FootballSaturday, October 7, 2017
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A four-year history of the Michigan State rivalry

On a late Tuesday night in 2014,

a Michigan Daily sports writer had
just left from a night of editing when
he stumbled upon the Diag block ‘M’
painted green with the letters ‘S’ and
‘U’ alongside it.

An anonymous vandal had gone

viral with just two cans of paint.

Pictures of the defaced landmark

and a cleaning crew with a power
hose spread online. Some Michigan
students blamed their friends up at
East Lansing, and others blamed
a University fraternity that had
camped out to protect the ‘M’ in
prior years.

What happened in the last four

years — since the painted blocked
‘M’ — was a major turnaround filled
with classic rivalry moments. Here’s
our recap of the biggest moments
in the Michigan-Michigan State
rivalry over the last four years.

2014:
Big
stakes…
in
the

Spartans’ turf

Disrespect was a common theme

in 2014.

Wolverines fans were rightfully

nervous in the days leading up to
the 2014 Michigan-Michigan State
football game. Michigan football
was 3-4, suffering from losses to
Rutgers, Minnesota and a 31-point
shutout at Notre Dame.

And as if the spray paint on

the Diag wasn’t taunting enough,
few expected the Wolverines to
have much luck against then-No. 8
Michigan State and former Spartan
quarterback Connor Cook.

In response to the hype, junior

linebacker Joe Bolden walked onto
the field before kickoff followed by
his teammates. He held up a tent
stake and drove it into the turf.

He
later
claimed
that
his

intentions were to motivate his team,
but across the field, the Spartans felt
disrespected.

2014: Not even close, Michigan

State victory

Once
the
stake
was
lifted,

Michigan State ran all over the
Wolverines for 446 total yards
and four touchdowns. Cook threw
over 200 yards, and aside from one
rushing touchdown, the Wolverines
weren’t competitive in any phase of
the game.

To say the least, it was an

embarrassing loss for Michigan.
All went according to plan for the
Spartans, and they continued to
taunt the Wolverines all game. A
group of Michigan State students
camped overnight to get front row

seats so they could show off the
“KEEP BRADY HOKE” letters they
had painted on their chests.

“They’re just breaking records

left and right for sucking this year,”
one of those students said to the
Daily that year. “It’s great. It’s a
historic year.”

2015: Magic Johnson gets a

maize-over

Something about spray paint gets

Michigan and Michigan State fans
riled up.

A year after the Diag ‘M’ showed

up green, an unnamed Michigan
fan tagged the Magic Johnson
statue outside the Michigan State’s
basketball arena.

A large yellow ‘M’ appeared on

Johnson’s chest, his face was painted
yellow and the words “BEAT
STATE” were written on statue’s
base.

Though a recurring theme, this

particular case of vandalism hit
closer to home for Spartan fans. The
Sparty Statue on Michigan State’s
campus had been coated maize and
blue multiple times in the prior years.
Sparty was the usual target, and
students were prepared to defend it.

Going after Michigan State’s most

famous basketball alum seemed like
a cheap shot.

2015: With Gameday on site,

Corso goes blue

Ignited
by
new
coach
Jim

Harbaugh, Michigan football was
back in the national spotlight in
2015. Despite a season-opening loss
to Utah, the Wolverines had won
five straight games going into rivalry
weekend, including a 38-0 win over
then-No. 13 Northwestern.

ESPN’s College GameDay aired

from Ann Arbor for the first time
since 2013. Michigan was ranked No.
12, and the Spartans sat at No. 7.

Tensions
brewed
high,
and

when broadcaster Lee Corso picked
Michigan to win by lifting an
oversized Michigan helmet from
beneath his desk, the crowd erupted.

What followed was one of the

most memorable college football
games not just of the year, but the
foreseeable future.

2015: The fumbled-punt seen

‘round the world

Do you remember where you were

when Jalen Watts-Jackson returned
the fumbled punt to beat Michigan?

Most people probably do, too.
Watts-Jackson’s
name
is

ingrained in the minds of Michigan
fans.
When
Michigan
punter

Blake
O’Neill
mishandled
the

snap, the college football world
tuned in. It was a night to forget
for the Wolverines, but a night that

national media would never let die.
Images from the game’s finish, like
Michigan student Chris Baldwin’s
shocked reaction, reappear every
time the schools meet.

Ann Arbor went silent that night.
All game long, after parties were

being planned and group chats were
blowing up. “Michigan is gonna go
top four,” somebody texted me in
the third quarter. Maybe Michigan
would have.

But when Watts-Jackson crossed

over the goal line, that all came to a
halt.

2016: A new recipe…
The
first
rematch
after

the
botched
punt
was
highly

anticipated, but the scene in East
Lansing had completely changed
since Michigan’s last trip to the state
capital.

Wolverine fans were present,

and they made their presence
known. When wide receiver Eddie
McDoom ran a jet sweep, you could
actually hear the “Doooom” chants
from the visiting fans. No Michigan
State
students
painted
“KEEP

HARBAUGH” on their chests.

Then-No. 2 Michigan dominated,

and it was clear that Michigan State’s
three-year run had concluded. The
game wasn’t as close as the score
indicated, and the Paul Bunyan

trophy went back to Ann Arbor.

2016: … With Peppers on top
Late in the game, the Wolverines

led 30-23. The Spartans had scored
a meaningless touchdown, and in
hopes of padding the score line,
set up to attempt a two-point
conversion.

They lost control of a toss, and

linebacker Jabrill Peppers, the face
of the 2016 Michigan football team,
scooped up the ball and sprinted the
other direction.

Peppers ran all the way for the

safety. It might not have left the
same impression as the prior year’s
ending, but it stung for Michigan
State fans nonetheless. When the
clock finally reached zero, Peppers
stood at midfield, and back flipped in
celebration.

2017: To be determined…
It’s a quieter year for the rivalry.
Saturday night will be the first

night game in Ann Arbor in three
years, and the first night game of
this rivalry in the 110-game series.
Michigan and Michigan State will
duke it out once again. There’s no
College Gameday, no infamous
vandalisms and No. 7 Michigan
(1-0 Big Ten, 4-0 overall) is favored
to win comfortably. As everyone
knows, though, nothing is over until
it’s over between these two teams.

TED JANES

Daily Sports Writer

FILE PHOTO/Daily

In 2014 the block ‘M’ was vandalized on the Diag at Michigan’s campus, serving as only one example of a series events that have occurred throughout the last four years.