Jim Harbaugh and the No. 6 Michigan Wolverines were able to get passed the 24th ranked Michigan State Spartans with a 21-7 win from Spartan Stadium.
Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson was 14-for-25 for 212 yards and two touchdowns while his counterpart on the other sideline Brian Lewerke struggle-bussed it going 5-of-25 for 66 yards and no touchdowns. In fact Michigan State struggled generating any kind of offense all day accumulating just 94 total yards while the Wolverines countered with 395.
Ironically, the only Spartan touchdown came on a Sparty Special when Lewerky caught a pass from Darrell Stewart to initially tie the game at seven a piece in the third quarter.
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Injuries, notably to Felton Davis III who tore his achilles in the first half and a Michigan offense that caught its stride later in the second half proved to be too much for a stagnant Spartan squad.
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Furthermore, this was a win Michigan needed more than anything. Not just because it was a rivalry game against arguably thee biggest rival, but it was the team’s first road win against a ranked opponent since 2006. It was also a quality Michigan win in the Jim Harbaugh era, something you can still probably count on one hand.
More importantly though for the Wolverines is today’s victory keeps them in pace for the Big Ten East title with Penn State two weeks away and the division leader Ohio State coming the final weekend of the regular season.
GAME BALL – Shea Patterson
Karan Higdon’s 144 rushing yards gave Patterson an run for his money (no pun intended) but the Michigan QB had to battle a hostile crowd and hostile weather to get his team the much needed win. Patterson also was able to keep the mistakes to a minimum and has improved pretty much each week he’s been under center for the Wolverines.
TURD SANDWICH – Michigan State Offense
You hate kicking an aspect when their down, especially when injuries have been such an issue but come on Michigan State, can we eclipse 100-yards of total offense on your home field?