Police justified in use of pepper spray during Ohio State-Michigan brawl: report

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Following Michigan's huge upset over Ohio State during Rivalry Week, they attempted to plant a school flag at midfield of Ohio Stadium, and it did not sit well with the Buckeyes.

Members of both teams got into an all-out brawl that got to the point where police on the field used pepper spray to break uo the fighting.

That decision prompted some controversy, but according to The Athletic, reviews by two Ohio agencies say that law enforcement was justified in its actions.

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Players scrum at midfield following Saturday’s NCAA Division I football game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Michigan Wolverines. (IMAGN)

"Several people were on the ground, police officers were being pushed and shoved by large, highly trained and skilled division one football athletes in full football game attire," Ohio State University police detective Douglas Cunningham wrote in his department’s report. "The players had the advantage in both size, strength, conditioning, protective gear and they outnumbered the police presence trying to suppress the growing threat."

Cunningham said he used pepper spray to "assist in gaining compliance from the aggression/resistance of the surging crowd," as initial attempts to "suppress the aggressive, combative and growing crowd and to regain order" did not work.

Davison Igbinosun, #1 of the Ohio State Buckeyes, grabs a Michigan flag following his team's defeat against the Michigan Wolverines at Ohio Stadium on November 30, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio.  (Jason Mowry/Getty Images)

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