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The battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy is back this weekend as the Michigan football team hits the road to take on Michigan State football. The Wolverines are coming into this game as huge favorites as they are 7-0 and ranked #2 in the country. This rivalry typically produces close matchups no matter the records, however, as it always gets the best out of both teams. One thing that could have an affect on things in this game is the recent announcement that the Michigan football program is under an NCAA investigation for in-person scouting. That might end up leading to nothing, but it could serve as a distraction for the team leading up to the game.
Another important thing to remember for this weekend's game is what happened after last year's Michigan-Michigan State game. A group of Spartans were filmed beating a Michigan football player with their helmets, and that player ended up pressing charges. That will likely be on Michigan's mind this weekend.
So far this season, Michigan football has looked as good as anybody. They have been ranked #2 for the entire season, and the Wolverines currently have the FBS leader in QBR (JJ McCarthy), rushing touchdowns (Blake Corum) and receiving touchdowns (Roman Wilson). This team has been firing on all cylinders this year, and they currently are tied with Georgia for the best odds to win the national championship. The only concern for this Michigan team is that haven't really played anybody yet, but their closest game so far was a 24-point blowout. The Wolverines are taking care of business.
Michigan State football is in a different boat than their rival. The Spartans are currently 2-4 on the season, and they have lost four games in a row. They also don't have a head coach as Mel Tucker was fired earlier this season due to a sexual assault investigation. This feels like a low point for the Michigan State football program, but a win over their rival on Saturday would be a big step in the right direction. The game is at home for the Spartans, and it's under the lights, so that should provide them with some energy. Here are three predictions for the big rivalry game.
JJ McCarthy will throw three touchdown passes
JJ McCarthy has had an outstanding season for Michigan, and he is currently in the hunt for the Heisman Trophy. One area of the Michigan State defense that struggles is the secondary. McCarthy and his receivers should be able to find a decent amount of success through the air in this one, and they should hook up for at least a few touchdowns. Expect McCarthy to have another big performance.
Michigan will score at least 45 points
Last year's Michigan-Michigan State game could've gotten out of hand, but the Wolverines had a lot of trouble getting the ball into the end zone in the red zone. There were multiple occasions where the Wolverines were set up with first and goal and had to settle for three points. They had no issue moving the ball and the Spartans couldn't get anything going on offense, but the final score was only 29-7 when it easily could've been much more. After what happened after the game last year, the Wolverines might try to run up the score a little bit on Saturday. Expect them to score a lot of points.
Michigan will hold Michigan State to under 10 points
Michigan's defense has been dominant this year and they haven't given up more than 10 points in a game yet. Expect that trend to continue this weekend. The Spartans do have a new quarterback as Katin Houser has taken over for Noah Kim, and he does look like a solid quarterback. However, this Wolverines defense is one of the best in the country, and they're going to make life difficult on the Spartans all night long.
The Michigan-Michigan State rivalry rarely disappoints, and this should be another exciting game. Kickoff will be at 7:30 ET from East Lansing, Michigan, and the game will be airing on NBC.
