It’s college football rivalry week and Ohio State is the heavy favorite over Michigan for Saturday’s matchup in Columbus. But there have been some nail-biting games in years past when a lot was on the line for both teams.

Fifty years ago, on Nov. 21, 1964, Michigan sophomores Jim Detwiler and Rick Volk, shown in this August 24, 1964, Blade file photo by Don Strayer, returned to their home state and came away with tickets to the Rose Bowl.

The two Northwest Ohio products — Detwiler attended the former DeVilbiss High School and Volk was from Wauseon — played starring roles in the Wolverines’ 10-0 upset of Ohio State on a frigid afternoon in Columbus before a crowd of 84,685 chilled fans.

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The Wolverines and Buckeyes entered the game both ranked in the Top 10 nationally, but it was Michigan that earned its first Big Ten Conference title in 14 years and the coveted trip to the Rose Bowl with an 8-1 record and 6-1 Big Ten mark.

Detwiler, who earned All-City, All-Ohio, and All-American honors in high school, began the 1964 season as Michigan’s No. 3 tailback, but quickly moved into a starting role.

Detwiler accounted for Michigan’s lone touchdown of the game, snagging a 17-yard touchdown pass from Bob Timberlake, a Franklin, Ohio, native, with 44 seconds remaining in the first half.

It was just one of three completions by Timberlake in the game and was Detwiler’s third touchdown of the season, yet one of the biggest of his career.

It helped the Wolverines snap a four-game losing streak in the series and they won at Columbus for the first time in eight years.

Volk, a defensive back, intercepted two passes to snuff out scoring drives by Ohio State (7-2, 5-1), which suffered its first conference loss and was denied a shot at its 13th Big Ten crown. Volk’s 27-yard punt return also helped set up the final score, a 27-yard field goal by Timberlake early in the fourth quarter.

Detwiler and Volk were among 14 Ohio players on the 38-man Michigan squad that visited Columbus and were among 18 players from that team who were drafted by NFL teams.

Detwiler was one of two first-round draft picks of the Baltimore Colts in 1967 — Bubba Smith was the other — but a knee injury limited his abilities on the field.

After being waived in the preseason two consecutive years, Detwiler used his $50,000 signing bonus to segue into a career in dentistry, which he has practiced for many years in Perrysburg.

Volk's uncle, Bob Chappuis, played at DeVilbiss and was an All-American for Michigan who finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1947. He wore jersey 49, and just prior to the 1964 season, Volk was assigned that same jersey number. Volk was a second-round pick of the Colts in 1967 and played 12 years in the NFL. A three-time Pro Bowl safety, Volk played in two Super Bowls, winning one. Volk worked as a manufacturer’s sales rep after retiring from football.

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First Published November 24, 2014, 5:00 a.m.