Copyright M Live Michigan
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The question asked of him dealt with Michigan’s defensive turnaround, yet Sherrone Moore was already thinking about what’s next. Saturday, after his team’s 24-7 win over Washington, the Wolverines’ head coach reflected on the 180 his defense showed, from giving up nearly 500 yards of total offense a week earlier to forcing three turnovers and a turnover on downs in a span of four straight drives against UW. More of the latter would be required, he said. “We’ve got to keep doing it,” Moore insisted. “We’ve got a long way to go; we’ve got a lot of football left to play. I know we’ve got a big game next week, I’ve got to give myself 24 hours — we’ve got to give ourselves 24 hours — but I find myself wanting to go to the building and watch film on them right now.” It’s rivalry week in the state of Michigan, meaning one thing: Michigan is getting set to do battle with in-state rival Michigan State, two schools separated by a mere 65 miles that have no love lost on the field in recent years. Just last year, tense moments followed the Wolverines’ 24-17 win in Ann Arbor, with pushing and shoving between players on the field prompted Michigan tight end Colston Loveland to recycle the “little brother” phrase. This time, though, Loveland opted for “little bro.” There was none of that on Saturday, a full week ahead of the game. Michigan players sounded unbothered by what lay ahead: A Michigan State team reeling at 3-4, losers of four straight games to open Big Ten play. Saturday’s 38-13 loss at Indiana marked the Spartans’ third straight loss by double digits. “I’m going to go to church (Sunday) morning with my dad and my grandfather,” linebacker Cole Sullivan said. “We’ll enjoy this one, go to church tomorrow, go get treatment, and then we’ll start thinking about it. Sullivan added: “I know they’ll have the Michigan State highlights up on the screen in the weight room. That’ll be about when I start thinking about them.” Michigan has won the last three meetings in the rivalry, a run that began in 2022 during the height of the Wolverines’ Big Ten dominance and ended with the infamous Michigan Stadium tunnel incident, They would follow up with a 49-0 shellacking of the Spartans in 2023 en route to a national title. Last year, despite a 7-5 regular season, Michigan eked out a seven-point win. This year, oddsmakers are expecting another Michigan victory, and this one could wind up lopsided in fashion. The betting line has only risen since the Wolverines opened as 13-point favorites yesterday; it’s now up to 14 and 14.5 points at most sports books. Linebacker Jimmy Rolder called it “just another game,” while running back Jordan Marshall says the focus will remain on Michigan, not the opponent. “It’s always been about us,” Marshall said. “I don’t care who we’re playing. It’s a faceless opponent every single week, and we’re going to go out and do what Michigan does every single week.” Despite what any of the players say, the opponent this week does in fact matter. Moore, the head coach, has made it known Michigan’s goals since taking over for Jim Harbaugh in 2024: Beat rivals Michigan State and Ohio State, win the Big Ten and compete for national championships. With the Wolverines owning a 5-2 record and 3-1 mark in Big Ten play, all of those goals remain in play. And beating MSU happens to be first on the schedule. “We’ve just got to focus on next week,” Moore said. “We can’t worry about what’s going to happen, what team’s going to win and what team’s going to lose. It starts with this next one.” And, Moore said, this is “a huge one.” “We all know the implications. We all know the rivalry. We all know what it’s about,” Moore said. “We’ve got to do everything we can to prepare mentally, physically, emotionally — then let everything fall where it may.”
