For all four quarters of the annual in-state rivalry matchup, Michigan dominated Michigan State, 49-0, and handed the Spartans their worst home loss in program history. The No. 2 Wolverines moved to 8-0 and hang on to the Paul Bunyan Trophy, while the Spartans dropped their fifth straight game.
Michigan's J.J McCarthy had a standout performance with 287 passing yards before exiting the game at the end of the third quarter. McCarthy threw a career-high four touchdowns and had zero interceptions.
Michigan State failed to get anything going offensively throughout the entire 60 minutes of play. In his second career start, Katin Houser threw an interception and a measly 101 yards.
Michigan's Colston Loveland turned heads and contributed two of the Wolverines seven touchdowns, his first multiple touchdown game. Mike Sainristil's pick-six was just one of the Wolverines' many highlights against the Spartans.
Michigan State will travel to Minnesota next weekend hungry for a win and to snap its losing skid. Interim head coach Harlon Barnett is yet to earn his first win since stepping into the role.
Alex Orji adds seventh and final touchdown, Michigan takes home the Paul Bunyan Trophy
Drive starts: MSU 33 (3:10 4th)
Michigan's Alex Orji runs for a 6-yard touchdown to push the lead to 49-0 after a successful extra point kick. Michigan State gets the ball back with eight seconds left in regulation.
Drive starts: MSU 26 (3:10 4th)
Leavitt's first down pass was intercepted.
Drive starts: UM 20 (5:20 4th)
Michigan gets the ball back and goes three-and-out.
Drive starts: MSU 22 (10:22 4th)
Michigan State's penalized for 5 yards on its first down to begin the drive. On third-and-14 freshman quarterback Sam Leavitt runs towards the first down marker and he's tackled late out of bounds for a personal foul on Michigan, resulting in an MSU first down. The drive stalls at the Michigan 26-yard line and MSU turns the ball over on downs.
Drive starts: UM 10 (0:00)
Michigan's drive starts at the end of the third quarter. The Wolverines start the fourth quarter with an 18-yard pass from Tuttle to secure the first down. Michigan's unable to move the ball into Michigan State territory and is forced to punt on fourth-and-33.
Drive starts: MSU 31 (3:45 3rd)
Michigan State's drive lasts a bit longer, but the green and white are unable to get a first down and punt it away on fourth-and-15.
Drive starts: UM 14 (5:16 3rd)
Michigan gets the ball back but follows suit and punts it away.
Drive starts: MSU 25 (6:44 3rd)
Another drive, another punt for the Spartans.
Michigan 49, Michigan State 0 (end of game)
Barner's touchdown gives Michigan 42-0 cushion
Drive starts: UM 35 (7:50 3rd)
Michigan State commits two penalties on the same play and it doesn't take long for Michigan to find its way back into the end zone. McCarthy throws his fourth touchdown pass of the night to Barner to extend Michigan's lead to 42-0. McCarthy exits the game with 287 passing yards and graduate student Jack Tuttle takes the field.
Michigan 42, Michigan State 0
Drive starts: MSU 15 (9:43 3rd)
Michigan State gets the ball back at its own 15-yard line but it continues to struggle and is forced to punt.
Sainristil's pick-six puts Wolverine's on top, 35-0
Drive starts: MSU 25 (15:00 3rd)
To open the second half, Michigan State makes its way into Michigan territory. Houser targets Mosley on fourth-and-7 but it's intercepted by Michigan's Mike Sainristil who returns it for a touchdown. The extra point is good. Michigan State's Spencer brown commits a flagrant foul on the interception play and is ejected from the game.
Michigan 35, Michigan State 0
Michigan leads rival MSU, 28-0, at halftime
Drive starts: UM 20 (1:39 2nd)
Michigan wraps up its impressive first half performance with another solid drive, but Edwards' false starts keeps the Wolverines out of the end zone and leading 28-0 at the half.
Michigan 28, Michigan State 0 (Halftime)
Drive starts: MSU 25 (2:54 2nd)
Michigan State can't seem to find its offensive rhythm and is unable to make its way into Michigan territory. The Spartans are forced to punt.
Loveland scores second touchdown, Wolverines up 28-0 before the half
Drive starts: MSU 48 (6:52 2nd)
Michigan's offense continues to shine as the Wolverines tack on their fourth touchdown before the half. McCarthy hits Barner for 7 yards and Corum continues to move the ball down the field. Edwards runs for a loss of 1 yard and McCarthy sends a 22-yard dart to Loveland for his second touchdown of the night, marking his first career multiple touchdown game.
Michigan 28, Michigan State 0 (2:54 2nd)
Drive starts: MSU 18 (7:54 2nd)
Carter runs 3 yards sandwiched by two incomplete passes by Houser. The Spartans are forced to punt but and there's a MSU penalty on the fair catch.
Drive starts: UM 21 (9:41 2nd)
Michigan's offense slows down and they're forced to punt for the first time tonight.
Drive starts: MSU 25 (10:44 2nd)
Carter runs 6 yards sandwiched by a pair of incomplete passes by Houser forcing MSU to punt.
Loveland scores Michigan's third touchdown, Wolverines lead 21-0 at start of the second quarter
Drive starts: UM 34 (0:54 1st)
Corum rushes 2 yards to start off the drive before McCarthy throws an incomplete pass on second-and-8. McCarthy finds Colston Loveland for 15 yards and another first down to wrap up the first quarter. Michigan starts at the MSU 49-yard line to begin the second quarter. Corum continues to make his way down the field with another touchdown in sight. McCarthy throws an incomplete followed by an 11-yard pass to Barner for the first down. Edwards runs for 9 yards, Corum runs for 5 yards and McCarthy is sacked by Aaron Brule for a loss of 8 yards. McCarthy targets Loveland in the endzone and throws a 22-yard pass for the touchdown. The extra point is good and Michigan leads 21-0 with 10:44 to play in the second quarter.
Michigan 21, MSU 0 (10:44 2nd)
Drive starts: MSU 25 (1:55 1st)
The green and white continue to struggle to get something going. Carter's unable to move the ball down the field and Houser throws a pair of incomplete passes. The Spartans are forced to punt.
Michigan's Roman Wilson adds another touchdown, Michigan leads 14-0
Drive starts: UM 49 (4:47 1st)
McCarthy moves the chains and finds Barner for 15 yards. Donovan Edwards is tackled for a loss and heads back to MSU's 40-yard line. McCarthy has a trio of complete passes, ending with a 25-yard pass to Wilson for another Michigan touchdown. The extra point is good.
Michigan 14, Michigan State 0 (1:55 1st)
Drive starts: MSU 25 (8:50 1st)
Michigan State's Nathan Carter runs 2 yards to start the green and white's first drive of the night. On the next play, Carter's tackled behind the line of scrimmage and he's sent back to the MSU 25-yard line. In his second career start, Katin Houser seeks out Carter for 17 yards and the first down. Houser passes short to Tre Mosley and then sends another short pass to Jalen Berger. Unfortunately for the Spartans, it was negated by Malik Carr's holding penalty, pushing MSU back to its own 34-yard line. MSU struggles to gain offensive momentum and on fourth-and-2 Nathan is stopped short of the first down, giving the ball back to the Wolverines at midfield.
Michigan 14, Michigan State 0 (1:55 1st)
Blake Corum scores first touchdown to put Michigan up, 7-0
Drive starts: UM 16 (15:00 1st)
No. 2 Michigan is on offense to start the in-state rivalry showdown. J.J. McCarthy opens Michigan's first drive of the night with a 7-yard pass to Blake Corum followed by a 10-yard pass for the first down. Corum runs for 1 yard and then he's flagged for the false start. McCarthy throws an incomplete pass followed by a dart through the air to AJ Barner for 21 yards at midfield and another first down. McCarthy keeps the momentum moving on offense and sends the ball to Cornelius Johnson for 11 yards and another first down. Corum runs for 4 yards, 2 yards and McCarthy sends a long pass to Roman Wilson for 25 yards. Corum rushes 3 yards, 4 yards and then finishes the drive off, tacking on the first touchdown of the night for the Wolverines. The extra point is good.
Michigan 7, Michigan State (8:50 1st)
Pregame
Michigan State will host No. 2 Michigan in its annual rivalry game on Saturday night at Spartan Stadium with the Paul Bunyan Trophy on the line. This weekend’s contest is the first time two rival alumni will appear as head coaches.
The Spartans are eager to send the Wolverines home with their first loss of the season and snap a four-game losing streak of their own.
MSU fell to its doom in the fourth quarter against Rutgers last week when the Scarlet Knights scored 21 points mainly off the special teams blunders.Coming off his first start, redshirt freshman quarterback Katin Houser is set to line up under center again against Michigan.
The Wolverines are chasing a national championship and are heavily favored entering the matchup. Michigan has battered each opponent this season by at least a 24-point margin. Most recently, Michigan shut down Indiana in a 52-7 victory at home.
The Wolverines are led by quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who finished with 222 passing yards and three passing touchdowns against Indiana. McCarthy had 167 passing yards and threw a touchdown last season against the Spartans.
This is the first meeting since the last season's tunnel incident following Michigan's 29-7 win at the Big House.
Follow along here for live updates from Detroit News contributor Melanie Soverinsky.
Michigan atMichigan State
▶Kickoff:7:30 p.m. Saturday, Spartan Stadium, East Lansing
▶TV/radio:NBC/950, 760
▶Line:Michigan by 24½
▶Records:No. 2 Michigan 7-0 (4-0 Big Ten); Michigan State 2-4 (0-3)
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