Tag: Michigan Football

Charles Woodson and Urban Meyer react to Michigan’s big win over MSU

The former Buckeyes coach and Wolverines legend break down what made the maize and blue so dominant over Sparty on Saturday.

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In the studio for FOX Sports, Charles Woodson and Urban Meyer each have different approaches when it comes to Michigan football.

One was a former Wolverines legend, the other the same for Ohio State, but as a head coach. And both were emphatic in their praise for the maize and blue after a 44-10 win over rival MSU.

For Woodson, who made his first appearance in the studio after the Wolverines got decimated in Madison, he got to sing the accolades for his alma mater after the thorough domination at The Big House. He saw a team that was collected and emphasized its talents throughout.

“I thought this was a great win for Michigan,” Woodson said. “In this game, you’ve gotta withstand the first blow from the other team. Michigan State went down there and scored a touchdown early in the game, made it 7-0. But Michigan was the better football team. As long as they don’t get rattled, don’t make mistakes, don’t turn the ball over from an offensive standpoint, we were gonna win this game.

“And there was nothing better for me to see than that late, second quarter drive, that 98 yard drive, touchdown drive that they had where you seen everything you needed to see out of Michigan. Especially out of Shea Patterson. He controlled the offense, he continued to make big throws on third down, scrambles on third down and move that ball down the field. And then, once they scored the ball, Michigan State got the ball back, the defense came in and did their job and held those guys.

“They played complementary football today. Offense helped the defense, the defense the offense and great win for Michigan.”

Meyer also looked at it as a team hitting its stride, but he brought up a point he made before the season.

With new offensive coordinator Josh Gattis leading the charge, Meyer indicated (correctly) that it would take some time for the Michigan offense to jell. After early struggles, when many Wolverines fans got off the bandwagon, the former OSU head coach’s comments proved prescient, as ‘speed in space’ became very apparent on Saturday.

But, in his mind, it’s because the coaching staff adapted to the players, not necessarily because the new scheme caught fire in the locker room.

“We made a comment earlier in the year: whenever you make a complete transitional change on offense from a pro-style to a spread, it takes a long time,” Meyer said. “But you watch, they’re not necessarily a spread offense anymore. I think they’re very accustomed to their personnel. This is a combination of spread and pro-style. They’re executing very well, but this is not the spread offense they were trying to do earlier. Doing a little two tight ends, underneath center. It’s a combination of pro and spread right now.”

Watch the entire interview below:

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Twitter reactions: Michigan annihilates MSU

In case you missed it (and we know you didn’t), Michigan absolutely eviscerated Michigan State in a way it hasn’t since 2002, destroying the Spartans, 44-10. It’s the second year in a row that the maize and blue dominated the green and white, but …

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In case you missed it (and we know you didn’t), Michigan absolutely eviscerated Michigan State in a way it hasn’t since 2002, destroying the Spartans, 44-10.

It’s the second year in a row that the maize and blue dominated the green and white, but this time the score was much more lopsided than last year’s 21-7 affair.

The Wolverines came alive in all three phases, with Shea Patterson breaking Tom Brady’s passing record in the rivalry on offense, the defense all but shutting MSU’s offense down after the first (and only) Spartans touchdown, and Khaleke Hudson getting yet another punt block on special teams.

This time, for the MSU faithful, there’s no excuses or sugarcoating the loss. There’s no ‘defeat with dignity,’ no reasoning — despite the numerous offensive injuries — that can justify how thoroughly Michigan dominated State.

If you weren’t active on social media on Saturday night, then you might have missed several current and former Michigan players taking to Twitter to celebrate the big win while putting Sparty (a.k.a. ‘Little Brother,’ as many put it) in his place.

WolverinesWire has you covered with some of the best reactions here.

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MSU Football’s blowout loss to Michigan: Three Key Takeaways

Michigan State football suffered an incredibly tragic defeat at the hands of Michigan, 44-10. Here are three key takeaways from this game

Michigan State Football suffered an a horrific loss at the hands of interstate rival Michigan, 44-10. The Spartans kept it relatively close at first, but, the Wolverines took over in the third quarter. This lead to a landslide victory for the University of Michigan.

Here are three key takeaways from this game:

Paradigm Shift

Remember the start of this season? When Mark Dantonio surpassed Hugh Daugherty as the most winningest coach in Spartan history. Those days now seem long gone. Nearly every Michigan State fan has turned on Dantonio.

There are certain fans that want Dantonio to retire, others want Dantonio to be fired. Does it have to be this way? I understand the frustration. He had a chance to clean house in the offseason and start fresh but did not do so. Does his success not warrant any good faith from fans?

It is possible to chalk up this season to the coordinator staff, injuries, and lack of talent. The Ohio State loss clearly displayed the disparity in talent between the Buckeyes and the Spartans. The offensive line is absolutely depleted and Joe Bachie is suspended. WR Darrell Stewart went down with an injury just as WR CJ Hayes came back.

I know it is easy to succumb to frustration, but, coaching decisions must be backed by logic and rational thoughts. Do not think about just the present, instead consider the future. Who will replace Dantonio? Are they a better coach? If not, then you set yourself up for failure by firing him.

The Rivalry Is Strong

Michigan and Michigan State offer up one of the most heated rivalries in all of sports. The players do not like each other, the fans do not like each other. This was on full display yesterday. The game started out chippy and it only grew from there.

Later in the game, Jacub Panasiuk hit Shea Patterson late and was flagged for roughing the passer. The referees ejected Panasiuk from the game for this hit. No doubt this was the culmination of frustration for Michigan State.

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In between the chippy play, there were celebrations galore. Cody White was flagged for taunting after a nice catch over a Michigan defender. On the other hand, Michigan WR Tarik Black was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after flexing on Josh Butler. This rivalry has not taken a step back whatsoever.

Curtain Call For Brian Lewerke

I’ve spent almost all year defending Brian Lewerke. Last week, I gave this up. I cannot do this anymore. Lewerke is not a terrible QB, but, he is certainly not a winning QB. He had an absolutely horrendous outing against the Wolverines.

Michigan QB Shea Patterson won the QB duel yesterday against Lewerke. Patterson dropped 384 yards, completing 24 of his 33 pass attempts. This lead to Patterson throwing four touchdown passes, three more than Lewerke. Brian only put up 166 yards, completing 17 of his 30 attempts.

It is not easy to bench a senior QB and maybe that won’t even happen. Personally, I think it’s time for Rocky Lombardi and Theo Day to get some snaps. Especially late in a blowout game. These reps can help shape the offseason perspective and QB scenario moving forward. It’s time to think about the future.

Michigan State football travels to SHI Stadium to play against Rutgers University on Nov. 23. The game starts at 12:00 P.M.

Stay locked on SpartansWire for more coverage to come.

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Patterson shatters Tom Brady’s passing yard record vs. MSU

It was a prolific performance against a rival, and there are some things about it that fans might not have known.

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On Saturday afternoon, Shea Patterson played the best game of his Michigan career in one of his most important games as a Wolverine – with hated rival Michigan State in Ann Arbor.

The senior completed 24-of-33 passes for 384 yards, shattering Tom Brady’s prior record for most passing yards against the Spartans. Of those 24 completions, 14 went for at least 15 yards.

“We can start with Shea,” head coach Jim Harbaugh said when asked about players who impressed him in the win. “Getting the ball to nine different receivers. Somebody told me he broke a record for the most passing yards by a Michigan quarterback in a Michigan State game – 384, and the old record was 285 by Tom Brady. [He broke the record] by 99 yards. I’d call that a whale of a game. That’s a heck of a game by the kid.”

Patterson played the whole game for the Wolverines, including the final snap where he took a knee to conclude a 44-10 beatdown of Michigan State.

“I told him before he went out there to take that snap, ‘This year, after you take the kneel down, keep the ball and don’t throw it up into the air,’” Harbaugh said with a smile. “Because he had a heck of a game, and I thought he should have the game ball.

“Then he said, “I have another plan.’ And I said, ‘What?’ and he said, ‘You’ll see.’ He came over and gave me the ball, and that was neat. But, I went back into the locker room and it’s now in his book bag. I shoved it back in his backpack. He had a great game. That’s just a great game by a quarterback. It was a real gem.”

In addition to the passing yard record versus MSU, the 384 yards was the first time Patterson reached 300 passing yards in a Michigan uniform. The senior’s four touchdown passes against the Spartans were also a new high as a Wolverine.

“The O-line did a heck of a job of giving me time and the receivers just found the open space,” Patterson said. “We had a good gameplan all week. We had an extra bye week to prepare and really diagnose what they do on defense. I just thought we had a good gameplan. The plan wasn’t to pass the ball all game, but our guys were getting into open space and making plays.”

The quarterback’s play drew praise from his teammates in addition to his head coach. Junior wide receiver said Patterson brought something extra to practice this week ahead of the rivalry contest.

“He just brought a different type of passion today,” Peoples-Jones said. “He’s always passionate, but today, the whole team, it means a little bit more. All throughout the week, I could see it in practice, he was confident with his reads, confident with his throws and he trusted us. He trusted the gameplan, and we all trusted each other. We came out victorious and it feels really good.”

Following the game, as Patterson was conducting an on-field interview with Fox Sports’ Jenny Taft, defensive captain Khaleke Hudson brought the coveted Paul Bunyan trophy over to Patterson to celebrate.

“I was going towards the M, and I saw Shea doing an interview with Fox I believe,” Hudson said. “I just wanted to give him a chance to take it all in, give him a chance to see the Paul Bunyan trophy, and give him a chance to celebrate with us.”

Patterson appreciated the moment.

“Usually it’s kind of the other way around,” he said. “Usually the defense is the one being thanked and everything.”

But on Saturday, it was a total combined effort of offense, defense and special teams, and Hudson enjoyed watching Michigan’s offense more than hold up their end.

“Shea was throwing the ball, putting it in the right place,” Hudson said. “The receivers were blocking, they were catching the balls, and the offensive line was playing their tails off also with the running backs. So, I’m very proud of them guys today. I’m very proud of how they played, how they executed and I just want them guys to keep up this energy.”

Saturday’s showdown in Ann Arbor was Patterson’s final opportunity to play against the Spartans, and the senior put on a performance that he’ll remember for a long time.

“Just wish I had two more shots at them,” Patterson said. “I wish I could’ve started here and gotten four shots at them, but…it was a lot of fun today.

“This one’s special. I’m proud to just be a part of this team and part of a win like that, a dominant win like that. We knew how important this game was, and we prepared our tails off.”

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Ohio State beats Rutgers to go to 10-0, now the season really begins

Ohio State put it on Rutgers, and has been fantastic to date. But now, the season really begins with Penn State and Michigan on tap.

Ohio State may not have looked as good as it has in previous weeks against Rutgers, but it was still a convincing win nonetheless. The Buckeyes raced out to a quick lead, put in some backups and won going away 56-21.

To date, the Buckeyes closest game — if you can believe it — was against FAU in week one. They only managed to win that one by 24 points. Since then, it’s been beat down after beat down. Along the way, Ohio State eviscerated one of the best defenses in the country when it whitewashed Wisconsin 38-7. It scored over 70 points twice, held its opponents to ten points or below ten times, and scored at least 34 points in every game.

Heck, there’s even be three guys in the Heisman conversation. Quarterback Justin Fields, running back J.K. Dobbins, and defensive end Chase Young have all had magical years so far.

Simply put — the Buckeyes have been on cruise control and haven’t been tested to date.

But now it’s about to get into the meat of the schedule. What’s happened to date has little bearing on what needs to occur over the next two weeks when OSU welcomes a top ten Penn State squad, then hits the road for the annual grudge match between Michigan — er … TTUN.

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Has Ohio State been dominant, fantastic, marvelous and all the above so far in 2019? Yes, it sure has. In fact some of the things we’ve seen this year may not happen for a long, long time. We may not even know how truly historic this season is until it’s over and we look back on it.

But … in order for it to be that type of year, the Buckeyes have to finish the deal. Lose against Penn State and the Nittany Lions likely go to Indianapolis. Lose to Michigan and, — well … let’s just not go there.

In some ways, what’s happened up until now seems like a precursor in a blockbuster movie right before the climax begins.

So, strap it up men. The focus and execution has been outstanding to date. But remember, there’s a countdown clock in the Woody that has the real finish line. It’s time to show Penn State THEY AREN’T, and Michigan that it still can’t hold a candle to THE Ohio State University.

Practice is going to be fun this week. It’s time to finish this thing.

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Michigan ‘out-toughed us’ and other notable quotes from MSU players

Interesting things were said by the four Michigan State players who met with the media on what Michigan did to win the game.

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan really eviscerated in-state rival Michigan State for the first time since 2006, with an impressive 44-10 win over the Spartans at The Big House.

While the Wolverines were naturally enthusiastic about the win, those who suited up in green and white were obviously dejected about their lopsided loss.

Some credited Michigan and the job they did, others placed blame on themselves.

Here’s what the four players that MSU allowed to meet with the media had to say about the game.

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LB Antjuan Simmons

The former Ann Arbor (MI) Pioneer product started at the MIKE linebacker spot, and managed 7 tackles, a sack and 2 tackles for loss in the game. MSU stuffed the run game quite well, as the Wolverines managed just 2.4 sack-adjusted yards-per-carry. But, Michigan annihilated MSU through the pass game, with quarterback Shea Patterson having his best game in a maize and blue uniform, going 24-for-33 for 384 yards and four touchdowns.

What did Simmons see on his side of the field in his view of the Michigan offense?

“They were just doing a lot of things out on the perimeter, out in space,” Simmons said. “I mean, they were just throwing the ball all over the place. They only had 60-70 rushing yards, so yeah.”

NEXT: MSU QB Brian Lewerke notes that Michigan did something it hasn’t done since Week Two.
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Ronnie Bell’s 2019 season showing he’s the true number one WR

Michigan football wide receiver Ronnie Bell had a career game against MSU today, showing he’s the top threat in the passing game.

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Ann Arbor, MI — Last year, freshman wide receiver Ronnie Bell wasn’t a part of the plans for Michigan as they planned to have wide receiver Tarik Black back from his season-ending injury from last season. That plan was derailed as he would have a similar injury happen to him before the season started, and he would miss the first half of the 2018 season.

With that said, Bell moved up in the depth chart, but he didn’t see much action until late against Nebraska when he caught a 56-yard touchdown pass. He would get involved with the offense minorly, only getting eight catches for 145 yards and two touchdowns.

Headed into 2019 the storyline at wide receiver was the same as it was headed into the 2018 season. The talk was mostly about Nico Collins, Donovan Peoples-Jones, and Tarik Black and how those three could thrive under new offensive coordinator Josh Gattis’ offense in his speed in space attack.

The addition of freshman wide receivers Giles Jackson, Cornelius Johnson, and Mike Sainristil also overshadowed Bell. He was lost in the mix to begin the season, but he certainly wasn’t forgotten about.

While he was quiet in the season opener, Bell had a solid game against Army, getting seven catches for 81 yards. It was after that game you started to see some kind of connection with quarterback Shea Patterson and Bell.

“Over the past few weeks, think we developed a certain kind of chemistry,” Patterson said. “I just think we play well together.” Patterson then credited Peoples-Jones, Bell, and all the other receivers for creating plays when he gets pushed out of the pocket and says it’s like backyard football at that point.

The connection between the two was huge today against MSU, as Bell finished with a career-best nine catches for 150 yards. Despite him putting up big numbers this week, he once again couldn’t find the endzone, something he hasn’t done this year despite being the top receiver on the team.

“That’s weird,” Patterson said. “I think he had 150 (yards) today. Just as far as his production and playmaking abilities, I think that makes up for not having a touchdown, but yea I didn’t even know that.”

While Patterson thought it was weird that Bell hasn’t seen the end zone yet, Bell knows he will get in there sooner or later.

“Yea, I don’t know if there hasn’t been a time yet where I came back to the sideline, like 20 seconds to go let me know like I still ain’t got in there,” Bell laughed. “It hurts every time, but it’s alright I’m a get in there.”

Bell is proving to not only the coaches but to the fans, especially the ones that turned their back on him after the drop against Penn State. He is more than just a depth wide receiver, he can be a top threat in this offense.

So far this season, Bell is the leading receiver with 36 catches for 610 yards. Collins is tied for second in catches with Peoples-Jones, but Collins has 25 for 484 yards and four touchdowns. Peoples-Jones has his 25 catches for 259 yards and four touchdowns. Black has 21 catches for 284 yards and a touchdown.

The way Bell has been able to get involved with this offense and rebound after that huge drop is something special. The same people who were booing Bell and sending horrible things his way, probably were quiet today and maybe even cheering for him.

Bell is having a career-best year so far, and it could certainly open the door in his final two years at Michigan. So while Peoples-Jones, Collins, and Black get all the attention, Bell is quietly having himself a season he will never forget. Another year under this offense will be huge for Bell and if he can continue the trend from this season, he could be the top threat once again in 2020.

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Dantonio explains what went wrong for MSU, says he’ll ‘weather the storm’

What the Spartans head coach had to say about the Wolverines and his own team after the 44-10 beatdown in Ann Arbor.

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Before the 2019 season started, the early line for the Michigan – Michigan State rivalry saw the Wolverines as double-digit point favorites, which was questioned by many, given that the battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy tends to be a close affair. But MSU didn’t uphold its end of the bargain this year, as the reshuffling of the offensive staff didn’t yield many positive results as the season progressed.

The Spartans haven’t won a game since the month of September, yet here we are in mid-November. Once MSU got into the meat of the schedule, every game has looked similar: they’ve looked decent to start before the other team pulls away.

It was no different in Ann Arbor, but this one probably hurts MSU the most, given that the Wolverines are the Spartans’ chief rival. Now Michigan has won two-straight over their in-state enemy, and head coach Jim Harbaugh now has a 3-2 record over Michigan State and coach Mark Dantonio.

After the game, Dantonio praised Michigan and the effort the Wolverines put in while noting how effective the maize and blue were at stymying what MSU wanted to do.

“(We) hung in there initially,” Dantonio said. “I think the third quarter hurt us with the first interception and then at the beginning of the fourth quarter, I guess the blocked punt – the exchange there, the third and fourth quarter, the blocked punt sort of turned it. We had an obviously a very ugly fourth quarter. Too many problems, too many situations.

“Credit Michigan. They played extremely well on defense and offense. I talked about them having shock – we had to play with that same kind of shock and explosiveness. They got after the quarterback, pressured the quarterback. We were unable to run the ball effectively enough – at all. I thought we hung in there a little bit there as it was going forward.”

Though many have seen this as a referendum game for Dantonio, in the sense that — while no one expected MSU to win coming in, it could either push the Spartans to get better or it could spell the end for the legendary head coach who really made an enemy of the Wolverines.

Well, even with a lopsided 44-10 loss, it doesn’t sound like Dantonio has any machinations on calling it career in East Lansing after this one, noting that he has to ‘even it out’ to make things right for the green and white.

“From a leadership stand(point), you must stand vigilant – that’s what leaders must do,” Dantonio said. “You must stand vigilant, you must take responsibility, but you must stay the course, too. And you must be strong. And I keep asking ourselves, just like I ask our football team – and I didn’t ask them this game – how strong are you? How strong are you? Can you weather storms? If you can’t weather storms, this might not be the situation you want to put yourself in.

“We weather the storm, that’s whether you’re a leader on this football team internally as a team member, collectively as the coaching staff or as the head football coach.

“I’ll weather the storm.”

Still, while there were no barbs or insults hurled towards Michigan — something of a rarity in this rivalry since Dantonio took over in 2007 — the disgust from the loss, especially to his chief rival, remains apparent.

“I don’t like losing to these guys,” Dantonio said. “I don’t think you’ve gotta reinvigorate me. I don’t like losing period.”

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Notes/tidbits from Michigan’s 44-10 win over MSU

Things you might not have known about the Wolverines 44-10 victory over Sparty.

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Michigan absolutely eviscerated in-state rival MSU on Saturday, 44-10, in a game that started close, but the Wolverines finished with an incredible statement against the hapless Spartans.

With quarterback Shea Patterson having his best day in a Michigan uniform, and Ronnie Bell doing the same, it was an impressive performance by the offense, matched only by a suffocating effort by the defense.

Courtesy of MGoBlue.com, here’s some facts/tidbits you might not have known about Michigan’s valiant win over Michigan State.

• Today’s announced attendance of 111,496 marks the 292nd consecutive game at Michigan Stadium with a crowd in excess of 100,000.

• Michigan improved to 71-36-5 in the all-time series against Michigan State, dating back to 1898. The Wolverines are 3-2 against MSU under head coach Jim Harbaugh and have won each of the last two meetings. Michigan is 35-20-3 against the Spartans at Michigan Stadium.

• Michigan accumulated more than 400 yards total offense for the fourth time in five games, totaling 467 yards of offense. U-M had 384 passing yards, the program’s most since recording 387 against Maryland on Nov. 5, 2016.

• Senior quarterback Shea Patterson completed 24-of-33 passes for 384 yards and four touchdowns. It was Patterson’s first 300-yard passing game as a Wolverine and the first time in two seasons at Michigan — and the fourth time overall in his career — he threw for four or more touchdowns. His 24 completions also tied his career best; he previously completed 24-of-41 passes at Penn State (Oct. 19).

• Patterson moved to 10th among Michigan’s all-time leaders in passing yards with 4,757. He passed Brian Griese (4,383, 1994-97) and needs just 103 yards to reach the ninth spot, currently held by Steve Smith (4,860, 1980-83).

• Sophomore wide receiver Ronnie Bell recorded career bests with nine catches and 150 receiving yards. He is first Wolverine with a 100-yard receiving game this season, and it is the most receiving yards for a Michigan player since Amara Darboh earned 165 at Michigan State in 2016. It is also the most receptions for a Wolverine since Jehu Chesson had 10 at Indiana in 2015. It is the fifth game this season that Bell led Michigan in receiving. His previous bests were seven catches against Army (Sept. 7) and 98 yards at Illinois (Oct. 12).

• Junior wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones posted his fourth receiving touchdown of the season — 12th of his career — with an 18-yard grab in the third quarter. It was his second touchdown against Michigan State in as many seasons.

• Freshman wide receiver Cornelius Johnson scored his first career touchdown with a 39-yard catch in the fourth quarter. The 39 yards are also a career high in receiving yards for Johnson.

• Sophomore running back Hassan Haskins scored his third career touchdown on a one-yard rush early in the second quarter. Haskins has recorded a touchdown in three of the last five games.

• Freshman wide receiver Giles Jackson posted career highs with two carries and 32 rushing yards, including a career-long 21-yard run in the first quarter.

• Senior tight end Nick Eubanks used a five-yard reception in the second quarter to record his fourth career touchdown and third in four games.

• Junior wide receiver Nico Collins registered his fourth touchdown of the season — 10th of his career — on 22-yard touchdown catch early in the fourth quarter.

• After allowing the Spartans just 54 rushing yards, Michigan’s defense has held its opponents to less than 65 rushing yards in five of the last seven games. No team has cracked 130 yards on the ground since Wisconsin, while no team has cracked 200 yards through the air since Iowa.

• The Wolverine defense held Michigan State to just 17 receptions, the Spartans’ second lowest reception total of the season.

• The Wolverines have allowed 11 touchdowns and forced 12 turnovers in the last seven games.

• Senior cornerback Lavert Hill earned a third-quarter pass breakup to increase his career total to 25 and claim a share of the ninth spot among U-M’s all-time leaders — with Markus Curry (2001-04). He needs one more to reach the eighth spot, currently held by Marion Body (26, 1979-82). Hill also earned his third interception of the season — sixth of his career — in the fourth quarter.

• Junior cornerback Ambry Thomas registered his third interception of the season — fourth of career — and returned it four yards in the third quarter. It was the fifth turnover he has had a hand in this season (three interceptions and two fumble recoveries).

• Senior defensive tackle Carlo Kemp posted 1.5 sacks, including the first solo sack of his career for a loss of 11 yards late in the fourth quarter. He owns 2.0 sacks over the last two games and 2.5 in his career.

• Senior kicker Quinn Nordin was a perfect 3-for-3 on field goals and added five PATs to contribute a season-high 14 points against the Spartans. His 49-yard field goal in the third quarter is the longest by a Wolverine this season and tied the third longest of his career.

• Senior linebacker Khaleke Hudson recorded his third career blocked punt early in the fourth quarter. It is the Wolverines’ second blocked punt this season; graduate student linebacker Jordan Glasgow previously earned one at Illinois.

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