Michigan-Michigan State football rivalry: History, series record, rivalry trophy

The Michigan-Michigan State football rivalry is one of the best in college football. The history, series record and rivalry trophy make it legendary.

Michigan and Michigan State presents one of the bitterest rivalries in football, in large part because the rivalry has lasted over a century.

The bitterness is also present because Michigan has been the dominant team for the majority of their rivalry, although Michigan State has had its own period of distinct success.

Before these two Michigan powerhouses face off on Saturday, here is more on one of college football’s greatest rivalries.

Michigan – Michigan State football rivalry history

The Michigan State Spartans’ first victories were in 1913 and 1915 under head coach John Macklin. Prior to 1958, 44 of the 50 games were played on Michigan’s home field. The teams began alternating home fields in 1958.

The Spartans had four consecutive victories from 1934 to 1937 under head coach Charlie Bachman. With the arrival of Fritz Crisler as Michigan’s head coach in 1938, the Michigan Wolverines then won 12 consecutive games. During the 1950s and 1960s, under head coaches Biggie Minnies and Duffy Daugherty, the Spartans had their most prolonged period of success against the Wolverines, compiling a record of 14–4–2.

The pendulum shifted back to the Wolverines under Bo Schembechler and his successors, as Michigan won 30 of 38 contests from 1970 to 2007. After Mike Hart’s statement in 2007 referring to the Spartans as the Wolverines’ “little brother”, the Spartans reasserted themselves under head coach Mark Dantonio, winning seven of eight games from 2008 to 2015. From 2016 to 2019, Michigan won three out of four, but the Spartans won the 2020 game under new head coach Mel Tucker.

Michigan – Michigan State football rivalry: First meeting

The first game in the rivalry was played in Ann Arbor on October 12, 1898, with Michigan defeating Michigan Agricultural College, 39–0. The Detroit Free Press wrote that the contest was “essentially a practice game,” as Michigan played 25 different players during the game. Charles Widman scored two touchdowns, and Leo J. Keena kicked a field goal from a place-kick, “the first time a Michigan eleven has ever scored in that fashion.”

After the 1898 shutout, Michigan sent its freshman team against Michigan Agricultural for the next three years.

Michigan – Michigan State football rivalry: Latest meeting

Last year, Michigan State took home the Paul Bunyan Trophy on Halloween night with a 27-24 final score. Spartans quarterback Rocky Lombardi completed 17-of-32 passes for 323 yards and three touchdowns.

Ricky White was the primary recipient of those catches, nabbing eight of them for 196 yards and a touchdown. Michigan kept it close, with Wolverines quarterback Joe Milton III passing for 300 yards, completing 32-of-51 passes.

Michigan State took a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, and although Michigan’s Hassan Haskins ran for a late touchdown, it wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit.

Michigan – Michigan State football rivalry trophy

In 1953, the “Paul Bunyan – Governor of Michigan Trophy”, or simply the Paul Bunyan Trophy, was introduced into the rivalry. It is a 4-foot tall wooden statue of Paul Bunyan, the giant lumberjack of American folklore, mounted on a five-foot base. It reflects Michigan’s history as a major lumber-producing state. The trophy was first presented by Michigan Governor G. Mennen Williams to commemorate Michigan State’s first year elevated to football competition in the Big Ten Conference.

Prior to awarding the first trophy win in 1953, Michigan enjoyed an overwhelming 33-9-3 non-trophy series advantage, leading athletic director and former head coach Fritz Crisler’s plan to reportedly refuse the trophy if Michigan had won the game.

Michigan – Michigan State football rivalry: Total meetings

Michigan and Michigan State have met a total of 113 times since 1898, which is over a 123-year period as of 2021.

Michigan – Michigan State football rivalry: All-Time series record

Michigan leads the series with an overall record of 71–37–5, though the series has seen several ebbs and flows during which one team or the other has experienced periods of dominance. In the earliest years of the rivalry from 1898 to 1933, Michigan was the dominant program with a record of 23–2–3.

Michigan – Michigan State football rivalry: Longest win streak

The Michigan Wolverines enjoy the longest win streak between the two teams, dominating their Michigan rival every single meeting from 1916 to 1929.

As the teams met every year in Ann Arbor at that time, the Wolverines won for 14 consecutive seasons before their 1930 and 1931 games resulted in ties. Michigan went on to win in 1932 and 1933, so technically, they did not lose to Michigan State for a period of 18 years.

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