The Michigan Wolverines beat the rival Michigan State Spartans on the road by a score of 31-20 and improved to 6-2, winning their fourth straight game against little brother.

Michigan’s offense looked like it was ripped straight out of the 1960s as Bryce Underwood only passed for 86 yards and the offense rushed for 276 total yards. Both running backs Jordan Marshall and Justice Haynes rushed for over 100 yards each and both of them rushed for at least one touchdown. While Bryce Underwood arguably had his worst game statistically as he only completed 8 of 17 passes for 86 yards, two passes were dropped and four were throwaways as protection broke down which turned out to be smart plays in the end. While the offense still lacks rhythm, specifically in the passing game, the running game continues to be the catalyst for the Michigan offense.

The Wolverine defense suffocated the Spartans’ offense as they held the Spartans to just 13 points prior to a final garbage time touchdown with less than 10 seconds left in the game. Aidan Chiles completed just 14 of his 28 passes for 130 yards. While Michigan State’s offense rushed for 115 yards, a majority of those yards came in the first half as the Wolverines shut down the Spartans’ rushing offense in the second half. The Wolverines also recorded 4 sacks on the Michigan State quarterbacks, 3 of them being on Aidan Chiles. Wink Martindale also continued his trend of blitzing less as he only blitzed 11% of the time on Saturday which was a season-low.

The Michigan defense has taken injury hits as Rod Moore and Cole Sullivan are expected to miss time and not return until after the bye. However, Jimmy Rolder has begun to emerge as a star for the Wolverines on defense and if he continues to take major steps, the Wolverines will be an elite defense going forward.

The Wolverines host the Purdue Boilermakers next Saturday at the Big House. Michigan has opened as 21.5 point favorites.