The Michigan Wolverines hosted the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday afternoon in what was supposed to be a rout. It was anything but that. But it certainly was embarrassing for one of the teams on Saturday.
Michigan State, a team that turned over the ball seven times in a 38-27 loss to Rutgers in week one, came into the Big House on Saturday and took the Paul Bunyan Trophy back to East Lansing after a 27-24 victory over the Wolverines. The win is Mel Tucker’s first as MSU’s head coach.
I could write stats here. I could go through the scoring drives. But you watched the game and you don’t want to hear it from me. So as we move on to postgame coverage, here’s a quick takeaway.
I do not know how you come back from this. Three-score favorites to a team that lost to Rutgers in a rivalry game and this is the effort you respond with? You were out-coached, out-prepared, out-everythinged. This was an absolutely pathetic effort that falls squarely on the feet of the coaching staff, who had its lunch money taken and its blue pants pulled down by a staff that has had about a month of padded practices with its team. Jim Harbaugh has made a living off of beating teams he is supposed to beat, especially as big favorites. When the Wolverines stop doing that, what are we even doing here?
More takeaways coming later from cooler heads than mine.
Next week’s test comes in the form of a trip to Indiana to take on the Hoosiers. That contest will kick off at noon on Fox Sports 1.