FootballSaturday, October 7, 2017
8

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. 

