Michigan State Football: 3 goals for Week 8 vs. Michigan

Well, the big game is finally here and to be honest, it has shades of 2022, 2019, or 2018. Michigan has looked like a college football behemoth albeit while doing their best Alan Turing impression. But miracles happen.

Upsets happen every week in college football.

While there’s a higher likelihood of Michigan basketball winning the Big Ten this year than Michigan State football beating the Wolverines on Saturday, here are three things the Spartans can do to have a shot at getting back the Paul Bunyan Trophy.

1. Start hot

The Spartans finally did the unthinkable all in their first drive against Rutgers: they went 14 plays, ate up 7.5 minutes off the clock, and scored a touchdown. Katin Houser seems to have provided a spark for this offense, who finally cracked the 20-point mark, only to be let down by coaching.

One would think that a film study could show where things went wrong and can correct all those small mistakes that led to big problems.

Michigan has made a habit of starting slow, going down a touchdown against Indiana and only being ahead by single digits at halftime against two below-average teams in Bowling Green and Rutgers. Even their loss to TCU last year was due in large part to gifting the Horned Frogs with zero points in the red zone on the first drive and then a pick-six, then forcing Michigan to a three-and-out, only to go on a long scoring drive to take a 14-0 lead.

Michigan finally got its act together to make it a game but starting the second quarter down two scores is a tough task for any squad.