Tag: Michigan State

Preview: Michigan vs. Michigan State

RUSH OFFENSE vs. MSU RUSH DEFENSE

Michigan is #57 in rushing offense (170.7 yards/game) and #76 in rushing average (4.23 yards/carry), but they’re tied for #19 in rushing touchdowns (23), which shows how dedicated they are to the run when they get into the red zone. Freshman Zach Charbonnet (559 yards, 11 TD) and redshirt freshman Hassan Haskins (426 yards, 2 TD) have turned into a nice 1-2 punch in the backfield. The wild card for Michigan is quarterback Shea Patterson, who has been hesitant to keep the ball but already has more rushing touchdowns (5) than last year (2). Michigan State is #16 in rush defense (108 yards allowed/game), even after getting drubbed by Ohio State a few weeks ago, when they gave up 6.83 yards/carry on 49 attempts. Leading tackler Joe Bachie got suspended for the rest of the year for use of PEDs, which is the norm in East Lansing, so the leading available tackler is linebacker Antjuan Simmons (6’0″, 216 lbs.). Simmons and defensive end Kenny Willekes (6’4″, 260) lead the team with 12 and 9 tackles for loss, respectively.
Advantage: Michigan State

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Highlights: Illinois 37, Michigan State 34

One of the joys of being on one side of a rivalry is enjoying your opponent’s misery. Michigan State was up 28-3 on Illinois, and the Fighting Illini came back to win, 37-34. It was the largest comeback in Illinois history at the expense of guys wearing jerseys designed by a blindfolded 3-year-old.

Also, former Michigan QB Brandon Peters threw 3 touchdowns for the Illini.

Recruiting Snapshot: Michigan State

Belleville (MI) Belleville OG Devontae Dobbs (image via 247 Sports)

2019 Ranking: #28 nationally. #7 in Big Ten. They have one 5-star, one 4-star, and sixteen 3-stars signed, along with one 3-star who’s a verbal commit.

Cream of the 2019 Crop: Belleville (MI) Bellville offensive tackle Devontae Dobbs (5-star, #1 OG, #26 overall) committed to the Spartans in June of 2018. He picked MSU over offers from Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Ohio State, and Wisconsin, among others. He was a participant in Nike’s The Opening last summer, and he will be playing in the Under Armour All-American Game in a week and a half.

2020 Ranking: N/A. Michigan State has zero commits in the 2020 class.

Cream of the 2020 Crop: N/A.

Michigan vs. Michigan State Awards

Donovan Peoples-Jones (image via Twitter)

Let’s see more of this guy on offense . . . Dylan McCaffrey. We have seen Penn State use two quarterbacks on the field at the same time with some effectiveness in recent years, and they also let running backs take direct snaps on occasion. I would like to see the Wolverines give McCaffrey a couple plays on the field with Shea Patterson, like they did briefly against Wisconsin. McCaffrey is a good enough athlete to do a few different things (run, catch, and throw).

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Michigan 21, Michigan State 7

Donovan Peoples-Jones (image via The Michigan Daily)

Thoughts on the pre-game scuffle. A brief recap of the events that took place prior to the game: Supposedly, Michigan State was 10 minutes late for their warmup, which they begin with an arm-in-arm walk down the field; their lateness meant that some Michigan players were already stretching on the field, so they walked right through the Michigan players (Lawrence Marshall, Lavert Hill, and others), resulting in a physical altercation. Without that context, it looked pretty unsportsmanlike for Devin Bush, Jr. to tear up the Spartan in the middle of the field with his cleats, digging an “L” into the grass. Provided that context . . . I shrug my shoulders. Tradition or not, MSU’s team doesn’t need to walk arm-in-arm the entire length of the field and make physical contact with the opposing team’s players. The rule in football is that each team stays on its own side of the 50-yard line in pre-game warmups. If you need to get to the other end of the field, you use the sidelines.

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