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One key stat paints an ugly picture for Michigan State’s chances in rivalry showdown with Michigan
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Michigan State put itself in a tough spot after a stunning Week 1 loss to Rutgers.
But it won’t get any easier in Week 2 as the Spartans are set to hit the road for Ann Arbor to face in-state rival Michigan. To make matters worse for Michigan State, there’s this:
Key stats for MSU at Michigan:
* Team w/ most rushing yards has won 45 of last 50. U-M held MSU to 69 yds last 2 combined.
* MSU’s last RB TD was Nov. 9 vs. ILL (Collins 2 in first half) – that’s 22 quarters/~350 minutes of play w/o rushing TD from anyone other than Lewerke.— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) October 25, 2020
Michigan State’s inability to run the ball showed up again vs. the Scarlett Knights on Saturday. The Spartans ran the ball 39 times for just 50 yards — an average of 1.3 yards per attempt. They also had five lost fumbles, although not all of those were by running backs.
Meanwhile, the Wolverines ran the ball for 253 yards on 31 attempts in their season-opening win over Minnesota.
You could question whether or not the the running game in this series is a reason why a team wins or simply a result of the winning team jumping out to an early lead and then running the ball more often as the game goes along. Still, it’s a red flag for Michigan State heading into next week’s matchup.
Michigan has won two straight games in this series and three of the last four. The Wolverines hold a 71-36-5 all-time advantage over the Spartans.
Kickoff from the Big House is scheduled for 12 p.m. ET on Saturday.
Spenser is the news manager at Saturday Road and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.