-scoring game in both the history of Michigan football and in the history of the Big Ten. The Illini's 65 points were also the most ever allowed by Michigan.
2011 Notre Dame	Michigan	Notre Dame	Ann Arbor, Michigan	35–31	Largest regular-season single-game attendance in NCAA history, with 114,804. Also the first night game ever played at Michigan Stadium. Trailing by 17 points at the start of the fourth quarter, Denard Robinson led Michigan to a victory with four touchdowns in the final 15 minutes. With 30 seconds remaining, Michigan drove 80 yards in 28 seconds. Roy Roundtree scored the game-winning touchdown with two seconds left in the game. The game is tied for the second-biggest comeback in Michigan Stadium history.