An 18-2 start doesn’t exactly get Tom Izzo to celebrate. His Spartans picked up a 43-point win over Maryland on Saturday afternoon, but he made sure not to overhype the victory, hinting that the Terrapins may not be very good.
Although he didn’t flat-out say it, it was implied by his post-game comments.
Izzo told fans to not get carried away by the win, and he made sure to ground Michigan State faithful, as well as his own players, by saying that they shouldn’t get too excited about the huge Maryland win because “the brunt of our schedule” is approaching.
Izzo tells MSU fans to "not get carried away" after this blowout win: "The brunt of our schedule is coming up. It gets tougher now."
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) January 24, 2026
If Izzo didn’t have the track record that he has, I would be the first one to call him a buzzkill. OK, maybe he’s just displaying a Hall of Fame mindset, but fans who were ready to talk trash after beating Maryland by darn near 50 were quelled by Izzo’s post-game comments.
Unfortunately, even though it would be fun to flex a 43-point Big Ten win, he’s right. The brunt of the schedule is approaching and, well, Maryland’s not very good.
The Terrapins, like Rutgers on Tuesday night, are one of the worst teams in the conference, and that was obvious from the get-go on Saturday. Unlike the Maryland game, however, Rutgers will host the Spartans and anything can happen on the road in the Big Ten.
Michigan State’s upcoming schedule is tough, but manageable
I do love that Izzo isn’t letting anyone prematurely celebrate before the toughest stretch of the schedule is in the rearview mirror. After Rutgers, Michigan State will face Michigan, then it will go on the road to take on an improved Minnesota team, then it returns home to face a really good Illinois team before going back on the road to Wisconsin.
There are four very losable games in a row, and that’s not even including the home games right after against UCLA and Ohio State. The final four games are at Purdue, at Indiana, against Rutgers, and at Michigan. That’s one heck of a brutal stretch to end the regular season.
The remaining schedule is tough (four ranked games in the final 11, but this is a winnable slate for a Michigan State team that’s on the verge of its best start in program history.