You know something went down big if I'm burning on MSU at 12:30am as a UM fan.
I didn't see the game via my antenna, but I wanted to see what highlights they would show on the local TV sports news, assuming it was heading to overtime according to the ESPN/ABC ticker during the Stanford/Washington game. Then, since I am rarely awake at 11:30, I decided to keep it on channel 25 for the start of "SNL" and when they came back from the commercial break, instead of "one last look at our seven day forecast" they broke the news MSU won on a Hail Mary. Of course, no highlight, so I had to wait until midnight after the ABC game of the week and see it on channel 12.
So what's going on? I guess I'm not shocked. At all. MSU is good. A lot of people knew this game was coming soon and were dreading it. Wisconsin this, Wisconsin that. Yeah, I get it, they are ranked in the Top 10. But they get smoked every year by the SEC. DEFENSE WINS! All week long on The Huge Show, callers and anyone else talking about the MSU/Wisconsin game were not only expecting a loss, they were just hoping to keep it within 3 touchdowns. I don't get it. Great defense, combined with two very good running backs, a senior QB who is supposed to have a great year, a home game under the lights at 8pm which means the fans have extra time to get "lubed up" creates an easy atmosphere for a win. Even my cousin who is an MSU diehard couldn't even enjoy last Saturday's UM win because he knew Wisconsin was coming to town. I don't get it. Oh, they crushed Nebraska. Big deal. Even Stack already had Wisconsin's name etched on the Big Ten championship trophy.
I would have to think this game may be better than last year's Notre Dame finish. I realize both games took a "Hail Mary," but tonights was literally a Hail Mary to win. I would have liked to seen the game on TV because while the outcome was delayed to review the play, the crowd had to have been getting the information via text or voice from friends watching the game at home on TV telling them it's a TOUCHDOWN before the referees made the offical announcement. So the crowd had to have been rocking about 10 seconds before the guy in the white hat turned his mic back on.
I also think the UM/MSU rivalry is revved back up. It's definately a big game for both schools, but I think bigger for MSU. UM never wants to lose to MSU, but always expects to win. UM fan always expects to win (except the last 4 years) but I don't think MSU fan always expects to win. It's like the 8th grade team v the 7th grade team. The 8th grade team never wants to lose to the 7th grade team, but it's not the game they care the MOST about. The game may get close some years, but the 8th grade always wins. They are more concerned about beating another schools 8th grade team. But, the 7th grade team puts everything they've got into beating the 8th grade team. So if the 7th grade team wins, it makes their season. That is how I look at UM/MSU football. But that has changed. UM Fan is tired of losing to MSU and it matters more now. I don't think the UM/MSU game is what the UM/ND or UM/OSU game is. To UM Fan, if ND or OSU lose on a Saturday, it's a good weekend. We want to beat ND and OSU 50-0 and ND/OSU lose every game. If MSU loses, it's not the same feeling. It's okay if MSU goes 11-1...as long as the one loss was against UM. You always want to be the best college football team in the state, but as a UM fan, I hate losing to ND or OSU more. But I think that is changing for all UM Fan Nation. UM is going to start caring a lot more and putting the game in a new perspective. That doesn't mean MSU needs to get nervous, it just means UM's attitude has been adjusted.
Stack, what, no tickets for the game tonight?
1 comment:
In no particular order:
-I had tickets but sold them weeks ago for various reasons, largely financial.
-I don't think the crowd felt confident about the call until the refs announced it. I certainly thought it was a TD, but it was close enough that, especially in that state of excitement, you could believe the refs would make the wrong call.
-MSU has had a lot of painful losses to the Badgers. Because of their style of play, Wisconsin is usually one of the Big Ten's most fundamentally sound and consistent teams. And they have a gigantic offensive line. When you add Russel Wilson to that mix, who even in a loss seemed to be about as good as advertised, I certainly thought the Badgers were the real deal. By that I mean they could beat Alabama or LSU. MSU can be good, but they've been inconsistent, sometimes wildly so. Even in a favorable situation I don't think a lot of people expected them to win, or at least that's the impression that I got from non-partisan fans around here.
-I think UM fans think they think the way you describe, but as a lifelong MSU fan I can tell you UM fan's actions don't match up with that mindset. From your example, the 8th grade team doesn't have to remind the 7th grade team about who is more successful. Michigan fans, as a group, have an almost pathological need to remind everyone how good they are, and especially to put down the Spartans. Maybe it has something to do with so many hardcore UM fans having no connection to the university.
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