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Game recap: Michigan brings Paul Bunyan home in 29-7 win over MSU

Anthony Broomeby:Anthony Broome•10/29/22•

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Kris Jenkins #94 of the Michigan Wolverines
(Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)

The No. 4 Michigan Wolverines moved to 8-0 on the season with a 29-7 win over the rival Michigan State Spartans on Saturday night in Ann Arbor. The Paul Bunyan Trophy comes home for the first time since 2019. It also marked the first win over MSU head coach Mel Tucker for U-M’s Jim Harbaugh.

At one point, the Spartans led 7-3, but Michigan dominated the rest of the way while shaking off some bye-week rust in the process. The Wolverines settled for too many field goals throughout the evening, but ultimately locked down and put the game away when the opportunity presented itself.

Here’s a recap of the contest in Ann Arbor.

First quarter

Michigan won the coin toss and elected to defer to the second half, putting its defense on the field first. MSU ran five 5 plays, but 4 penalties derailed their efforts to start the game. The Wolverines took over on offense, but senior wideout Cornelius Johnson fumbled on a screen pass, giving Michigan State the ball at the MSU 37-yard-line with 9:03 to go in the first quarter. The Spartans would turn the ball over on downs, giving Michigan the ball at the MSU 46-yard line with 7:01 to go in the quarter.

U-M responded with an 8-play, 41-yard drive that ended in the contest’s first points. Graduate kicker Jake Moody hit a field goal from 22 yards out to give the Wolverines a 3-0 lead at the 2:20 mark of the opening quarter.

The Spartans fired right back and took their only lead of the night on the next drive. MSU went 75 yards in six plays, thanks to a pair of grabs by wideout Keon Coleman. He found the end zone on a 26-yard pass from Payton Thorne to give MSU a 7-3 lead after the extra point with 18 seconds left in the quarter.

Second quarter

Michigan fired back on its next drive, going 80 yards in 8 plays. U-M scored on a 2-yard shovel pass from J.J. McCarthy to running back Blake Corum to take a 10-7 lead after Moody’s extra point with 11:58 left in the quarter. MSU came back on a 10-play, 68-yard drive down to Michigan’s 7-yard line, but turned the ball over on downs with 7:31 on the clock. U-M’s next drive went 86 yards in 15 plays, capped off by a 25-yard field goal from Moody with 1:08 remaining in the half to extend the lead to 13-7.

MSU was unable to get anything going before the half ended, sending the two teams to the locker room at 13-7 after two quarters.

Third quarter

Michigan started the half on offense and put together another scoring drive. The team went 57 yards in 11 plays and settled for a 39-yard field goal from Moody, his third of the night. U-M took a 16-7 lead with 9:15 to go in the third after the Moody score. The Spartans went three-and-out on their next drive, which was countered by another Michigan field goal. Moody hit his fourth of the game, extending the lead to 19-7 with 3:58 remaining in the third.

Another MSU three-and-out gave U-M the ball on the Michigan 29-yard line. The Wolverines ran five plays for 27 yards before the quarter expired, leading 19-7.

Fourth quarter

Michigan started the fourth quarter on MSU’s 36-yard line. The Wolverines would settle for Moody’s fifth field goal, a strike from 54 yards out. U-M’s lead over MSU grew to 22-7 with 14:45 left in the game. MSU went three-and-out again, then fumbled a snap that the Wolverines recovered at the MSU 8-yard line. Michigan scored two plays later on a Corum rush and extended its lead to 29-7 with 12:47 left in the game.

That would be how the game ended.

Michigan football vs. MSU box score

What’s next for Michigan

Michigan travels to Rutgers next weekend for its second night game in a row. Kickoff from Piscataway is set for 7:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network.

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