Michigan St Confident After Beating Michigan Again

The Spartans ended up sharing the Big Ten title, while the Wolverines stumbled down the stretch.

Michigan State hopes its 28-14 victory over Michigan on Saturday will have the same effect, while the Wolverines insist this season is different.

"It's easy to say, 'Oh, it's the same Michigan team of the last two years' — but I have no doubt in my mind that we're not," Michigan safety Jordan Kovacs said. "We're going to improve. We're to learn from this game. We're going to win."

The Spartans moved up to No. 15 in the AP poll on Sunday, while Michigan dropped to 18th. Michigan State, which took over sole possession of first place in the Big Ten's Legends Division with its victory Saturday, won't have much of a chance to rest. The Spartans host No. 4 Wisconsin next Saturday night.

The Wolverines, on the other hand, have an open date next weekend before beginning the stretch run with a home game against Purdue.

Michigan State beat Michigan for the fourth straight time, equaling its longest streak in the series. Last year, the teams were undefeated when they met in October. The Spartans went on to lose only once during the regular season, while Michigan went 7-5, was blown out in its bowl and fired coach Rich Rodriguez.

This is the third straight season the Wolverines were undefeated before losing to Michigan State.

"It's very special, and I feel like we as a team and we as individuals have been overlooked and underestimated for a large part of our careers," Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins said. "Wins like this are very satisfying for that reason."

Michigan State beat Wisconsin at home last season — the only regular-season loss for the Badgers, who went to the Rose Bowl anyway because of a Big Ten tiebreaker. The Spartans had to settle for a Capital One Bowl berth and were blown out by Alabama.

Although Michigan State dropped an early game this season to Notre Dame, the Spartans look every bit as capable as last season's team. They are ranked No. 2 in the country in total defense.

"We just want to win on Saturday, that's all that matters," defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi said. "All that defense stuff — stats, you guys know how I feel about stats — it doesn't matter. That win right there, that's the most important thing."

Wisconsin is averaging 50.2 points per game, the best mark in the nation.

Michigan's defense is improved from last season, when it was clearly a liability. The Wolverines had a chance to tie Saturday's game in the fourth quarter, but Denard Robinson was sacked on fourth down deep in Michigan State territory.

Robinson was kept in check by the Spartans throughout the day and eventually left the game in the final minutes after a hit. He'll have an extra week to recover now.

Although another loss to Michigan State stung, the Wolverines will ultimately be judged on how they finish. They host Nebraska and Ohio State to end the regular season next month.

"I know that we have great leadership on this team, including myself," Michigan senior defensive tackle Mike Martin said. "We have a bye week coming up and I know guys are going to be hungry. ... These seniors and these leaders are going to get this team right."

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No. 23 Michigan State 28, No. 11 Michigan 14: Michigan State Tops Michigan Again

"A clean sweep!" Worthy yelled.

In his four years with the Spartans, Worthy has never lost to Michigan. He and the rest of Michigan State's defensive line helped extend that run Saturday, shutting down Denard Robinson and the 11th-ranked Wolverines in a 28-14 victory.

The 23rd-ranked Spartans have won four straight against Michigan for the first time since 1959-62, equaling Michigan State's longest streak in the series.

"For the rest of our life, we can walk the streets of Michigan," quarterback Kirk Cousins said.

Cousins, a fifth-year senior, is the first Michigan State starting quarterback to win three straight over Michigan.

Keshawn Martin scored twice in the third quarter on similar lunges to the end zone, and Michigan State (5-1, 2-0 Big Ten) held off Robinson and the Wolverines during a wild fourth quarter.

Michigan (6-1, 2-1) lost for the first time under coach Brady Hoke. The Wolverines had a chance to tie it, but Robinson was sacked on fourth-and-1 from the Michigan State 9-yard line with 6:16 to play.

Robinson later threw an interception, and Isaiah Lewis returned it 39 yards for a touchdown with 4:31 left to make it 28-14. Shortly after that, Robinson was shaken up by a hit and left the game.

Edwin Baker ran for 167 yards and a touchdown for the Spartans.

"It's a big win, a program win," Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said. "To do that a fourth straight year says a lot about our players."

Michigan State took the field in special green-and-bronze Nike Pro Combat uniforms. In a surprise move, Michigan showed up in "legacy" uniforms by Adidas that included pants that were white instead of the usual maize.

The Wolverines haven't beaten the Spartans since 2007, when then-Michigan running back Mike Hart compared Michigan State to a "little brother" and Dantonio shot back by saying the Wolverines needed "to check themselves." Dantonio said after that game that "pride comes before the fall" — and now it's Michigan State enjoying the spoils of victory in this series, keeping the Paul Bunyan Trophy from its in-state foe.

Worthy, a standout defensive tackle, is a redshirt junior. He has a tattoo displaying a Spartan stomping on a Wolverine.

"We're always fighting for respect," Worthy said. "I feel even better about getting that tattoo now."

The Spartans, who tied for the Big Ten title last year, are now alone atop the Legends Division with a big home game against Wisconsin coming up next weekend.

This week, Michigan State was coming off an open date. Michigan has one next weekend.

"They need to feel this one," Hoke said. "We all need to feel this one for a while. But we'll turn the page."

Robinson ran for a first-quarter touchdown but was mostly ineffective through the air, going 9 for 24 for 123 yards and a touchdown on a windy day in East Lansing.

Down 21-7, Robinson found Roy Roundtree for a 34-yard touchdown with 9:49 left in the game. Martin then fumbled on an end around, giving Michigan the ball at the Michigan State 32.

After converting fourth-and-1 from the 23 with a short run, Robinson faced the same down and distance from the 9. Michigan called a slow-developing play-action attempt, and Johnny Adams sacked Robinson to end the drive.

After Michigan got the ball back, Robinson's pass was intercepted by Lewis, who took it back for a touchdown. Lewis risked a penalty by holding the ball out before crossing the goal line, but the touchdown stood.

The Spartans didn't always handle the emotionally charged game well, committing 13 penalties for 124 yards.

Robinson's day ended late in the fourth when he was thrown down by Marcus Rush, who was called for roughing the passer. The Michigan quarterback stood on the sideline, green grass stains all over his uniform, as the Spartans finished off another win over the Wolverines.

"I got a little beat up," Robinson said.

Hoke said he didn't know what the injury was. Robinson said it was not a concussion.

With the game tied at 7, Michigan State went on a 54-yard drive to start the third quarter. On third-and-goal from the 10, Cousins found Martin, who caught the ball at the 5 near the right sideline and managed to stay in bounds before extending the ball across the goal line while being knocked backward toward the end zone.

Martin caught a 13-yard touchdown pass from Cousins in the final minute of the third, dodging a tackler and diving to that same front corner of the end zone.

Michigan State entered the game ranked No. 1 in the nation in total defense, and its defensive line gave Robinson problems all day.

Each team scored on its first possession of the game. Robinson gave Michigan a 7-0 lead with a 15-yard run, and the Spartans answered with a 63-yard drive that ended with Baker's 1-yard scoring run.

Devin Gardner tried to rally Michigan after Robinson departed late in the fourth. He had a touchdown pass called back because he was well past the line of scrimmage when he threw the ball. On fourth-and-21 from the Michigan State 44, Gardner began running to the right sideline, then doubled back to the middle of the field, then circled back again to the same sideline before being stopped. Gardner had a receiver open deep down the field toward the end of the play but either couldn't see him or couldn't get rid of the ball.

NOTES: Andrew Johnson, a 19-year-old Michigan State sophomore, won a 2012 GMC Acadia valued at over $32,000 by kicking a 40-yard field goal as part of an in-game contest. The wind appeared to switch directions — in his favor — when he attempted the kick. ... Michigan State's previous four-game winning streak in the series was part of a 6-0-2 stretch against Michigan from 1956-63.

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Michigan State 28, Michigan 14: Michigan State Beats Michigan for Fourth Straight Time

The unbeaten Wolverines entered their game against Michigan State with the shine still on the new coach Brady Hoke, a revamped defense that showed signs of cohesion and a No. 11 ranking.

All that optimism might have been premature.

Faced with their most formidable test of the season on Saturday, Michigan fizzled. The Michigan State defense stifled the Wolverines and their elusive quarterback, Denard Robinson, for almost the entire game. Behind a running game that produced 213 yards, No. 23 Michigan State won, 28-14.

It was the fourth consecutive victory in the annual rivalry for Michigan State, the first time that has happened since a four-year run from 1959 to 1962.

For Michigan (6,1, 2-1 Big Ten), the loss marked another false start.

In 2009, the Wolverines started their season with a 4-0 record before losing at Michigan State, 26-20. In 2010, Michigan opened 5-0 before bowing at home to the Spartans, 34-17. Both losses kicked off precipitous declines for the Wolverines.

Through his first six games, Hoke had given the Wolverines’ hungry fan base every reason to believe this year’s 6-0 start was not another fluke. But after the Spartans (5-1, 2-0) bullied Michigan’s defensive line in the decisive third quarter, those concerns emerged anew.

“They were definitely more physical,” Michigan safety Jordan Kovacs said. “They pounded us.”

The Spartans emerged from halftime and methodically drove the field for two third-quarter touchdowns. Running back Edwin Baker did the bulk of the damage, finishing with 26 carries for 167 yards and a score.

For Michigan, the pounding was even worse on the other side of the football. Michigan State’s defense harassed Robinson all afternoon. He was often prevented from scrambling outside the pocket and rarely looked comfortable in it. The Spartans registered seven sacks.

When it was over, Robinson had completed 9 of 24 passes for 123 yards while rushing 18 times for 42 yards and the game’s first touchdown.

Michigan State reserved additional insults for Robinson until the end of the game.

Trailing by 7 points, the Wolverines took possession with 4 minutes 40 seconds left in the fourth quarter. On the first play of the possession, Michigan State flushed Robinson from the pocket. Safety Isaiah Lewis intercepted his pass and returned it 39 yards for the touchdown that secured the Spartans’ victory.

About 8 yards from the end zone, Lewis taunted the downtrodden quarterback with the ball on his way in for the score.

“I thought maybe I shouldn’t have did it,” Lewis said later. “I was hoping they didn’t throw a flag on it. I didn’t mean anything bad. I was just celebrating.”

Officials overlooked the taunt, but not much else. They flagged Michigan State 13 times for 124 yards. Six of those were for personal fouls, unnecessary roughness or roughing the quarterback. On Michigan’s final, frantic possession, Spartans defensive end Marcus Rush slung Robinson to the ground and drew the last of the flags.

Robinson struggled to rise from the field and did not return to the game. Asked if he thought the Spartans had played dirty, Robinson said: “They were playing football. It’s a dirty game.”

Earlier in the game, Michigan State’s William Gholston punched left tackle Taylor Lewan in the face mask.

Although the matchup is not on the same level as Michigan’s rivalry with Ohio State, the rough play reflected the harsher tone that has developed between the Spartans and the Wolverines.

After a Michigan win in 2007 (Michigan’s last win in the series), Wolverines running back Mike Hart said: “Sometimes, you get your little brother excited when you’re playing basketball, let them get the lead. And then you come back.” That comment still reverberates.

And even though they’ve won four straight games, the Spartans still seem to feel disrespected.

“They just think we’re always the lower team, like they’re going to dominate, this and that,” Lewis said. “No matter how many times we beat them, it’s probably going to be like that. Even though we have this fourth win, they’re probably still going to act like they’re better than us.”

He continued: “You see how they didn’t shake our hands after the game? They walked off the field on us. It’s a lack of respect.”

Right now, that is the least of the Spartans’ concerns. Michigan State has notched wins against Ohio State and Michigan already this year, with Wisconsin on deck next Saturday. In East Lansing, there is talk of a Big Ten title.

In Ann Arbor, the loss serves as a reality check. Michigan has a bye next weekend, so any critique of the team’s resilience must wait two weeks.

“It’s easy to say that this is the same Michigan team from the last two years,” Kovacs said, “but I have no doubt in my mind that we’re not. We’re going to improve, learn from this game, and win.”

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Michigan steamrolling Minnesota early

Bold prediction: the Little Brown Jug won't be leaving Ann Arbor this season.

Minnesota could prove me wrong, but the Gophers look completely out of sorts against No. 19 Michigan, which continues to surge. Michigan is already up 14-0 following touchdown drives of 80 and 75 yards.

Fitz Toussaint and Denard Robinson already are carving up Minnesota on the ground. More encouraging for Michigan: Robinson is 3-for-3 passing for 53 yards.

Although Minnesota is starting a freshman quarterback, Michigan's defensive front seven looks very good. And if Robinson settles down with his passing, the Wolverines will be very tough to beat this season.

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