Jonathan Smith educated himself on the importance of the Michigan rivalry

Last year, Michigan State head football coach Jonathan Smith was clearly taken aback by the intensity of the Spartans' annual rivalry game against Michigan.

Michigan State folded in the second half to lose its third consecutive matchup with the Wolverines, and Smith noted that he hadn't properly prepared his team for what they were facing, citing inexperience with the nature and nuances of the rivalry.

"Leading into it, I knew it was an importan rivalry..." Smith said following the 24-17 loss. "But now, truly experiencing it for the first time, that thing is different, that thing is important, and thet's why it's so frustrating to feel like we could've done a few thigns better. ... After experiencing that sucker, I will not forget that thing. "

That seemingly innocent statement upset fans because of the subtle ignorance it conveyed. How could Michigan State hire a head coach who wasn’t aware of the intesity of one of its biggest rivalries?

Fast forward a year, and Smith continues to face outside pressure about his job security. Still, he has learned to alter his approach to "that sucker" — further noting that the MSU-Michigan series is a different kind of beast than other rivalries across the nation and leaning into the intensity as he met with local media members this week.

"I think about the preparation and using more of that fuel, that passion for our prepartion, and then playing with it within a disciplined approach," Smith said. "In football, it comes down to doing your job at a high, high level. So we want to foster a lot of that fuel to play our best."

That approach has worked for many Spartan coaches in the past, especially for Mark Dantonio, who immediatley won fans over with his shared hatred of the Wolverines and sheer determination to build a program that would routinely beat them and exact revenge for years of strife.

Smith did not seem to share that same knowledge at first, but he has been quickly brought up to speed and sought to do the same for his team. He even revealed they had sessions in the offseason where they taught players about the rivalry and had the Michigan natives speak to the rest of the team.

"I really felt like galvanizing that fuel, that energy, that focus, that want, that passion behind it -- boiling that into our preparation, using that in our play, but not in a way that's out of bounds where it's hurting us," Smith continued. "We want it to help us."

The key to that will be keeping emotions in check and not taking stupid penalties or making other stupid mistakes at critcial moments. That's how Michigan State let games against Michigan slip away in the early 2000s, and you can add last year's game to that list.

"I can feel, still, a bitter taste in [my] mouth after that one, aftern expereincing it," Smith reflected. "I'm talking about particullarly within the 60 minutes of it. We didn't execute with the opportunities we had. ... Being in that environment leaves a bad taste in your mouth that hasn't gone away."

The effectiveness of Smith's approach remains to be seen, and he may be working on borrowed time. But for now, he's concetrnating on the task at hand and instilling more discipline in his players as they try to become competitive in conference play after a few consecutive dismal seasons.

"An emotional game means more this week. No question, " he explained. "At the same time, it still comes down to playing your best, doing what's best for your team to help us win the game. That's playing through the echo of the whistle not well past it, keeping our focus on the job at hand and what I'm going to do contributing to a win versus holding us back in a loss."

Another loss this weekend likely makes his seat even hotter and draws more calls for Smith to lose his job, but it also comes with an opportunity to right the ship and start finally moving the program in the right direction.

"Year in and year out, it's going to [bring opportunity] because it means more," Smith added. "But also, where we're at in our current season and the tought times we've head the last couple [games], this is an awesome opportunity to change the tide."