Everyone knows that the Michigan vs Michigan State rivalry is one of the most intense in college basketball. Michigan State players don’t like Michigan players, Michigan State coaches aren’t huge fans of Michigan coaches, and Michigan State fans loathe Michigan fans — and vice versa for all three.
Seeing guys like Jeremy Fears Jr., Coen Carr, Jaxon Kohler, and Carson Cooper really embrace the rivalry and teach the younger guys about it has been fun. They’re passing the torch.
Unfortunately, that didn’t lead to a win over Michigan during the regular season, but Tom Izzo and the Spartans are hoping to get one in the NCAA Tournament which would mean that Michigan State won its second national title under the Hall of Fame coach — and third overall.
There’s a lot that needs to happen if the Spartans and Wolverines are going to meet again. Until then, they’ll have to hate each other from afar.
That hatred for Michigan runs so deep at Michigan State that it actually affects the Spartans’ uniform combos for every single game.
Carr appeared on a podcast on Thursday to discuss how Michigan State’s hatred for Michigan affects their uniforms, stating that the Spartans don’t wear black socks because the Fab Five started that trend.
In case you didn’t know… the Michigan vs. Michigan State rivalry is INTENSE 😭‼️
— I AM ATHLETE (@IAMATHLETEpod) March 26, 2026
We sat down with @Coencarr2 and he told us EVERYTHING we needed to know…
“We don’t wear black socks because of them. We have hotels here… the TOILETS are Yellow & Blue 👀 pic.twitter.com/2yrbv6DSEZ
Carr revealed the reason why Michigan State never wears black socks and it’s probably something that fans never thought about. No one ever really put two and two together.
I personally appreciated the fact that he mentioned the maize and blue toilets at MSU hotels.
It didn’t take Coen Carr long to understand the Michigan rivalry
Carr was acclimated to the Michigan rivalry very early in his Michigan State career, and he helped capture a two-game sweep against the Wolverines as both a freshman and a sophomore. Unfortunately, he couldn’t lead Michigan State to a win over Michigan this season, but he’s still hoping for another shot.
Being from Georgia, however, it’s not easy to dive right into a rivalry and understand it right away, but Carr has and he takes these games seriously. He played well in the first meeting against Michigan but didn’t look great in the second matchup and I know that eats at him.
Getting revenge in the national title game would be the dream scenario.
One thing’s for certain, though: Michigan State won’t be wearing black socks. Take that, Michigan.