ANN ARBOR — Another year, another loss to Ohio State.

Michigan, riding a four-game win streak and plenty of momentum offensively, was unable to keep up with the No. 1 team in the country on Saturday.

The 13th-ranked Wolverines started fast but were unable to keep up with the Buckeyes, dropping their eighth straight game to their chief rival, 56-27 at Michigan Stadium.

Much like last year, Michigan (9-3, 6-3 Big Ten) was able to keep it close for the first half of the game. But a second-half surge by unbeaten Ohio State proved to be too much to overcome. The Buckeyes scored touchdowns on back-to-back drives to start the third quarter, burying Michigan like they have their previous opponents.

The Wolverines tried to make a game of it, pulling within 42-27 early in the fourth quarter, but a turnover on downs led to Ohio State’s seventh touchdown of the game. OSU totaled 577 yards of offense, its eighth time this season topping the 500 mark, and 10 yards more than the thrashing of Michigan a season ago. And 318 of it was accumulated in a track meet of a first half.

LIVE UPDATES: Re-live the game, drive by drive

After Michigan took an early 6-0 lead on a 22-yard touchdown run by Giles Jackson, OSU answered with a nine-play, 75-yard drive capped by a five-yard touchdown run by J.K. Dobbins. Dobbins, who carried the football 31 times, rushed for a game-high 211 yards and four touchdowns.

Dobbins’ second touchdown of the game, with 5:07 left in the second quarter, put OSU ahead 21-13. Michigan pulled within a point on a quick three-play, 75-yard touchdown, showing its ability to move the football offensively.

On its next possession, a seven-play, 62-yard drive that could have tied the game or pulled Michigan within a point, quarterback Shea Patterson (18-43, 305 yards, TD, INT) bobbled a snap and turned the ball over. The Buckeyes, who entered the game with the No. 1 scoring offense in the country, promptly responded with a nine-play, 84-yard touchdown capped by a Dobbins run.

Mistakes cost Michigan throughout the first half, beginning with the first drive (a missed extra point by Quinn Nordin) and continuing to its last. Receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones dropped a touchdown pass in the end zone late in the second quarter, forcing the Wolverines to settle for a 23-yard field goal.

After Michigan pulled within 15 points early in the fourth quarter, OSU responded with two unanswered touchdowns to pull away for good. Ohio State quarterback Justin Field, a transfer from Georgia, finished 14 of 25 passing for 302 yards and four touchdowns.

The Wolverines were largely held one dimensional offensively, settling for just 91 rushing yards, much of which came on two chunk plays. Hassan Haskins led Michigan with 78 yards and a touchdown.

Receiver Ronnie Bell led Michigan with six catches for 78 yards, while Peoples-Jones added three catches for 69 yards and a touchdown.

Today’s result meant little in the Big Ten standings. Ohio State (12-0, 9-0 Big Ten) already had the Big Ten East division locked up, with a spot in the conference championship game next Saturday, while Michigan was destined for a third-place finish.

Yet bragging rights were on the line in one of the biggest rivalries in sports. And Ohio State, led by first-year coach Ryan Day, can confidently say it has the superior football program.

Read more on Michigan football:

Ex-LB Dhani Jones: ‘The right people are in place’ at Michigan

Tale of the tape: How Michigan and Ohio State match up

FOX is bringing its pregame show, and Urban Meyer, to Ann Arbor

Podcast: What are Michigan’s chances against Ohio State?