Michigan beats Michigan State, Paul Bunyan stays in Ann Arbor

ANN ARBOR – The Michigan Wolverines moved to 5-3 on the season with a 24-17 win over the in-state rival Michigan State Spartans on Saturday night, snapping a two-game losing streak and winning their third straight in the series over MSU.

Senior quarterback Davis Warren got the start for Michigan and played a clean game, while the defense did just enough to keep the Paul Bunyan Trophy back in Ann Arbor.

Here is the blow-by-blow recap from the night’s events at the Big House.

First quarter

Michigan won the opening coin toss but deferred its choice to the second half, opting to start the game on defense. The Spartans got rolling early with a 14-play, 68-play drive that ended in a missed 25-yard field goal from Jonathan Kim after a delay of game penalty on fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line. The drive took more than 8 minutes off the clock, and Michigan would take over on its 20-yard line with 6:52 to go in the quarter. The Wolverine offense gained a yard in three plays and was forced to punt back to the Spartans, who took over at their 38-yard line with 5:23 to go.

MSU’s offense again had success on its following drive, going 62 yards in nine plays, including a 34-yard conversion on the ground on third-and-9, to get on the board first. A two-yard rush from Spartan running back Nate Carter on fourth-and-1 followed by an extra point put MSU up 7-0 with 10 seconds left in the quarter. At the time of the score, MSU had run 22 plays for 135 total yards compared to Michigan’s 1 yard of offense.

Michigan’s next drive saw it pick up its lone first down of the quarter on a 14-yard pass from Warren to tight end Colston Loveland down to their 39-yard line before time expired.

Michigan State 7, Michigan 0

Second quarter

Michigan’s drive would only pick up another two yards after the first down, so U-M punted back to the Spartans down to their 10-yard line with 12:46 to go in the half. The Wolverine defense stepped up, allowing only nine yards on the possession and forcing the first MSU punt of the game, fair caught at the Michigan 30-yard line with 9:12 remaining. U-M’s offense would go 20 yards in six plays, but punt back to the Spartans down to the 15-yard line with 5:17 left on the clock.

The Michigan defense stood tall again, forcing its second 3-and-out of the night and another punt from the Spartans down to the Wolverine 36-yard line. What followed was U-M’s best offensive drive of the half, going 64 yards in 10 plays capped off by a 10-yard pass from Warren to tight end Colston Loveland. The extra point snap was botched, keeping the score 7-6 in favor of the Spartans with 29 seconds left.

On the second play of MSU’s ensuing drive, QB Aidan Chiles was sacked by Michigan EDGE Josaiah Stewart and fumbled the ball away, recovered by defensive tackle Kenneth Grant at the Spartan 34-yard line. Michigan wound up kicking a 37-yard field goal by Dominic Zvada, which was good. MSU kneeled the ball to end the half with the Wolverines out in front.

Michigan 9, Michigan State 7

Third quarter

Michgian started on offense and emptied its bag of tricks on its opening possession. A designed 29-yard run from QB Alex Orji, a flea-flicker completion from Warren to junior WR Tyler Morris for 23 yards, a Semaj Morgan wildcat run for 8 yards and an Orji 2-yard touchdown run helped U-M push its lead to 16-7 after the extra point (9:49 remaining). The drive went 75 yards in 11 plays.

MSU started its next drive on its 5-yard line after a snafu on the kick return where one player called for a fair catch and another received it. The U-M defense bent, but did not break on a 10-play, 67-yard drive that saw Grant stuff a third-and-1 run. The Spartans made a 46-yard field goal to narrow the deficit to 16-10 in favor of Michigan. MSU attempted an onside kick, but was offsides, giving the ball to the Wolverine offense at the Spartan 47-yard line with 3:45 left on the clock. U-M squandered the opportunity, though, going 3-and-out and punting it back down to the 13-yard line with 2:04 to go.

Penalties would set the Spartans back on their next drive, forcing a 3-and-out and punting back to Michigan down to the Wolverines’ 40-yard line with 26 seconds left. The quarter would end with U-M facing a second-and-7 from the 43.

Michigan 16, Michigan State 10

Fourth quarter

A targeting review was upheld between quarters, ejecting MSU linebacker Jordan Turner and giving the Wolverines the ball at the Spartan 42-yard line. Michigan took advantage, finishing off its 5-play, 60-yard drive with a 23-yard trick play on a RB pass from Donovan Edwards to Loveland, his second touchdown of the night. After the two-point conversion attempt was good, the Wolverines pushed their lead to 24-10 with 13:20 to go.

MSU counterpunched, though. A 13-play, 75-yard drive was capped off by a 20-yard pass on third-and-12 from Chiles to freshman wideout Nick Marsh for a touchdown, narrowing the game to a one-score deficit at 24-17 with 6:12 to go. Michigan would go 3-and-out on its next drive before Doman shanked a punt 24 yards, giving the Spartans the ball back at midfield with 4:34 to go.

MSU would get all the way down to the Michigan 16-yard line and face a fourth-and-5, but turned the ball over on downs after a pass was broken up in the end zone. The Wolverines would run out the clock with Orji at quarterback, preserving the victory and keeping the Paul Bunyan Trophy in Ann Arbor.

FINAL: Michigan 24, Michigan State 17

Final Michigan vs. Michigan State box score