Michigan vs. Michigan State: Five Keys For Both Teams
The battle for Michigan takes place tomorrow Oct. 9, 2010 at 3:30 PM ET. The winner of the game gets to show off the Paul Bunyan-Governor of Michigan Trophy for a whole 365 days. The Michigan State Spartans have held onto the trophy for the past 2 years.
Overall the Michigan Wolverines lead the series 67-30-5. However since 2005 the games have been less one sided. The Wolverines have won 3 of the 5 match ups.
This game has big implications on the Big Ten standings, as both Michigan and Michigan State come into this game 1-0 in conference in a four-way tie for first.The winner of this game may be the biggest challenger to pre-season favorite Ohio State Buckeyes.
This year both teams are ranked in the AP Top 25. The Spartans are #17 and the Wolverines trail just behind at #18.
Michigan Key No. 1: Denard Robinson
1 of 10
Denard "Shoelace" Robinson has been the flame to Michigan's fire to begin the 2010-11 football season. He has a QB rating of 179.7, has thrown for 1,008 yards, has a 69.8 CMP%, has a TD to INT ratio of 7:1 and he's only been sacked once threw five games.
But the best thing about Robinson games is his running abilities. Robinson is a absolute blur in the open field. Rich Rodriguez has finally gotten the right QB to run his spread offense. He leads the FBS in rushing yards with 905 yards.
In total, Robinson contributes 382 YPG to the Michigan offense. By himself he would rank in the Top 50 in total offense in the FBS.
The Wolverines go as far as "Shoelace" can take them and from the looks of it, they may be going far.
Michigan State Key No 1: Defense
2 of 10
Coming into Saturday's game the Spartans are only allowing 18.6 PPG. Their opponent scores on average 41.4 PPG. That's over a 20 point difference. If Michigan State wants to make sure they win the game tomorrow they have figure out some way to slow down the electric Wolverine offense.
They rank 102nd in FBS in sacks with just five sacks. Getting pressure on Denard Robinson will be critical to this game, but the defensive front line can not lose containment while they pressure Robinson. If they rush too far up field they give Robinson a lane, and Robinson will work wonders with that lane.
They rank 28th in FBS in interceptions however, if they can control Michigan's rush offense there's a chance that Robinson won't turn out to be as prolific of a passer as his stats currently show.
Michigan State's chance to win this game starts on the defensive side of the ball.
Michigan Key No. 2: Michael Shaw
3 of 10
Michigan has the 4th best rush offense in FBS, half of that is due to the abilities of Denard Robinson. But with everyone focusing their attention on Robinson, Running Back Michael Shaw could very well be the ultimate difference maker in this game.
Shaw averages 5.6 yards per carry, with a total of 245 yards on the season. Shaw has had one explosive game so far this year, which came against Massachusetts three weeks ago. In that game Shaw had 126 yards on 12 carries and three touchdowns.
Shaw will also need to be effective in the passing game. He only has 90 yards on 14 receptions this year, but with Michigan State looking to get Robinson on the ground as much as possible Michael Shaw may be left open for check down and swing passes.
Shaw is capable of putting up big time numbers and if the Spartan's defense forgets about him look for him to have a bigger game than Mr. Robinson.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Michigan State Key No. 2: Greg Jones
4 of 10
I know I already mentioned defense as a key for Michigan State, but Greg Jones by himself will also be crucial in Saturday afternoon's game.
Jones averages 8.2 tackles per game and is 4th in the Big Ten with 41 tackles on the year. Jones is the anchor of this tough Spartan defense. He very well may be given the assignment of being a spy on Denard Robinson.
Greg Jones is one of the best linebackers in the Big Ten and the FBS. He has the speed, size, and hands that are all key to being a great linebacker. He will have all three of those attributes tested by the Wolverine's offense.
If Jones is able to do what nobody else has done this season than the Spartans definitely will have a leg-up on the Wolverines this week.
Jones has forced three fumbles this year and if he can force the Michigan offense to cough up the ball a few times it could spell victory for the Spartans.
Michigan Key No. 3: The Big House
5 of 10
Michigan Stadium, a.k.a. The Big House, has a listed capacity of 109,901. I have a feeling that most of those seats will be filled Saturday. I also have a feeling that more than half the fans in attendance will be cheering for the Maize and Blue.
The Big House is one of the biggest home field advantages in all of college football. If the fans can keep the energy at a high level and the noise even higher it could cause problems and more specifically penalties for the Spartans.
Michigan has to use the fact that their home to their advantage if they can get the crowd into it early and keep them in it throughout the game it will add on to their chances of pulling out an important win.
Michigan State's starting Quarterback Kirk Cousins is a junior, so he has experienced The Big House once before as a freshmen. Can he handle it? We will find out Saturday.
Michigan State Key No. 3: Mark Dantonio
6 of 10
Mark Dantonio has been the head coach at Michigan State since 2006. In that span he is an even 2-2 against the Wolverines and currently holds a 2 game winning streak against Michigan.
Dantonio is also 2-0 against current Michigan Head Coach Rich Rodriguez. If Dantonio can keep the upper hand in this match up the Spartans should be favored to win this game.
Dantonio epitomizes this Michigan State football team. Tough, strong, fighters; Dantonio battled a heart attack earlier this season (after a big win against Notre Dame).
He wasn't on the sideline last week for the Spartans upset of the then ranked #11 Wisconsin Badgers but he was in the sky box handling his coaching duties.
It could serve as a big boost to this Spartan team if Dantonio was able to return to coaching from the sideline for this week's game against the Wolverines.
Michigan Key No. 4: Rush Defense
7 of 10
In the past two meetings, both Michigan State victories, the Spartans have outrushed the Wolverines 364-112. This year the Spartans have a potent rushing attack, led by sophomore Edwin Barker and freshmen Le'Veon Bell.
Both Running Backs average over seven yards per carry and are capable of breaking off long runs-Barker has a long of 80 yards and Bell has a long of 75 yards.
Michigan State's offense is run first and has been especially under Dantonio. The Spartans will try to shove the ball down the Wolverine's throats whenever they get the chance to.
The Wolverines haven't been known for their defense under Rich Rodriguez, instead trying to outscore their opponents. But they haven't faced a team that runs the ball as well as the Spartans do.
The best run team they faced to date was University of Connecticut, and they allowed the Huskies to rush for 138 yards in that game.
Michigan's defense better be prepared for a fight because the Spartans have a two back offense that could very well change the tide of Saturday's game.
Michigan State Key No. 4: Momentum
8 of 10
The Spartans are coming off an impressive 34-24 victory over the Wisconsin Badgers last week. Going into that game not too many were giving the Spartans a chance, especially without their coach Mark Dantonio.
However the Spartans went out and got the job done at home. They got the best of the Badgers thanks to aggressive and gusty play calling-a staple that Dantonio has hammered home to this program.
The Spartans are also 5-0 for the first time since 1999. A guy named Nick Saban was coaching the Spartans then and had them at 6-0. We all know now where Mr. Saban is and what he is doing.
Michigan State is one of the hottest teams in the country right now. If they can keep the momentum going in Ann Arbor then they may scorch the Wolverines on Saturday afternoon.
Michigan Key No. 5: Turnovers
9 of 10
Turnovers have not been a problem for the 2010-11 Michigan Wolverines. They have a total of just five turnovers so far this season.
If they can continue to hold on to the ball it gives their offense more chances to keep putting points on the board as shown by their 41.4 PPG average.
Denard Robinson has only thrown one interception coming into this weekend's game. If he is able to keep the ball out of the hands of the Spartans defense, the Wolverines could have a very big day on the scoreboard.
However the Spartans have been a bit more loose with the ball this season. They have a total of nine turnovers on the year.
Their Quaterback Kirk Cousins has thrown four interceptions, the defensive backs need to try and capitalize off any mistakes that Cousins may make.
However, nearly getting turnovers isn't going to be enough for the Wolverines. They have to make sure to convert and to convert in a big way.
Michigan State has been able to fight and claw their way back from tough situations and deficits so far this year-highlighted by their 34-31 win over Notre Dame.
Michigan State Key No. 5: Time of Possession
10 of 10
Michigan's most dangerous weapon is it's offense. The Spartans can counter that with their offense if they can keep Denard Robinson and the rest of the Wolverine's offense watching from the sideline.
In Michigan's last game against the Indiana University Hoosiers, Indiana had a time of possession of 41:47 minutes . For 68% of the game the Hoosiers offense was on the field.
Indiana gave the Wolverines a battle and eventually lost 42-35 thanks to a late touchdown by none other than Denard Robinson.
Even though the Wolverines were still able to score an outstanding 42 points in only 18:13 minutes, they will be facing a much tougher defense in Michigan State.
If Kirk Cousins can hit the open receivers down field and Edwin Barker and Le'Veon Bell can hit the holes created by their front line the Spartans could match Indiana's record of longest time of possession by any Michigan opponent.
Keeping the Michigan offense on the sideline will be a big part in the success the Spartans have against the Wolverines on Saturday.
Brandon Jefferson is a student at High Point University and a Bleacher Report Writing Intern. You can follow him on Twitter @Dotcom_2.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
