Michigan State has won five of their last six games against Michigan, but that won’t keep the eighth-ranked Spartans from being on edge when the Michigan Wolverines come to town on Saturday.
“We could be 0-5 going into the game, they could be No. 1 in the country and it’s going to be a tight game. You have that with rivalry games,” said Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook. “I don’t think we overlook them at all, and I don’t think they overlook us.”
While the Spartans are fighting to stay in the playoff conversation, the Wolverines are fighting to right the ship of a season that has gone south. After dropping three consecutive games, the Wolverines scored an 18-13 win over Penn State. They now return to the road where they are winless this year. A win over Michigan State would not only fix some of the fan perceptions of embattled coach Brady Hoke, but it would set them up for a final stretch where bowl eligibility becomes more attainable. Still though, it’s all about the rivalry, right?
“We’re not thinking about ruining their season,” Michigan quarterback Devin Gardner said. “This is about us. I want to win this game as bad as I’ve wanted to win any game.”
The key is going to be how Michigan’s struggling offense matches up against a Spartan defense that is holding opponents to 21.6 points per game.
“They are an outstanding football team that does a great job of stopping the run,” Michigan offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier said. “We have to understand how they are going to line up, we have to understand our plan and we have to execute.”
Michigan ranks 110th nationally in rushing and 66th in passing.
Being a heavy favorite in a rivalry they have owned recently isn’t keeping Michigan State off guard.
“We have to keep our edge regardless of who we play. If we can’t do that, then we’ve not succeeded,” MSU head coach Mark Dantonio said earlier in the week. “We keep it the same way we keep it with every team that we’re playing against. We find a way.”
With No.18 Ohio State looming next on the schedule, Dantonio’s crew is in danger of being in a trap situation and he knows it. Anything can happen in a rivalry game but even so, a whole lot would have to go against the Spartans for them to come out on the wrong side of this one. Besides that, Michigan State isn’t going to overlook a rivalry game regardless of who is next.
“It’s always about bragging rights in the state of Michigan, being able to walk the streets,” Michigan State linebacker Taiwan Jones said.
Dantonio is well aware of what this game means to his players, fans, and natives of Michigan.
“It gets in your blood a little bit, it’s just the way it is,” Dantonio added. “It just divides the state so it makes it unique in that respect, and you embrace it, you get involved in it, and it’s in you.”
Kickoff: 3:30 PM (ET)
Location: East Lansing, MI
Television: ABC
Line: Michigan State -17
*Section Photo credit to Eric Francis, Getty Images; Featured Photo (above) credit to Getty Images.
