Photos by: Aaron J. Thornton
Much of the attention across the state of Michigan this past Saturday was centered in East Lansing, where the Wolverines and Spartans renewed their heated in-state rivalry for the Paul Bunyan Trophy. Michigan entered as a two-touchdown favorite, looking to retain the trophy for the fourth consecutive year, while Michigan State sought an upset on its home turf to bolster bragging rights of the victory.
The Spartans opened the game with the ball after Michigan won the coin toss and elected to defer. It didn’t take long for early trouble to strike. On just the second play from scrimmage, quarterback Aidan Chiles nearly threw an interception. And on the next snap, he fumbled the ball while scrambling on third and two, giving Michigan a short field. The Spartan defense, however, held firm and limited the Wolverines to a field goal, keeping the damage to just three points. 3-0, Michigan.
Later in the first quarter, Michigan extended its lead when freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood capped a seven play, 63 yard drive with a 13 yard touchdown run, pushing the lead to 10–0 and silencing the crowd. The Wolverines mixed short passes and small run gains to keep the Spartan defense off balance.
Michigan’s defense dominated the first quarter of play. In Michigan State’s four first quarter possessions, the Spartans managed just one first down, suffered a turnover, and were otherwise forced into three and outs with no answers to the Wolverines’ ten points on the board.
The second quarter began with a glimmer of life for Michigan State’s offense. On second and 11, running back Makhi Frazier broke loose for a 49 yard run down to the Michigan 25 yard line, exciting the crowd. The big play fueled a 12 play, 73 yard drive that took away nearly seven minutes off the clock and ended with a one yard touchdown run by Chiles to trim the deficit to 10–7.
From there, the first half turned into a gritty defensive struggle, the kind of hard hitting battle rivalry games are known for. At halftime, Michigan held a narrow 10–7 advantage, while Michigan State’s self-inflicted mistakes told the story: eight penalties for 88 yards and a costly early turnover. Otherwise, the score (and lead) may have been different at the break.
The Wolverines opened the second half with a statement drive. Running back Justice Haynes burst for runs of 20 and 28 yards, quickly moving Michigan into MSU territory and threatening again. The Spartans appeared to come up with a huge turnover after recovering a fumble on third and eight but the play was wiped out by an offsides penalty on the Spartans Malcolm Bell. Michigan capitalized, as Haynes finished the drive with a five-yard touchdown run to extend the lead to 17–7.
Michigan struck again late in the third quarter when Underwood found freshman receiver Andrew Marsh for a 27 yard completion, setting up another Haynes touchdown, this one a 14 yard dash, to make it 24–7 with just over three minutes left in the quarter.
Down three scores entering the fourth, Michigan State needed a spark, and Chiles delivered. The Spartans pieced together a 12 play, 75 yard drive, ending with a one yard touchdown run from Brandon Tullis. Chiles went a perfect 7 for 7 passing on the drive, but the Spartans’ two point conversion attempt failed, leaving the score at 24–13.
MSU’s next possession showed promise once again, but Michigan’s defense stood tall. Facing fourth and three, the Spartans opted to go for it rather than kick a field goal and were stopped short, turning the ball over on downs and back to Michigan.
Moments later, Michigan State’s defense gave them new life, recovering a Haynes fumble near midfield. But once again, the offense couldn’t convert on fourth down, failing on a fourth and one attempt that sealed their fate.
Michigan’s offense wasted no time putting the game away. On the ensuing series, Jordan Marshall broke through for a 56 yard touchdown run to make it 31–13 with just under three minutes remaining. Michigan State pulled Chiles and inserted redshirt freshman Alessio Milivojevic, who led a late touchdown drive to make the final score 31–20 but by then, the outcome was decided.
The Wolverines’ ground game proved to be the difference. Haynes rushed for 152 yards and two touchdowns, while Marshall added 110 yards and a score. Michigan State’s Frazier also cracked the 100-yard mark with 109 yards, but the Spartans’ offense couldn’t keep pace. The Spartans certainly had a chance and were in the game for majority of it, but the penalties and failure to convert critical short yardage gains, ultimately when they needed it most, kept them from getting any real momentum.
Quarterback play was modest for both teams. Underwood completed 8 of 17 passes for 86 yards, while Chiles went 14 of 28 for 130 yards and added a rushing touchdown, though he lost a fumble.
Defensively, Michigan continued its dominance, something we’ve seen in many of its other games. The Wolverines registered four sacks, including two from Derrick Moore, and linebacker Jimmy Rolder led all players with 10 tackles (two for loss). For Michigan State, Jordan Hall paced the defense with nine tackles.
With the 31–20 victory, Michigan earned its fourth straight win over Michigan State and retained the Paul Bunyan Trophy, solidifying yet another year of bragging rights in the state rivalry.
Next up for Michigan (6-2) will be a home game against Purdue (2-6) in Ann Arbor on Saturday night. Michigan State (3-5) will travel for an away game and play Minnesota (5-3).
Final Score: Michigan 31 – Michigan State 20
