The Wolverines had their sights set on the multi-colored pennant at the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus on Saturday.
Awarded to the winner of The Dual, the flag, which combined both schools’ colors, stood at the finish line for the duration of the meet.
For the Michigan men’s track and field team, it served as a reminder of the missed opportunities to bring the pennant back to Ann Arbor in the previous two meetings between the teams.
The Wolverines made sure they didn’t leave empty-handed again.
Michigan defeated Ohio State 105-98 and celebrated by taking a victory lap with the pennant waving above their heads.
With numerous injured runners, Michigan coach Fred LaPlante had to adjust his lineup against the Buckeyes.
“A lot times in track, there’s not a whole lot of strategy involved, because a lot of meets aren’t scored,” LaPlante said. “Here’s a meet where we as coaches are a little bit more involved in the outcome of the meet. It makes it exciting.”
Beyond the coaching, it was a total team effort for Michigan. Five different individuals earned two event titles each to spur the Wolverines to the win.
Senior Lex Williams delivered a performance that reversed the outcome of the previous meeting between the two team in January. Last time, on an indoor track, Ohio State dominated the distance events. On Saturday, Michigan took the top spots.
Despite a strong headwind, Williams earned victories in both the 1,500- and 3,000-meter runs. Using teammates to shield against the gusts, redshirt junior Sean McNamara wasn’t too far behind. McNamara crossed the finish line second in the 1,500-meter run and third in the 3,000-meter run.
The atmosphere was more like a football game than a meet. But with the Ohio State marching band in the stands, Brutus the Buckeye dancing around the track and an appearance by Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel, the Wolverines weren’t intimidated.
“(Tressel) was the honorary starter for the last event (the 4×400-meter relay),” LaPlante said. “Obviously, those are things you don’t typically see at track meets.”
The meet also gave the Wolverines an opportunity to prepare for the less-common events that will be featured in two weeks at the Penn Relays, which is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States.
The 3,000-meter steeplechase was probably the most intriguing example. Runners not only have to cover the distance but also have to jump a total of 28 barriers and seven water jumps. Senior Brandon Fellows finished in first place (9:15.80), providing the team with a strong start to the running events.
But in the end, it was Michigan’s success on the track that garnered all the attention.
Led by All-American senior Adam Harris, the Wolverines won eight of 11 track events to secure the victory.
Harris’s performances were the highlight of the day for Michigan. He cruised to victories in the 100- and 200-meter dashes. His times were good enough to qualify for the NCAA regional meet and impressive considering the windy conditions.
It was Harris’s effort in the 4×100-meter relay that crushed the Buckeyes’ hopes of retaining the pennant. In the closest race of the afternoon, the team of senior Andre Barnes, freshman Nicholas Neuman, junior Kyle Trepak and Harris overcame a 10-meter deficit heading into the final leg. When Harris received the baton, he took over. He gave the Wolverines the victory in the event by the smallest of margins — one-hundredth of a second.
“The pennant has now taken some pretty good significance,” LaPlante said. “They won two meets in a row. For us to have the pennant on our bus, it was fun for the guys.”