Lavert Hill bounced down the
Michigan sideline, waiving his arms
in jubilation with his helmet in hand.
Behind him, the rest of the Wolverines
did the same, spilling onto the field,
toward the stands and everywhere in
between.
The celebration — set off by Hill’s
fourth-quarter interception — had been
brewing all game, as No. 15 Michigan
(5-2 Big Ten, 8-2 overall) charged toward
a 44-10 win.
“When (Hill) got his pick, you could
just feel the intensity, you could feel it
through him,” said senior safety Josh
Metellus. “And the vibe that he had just
went throughout the whole stadium,
from the field to the fans to the top row.
You could just tell that this team knew
that we did today.”
It was a day that started like very few
in the recent history of this rivalry. For
11 years before Saturday, Michigan State
(2-5 Big Ten, 4-6 overall) had avoided
losing back-to-back games against
the Wolverines, marking its longest
period of in-state dominance since the
1950s. But on the back of four straight
Spartans losses, the pregame air carried
an encompassing sense that this was
Michigan’s year.
The win, though, wasn’t always so
straightforward.
Three quarters before jubilation
radiated through Michigan Stadium,
Shea Patterson lined up with his heels
on the goal line, staring down 98 yards of
empty grass in front of him.
That’s how you begin a drive when
you can’t get anything going offensively,
when even your defensive stops concede
field position, when a seemingly lopsided
rivalry matchup is tied, 7-7, midway
through the second quarter.
Twelve plays later, it was all forgotten.
Nick Eubanks flexed in front of the
student section, touchdown catch in
hand, capping off a magnificent, ruthless
scoring drive. It was everything once
promised out of Josh Gattis’ offense,
with Michigan’s best offensive weapons
being put in positions to exploit a
depleted Spartans’ defense.
The Wolverines carried that
momentum through the rest of the day,
scoring on their last eight drives and
erasing the tone of offensive frustration
that marked a disappointing first
quarter.
“It was just a huge drive,” said
sophomore receiver Ronnie Bell. And
once we put points on the board, you
could just feel it rolling and we just
stepped on it and kept it going.”
Patterson stood at the center of it all,
the protagonist in a story of shifting
rivalry tides. Hailed as the final piece of
a program on the precipice of glory when
he arrived from Ole Miss two years ago,
Patterson’s time in Ann Arbor won’t end
with a national championship or a Big
Ten title. There’s no Heisman Trophy
heading to Schembechler Hall next
month.
What he has is a second-consecutive
Paul Bunyan Trophy.
It’s a trophy Patterson clutched
Saturday afternoon at midfield, fresh off
the best performance of his Michigan
career — eclipsing his domination of the
Spartans last year. After entering the day
without a 300-yard game as a Wolverine,
he finished with 384 yards and four
touchdowns.
“Just wish I had two more shots at
them,” Patterson said postgame, his
typically stoic face dotted with emotion.
“Just wish I had four shots at them. It
was a lot of fun.”
Bell was the biggest beneficiary in
Michigan’s receiving corps with 150
yards on nine catches, his being one of
many standpoint performances. This
was an all-encompassing display of
dominance, spreading to the Wolverines’
defense, with its three sacks, two
interceptions and 3.7 yards allowed per
play.
It’s a display of dominance that
continued to cement Michigan’s
re-emerging control over the state — a
significance not lost on these Wolverines.
As the teams congregated at midfield
postgame, the Spartans tried to linger,
offering a few words of contention
toward Michigan’s sideline — just one
confrontation in a day full of them.
Metellus wasn’t having it.
“I was telling them to go home,”
Metellus said. “It’s time for them to
leave. They don’t deserve to be in our
stadium.”
Natalie Stephens & Alexandria Pompei / Daily Design by Jack Silberman
THEO MACKIE
Daily Sports Editor
WOLVERINES SEND SPARTANS BACK TO EAST LANSING WITH BLOWOUT LOSS
Monday, November 18, 2019 | michigandaily.com
Natalie Stephens & Alexandria Pompei / Daily Design by Jack Silberman