Michigan State Football: 3 advantages Spartans have over No. 6 Michigan

1. All the pressure is on Michigan

If you ask yourself who needs this win more, the answer is clear. Michigan is in year seven of Jim Harbaugh and he lost to Mel Tucker in his first season a year ago. If Harbaugh wants to prove that he’s worthy of remaining the Wolverines’ head coach, he needs to win a game like this.

Far too often, Jim’s teams have struggled in rivalry games or on the road in hostile environments against ranked opponents. This happens to fall under both categories.

Michigan is off to a red-hot 7-0 start and Michigan fans are starting to believe again, so in order for him to hang on to that trust from his fanbase, alumni, and the athletic department, he needs to lead the Wolverines past the Spartans in East Lansing. He needs to shake that narrative that he can’t win the big game. This is a massive opportunity.

For Tucker, he’s 1-0 against Michigan already and has the Spartans well ahead of schedule at 7-0 and ranked in the top 10 just 14 games into his career at Michigan State. A loss here would be tough, but it wouldn’t be a back-breaker for the second-year head coach.

Michigan needs this win while Michigan State is playing with house money. The Wolverines have all the pressure in the world on their backs.