I promised I would leave this alone. I have for almost 30 years had a fondness for both the University of Michigan and Michigan State University and their athletic programs. Being raised in Ann Arbor there has been a preference for Michigan but I always would root for MSU on every other week and tepidly root for the Wolverines on their rivalry game. This happened when my close friend became a Spartan student then alum. I was in high school then and I saw how my friend had his thought process and being in Ann Arbor (I was in LA then but that’s another story), he bravely chose the school that best served his needs and that school wasn’t Michigan. I came to see both schools as what they were and at this point as I’m becoming a senior in high school, I’m debating colleges. So I grew to accept that football is supposed to only be ancillary to the rest of the college experience.
The reason I digressed was to show MSU, their fans and the best coach in their history how they are doing all the little brother things that they seem to “hate” yet, embrace when they defeat Michigan. They have had the best of the Wolverines since 2010 and it isn’t even close. Yes it’s a rivalry game, yes it’s a big deal, but two weeks later still running the mouth, carving the pumpkins, mocking the kid holding his head…it should be beneath you if you’re really over the jibes. Mark Dantonio, the aforementioned best coach in their football history, with the “where the Wolverines at?” They’re kids Mark, you should be above that horse stuff, if you’re over the jibes.
What the reactions and classless remarks show me is that though you have defeated Michigan in this unprecedented run of success for you, Spartan fans are terrified that the run is nearing its end. Much like Duffy Daugherty’s in the 60’s ended with Bo Schembechler coming to town. Much like Dantonio in this century, Daugherty in the 60’s had only one rival for coaching in the conference and he was also at Ohio State. Perhaps you’ve heard of Woody Hayes. Well, after a decade of down time where the coach of Ohio State (Urban Meyer if you didn’t know) and Dantonio are the only decent coaches in the Big Ten along comes Jim Harbaugh… and Spartans were terrified they were about to be superseded; and they likely will be. It won’t be this year clearly as the “clever” memes show us two weeks later. Soon though, it seems little brother may retake its spot in the state rivalry.