EAST LANSING— Michigan State players and coaches will be the first to admit, they didn’t quite understand what the rivalry with Michigan was all about a year ago. The game caught them by surprise, and the results showed when the game ended in a loss — and a scuffle.
“It was way bigger than what I expected,” quarterback Aidan Chiles said Tuesday.
This year, there will be no more surprises. The Spartans know the stakes of their biggest game of the season. And this one, at an inflection point for the program, means a whole lot more.
“Everybody in the building thinks this game could be a turnaround for us,” wide receiver Nick Marsh said.
Four straight losses in Big Ten play have put Michigan State (3-4, 0-4 Big Ten) in a deep hole. Two weeks ago, fans booed the team down the Spartan Stadiu