Let’s get this out of the way right off the rip: STOP PUSHING THE “LITTLE SISTER” THING. IT’S 2019 PEOPLE. DO BETTER, BE BETTER. It was super uncomfortable hearing the announcers joke about this term on the broadcast. Whatever players and fans think this is a good look need to reevaluate their social compass. “Little brother” is demeaning enough on its own. “Little sister” doesn’t make it lesser, it just makes it weird and misogynistic. On to Michigan football stuff.

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It’s not often that a Michigan vs. Michigan State matchup holds only bragging rights on the line. By the third week of October, both teams had already suffered multiple conference losses, all but ending their hopes of bringing home any championship hardware in 2019. For one team, the disappointing losses have sent the season into a tailspin, leaving the legacy (and employment) of their head coach in question. For the other, it has galvanized and rejuvenated the program, unlocking the potential that laid dormant all along.

Little brother just got steamrolled by a Michigan team that is playing like it has nothing left to lose. 

Shea my name, Shea my name

Michigan as a team is playing fast and free, looking like the preseason top ten program they were touted to be. But no one player has benefited from having the pressure and expectations lifted off his shoulders quite like Shea Patterson.

Patterson looked like a total fraud through the first six games, unworthy of his Heisman hopeful hype headed (quintuple-H) into 2019. He looked like the next in a growing line of Michigan QBs who regress as their careers go on. His season has taken a hard 180 since the loss to Penn State that essentially ended Michigan’s B1G title hopes. 

Patterson turned in arguably the best performance of his Michigan career Saturday, going 24-33 for 384 yards and four TDs. It was the first four TD game of his Michigan career, as well as the first time he has gone over 300 yards in a Michigan uniform. He only threw for fewer than 300 yards three times in his two-year career at Ole Miss, so Patterson can breathe easy now that he finally has that monkey off his back. Oh yeah, and he broke Tom Brady’s previous record high passing yards against MSU by damn near 100 yards (285). All in a day’s work, eh?

Not that he ever appeared overly concerned about the stats in the first place. Perhaps the most encouraging thing about Patterson’s turnaround is his body language and…well…language language:

“Just wish I had two more shots at them,” Patterson said. “I wish I could’ve started here and gotten four shots at them, but…it was a lot of fun today.”

Oh baby, me likey dat very much. The guy just had his career-defining performance, potentially reviving his pro-prospects and silencing critics who doubted that he could produce a big performance on a national stage. Yet he is so immersed in the rivalry culture that his mindset is regret over not getting to smack Sparty around again next year. I always liked this guy. You don’t have to audit this claim. I’ve been a Patterson guy since day one.

Michigan was prepared

Preparation. All coaches preach it, and everyone knows its importance. Michigan takes this to a new level, putting particular stock in being prepared for familiar foes like Michigan State. Michigan had a bye week to prepare for this game, which typically would be considered an advantage. They had an extra week to get healthy, and they got to kick back and enjoy watching MSU’s all-time meltdown against Illinois. 

The problem is, preparation hasn’t exactly been Michigan’s calling card this season, and was the biggest reason I wasn’t as confident as I should have been that Michigan would take care of business. The last time the team had a bye: prior to the Wisconsin game. We all know how that turned out. Wisconsin had the game wrapped up by halftime.

It was a different story against MSU, and the oft-criticized (not by me, of course) coaching staff deserves a good slice of the credit for having the players ready to execute. In particular, it was nice to see Michigan’s offense dominate the way it did, largely through the air.

Michigan State entered with one of the better run defenses in the country, so this game could have turned out quite differently if they had done the same old establish the run, “Michigan football” tropes of yesteryear. Instead, they chose to throw it early and often, challenging MSU’s questionable secondary and neutralizing their talented defensive line. Take this quote (for what it’s worth) from Jim Harbaugh on how OC Josh Gattis had his offense prepared. From The Athletic:

“Josh Gattis and the offensive staff really had this game plan wired,” Harbaugh said afterward. “They’d predicted what some of the adjustments were going to be in this game. And just about every one of them was right.”

Can’t really argue with those sentiments. For the first time in his Michigan career, Gattis looked like he out coached a quality opponent. This was a game script that should have leaned run-heavy, given how Michigan blew the doors off MSU in the second quarter. Yet Gattis continued to dial up Patterson until well into the fourth quarter, spreading the ball all over the field. Seven different Michigan players had at least 20 receiving yards, with Ronnie Bell’s 150 leading the way. Tru Wilson, Michigan’s third-string RB, led the team in carries with ten, and seven of those came late. 

It sounds obvious, but so many coaches fail to stick with what works over the course of four quarters. There is a false notion that “balance” is required to win a game, but this is a mental trap that can get a team in trouble and make a game harder than it needs to be. Michigan sliced and diced MSU through the air all game, despite having a talented and emerging duo of Hassan Haskins and Zach Charbonnet at their disposal. Those two combined for 13 carries. 

Michigan still undefeated

Michigan’s season died on October 19th, when they fell to 5-2 after their comeback against Penn State fell short. With nearly half the season still remaining, Michigan’s conference championship aspirations were largely extinguished. But with the death of one season comes the birth of a new one: rivalry season.

For the first time in the Harbaugh era, Michigan could focus solely on taking care of business against their rivals. The results speak for themselves, as they have now disposed of Notre Dame and Michigan State by a combined score of 89-24. This is simply a different team, physically and mentally, from the one that limped out of the gate with shaky wins against lesser opponents and an embarrassing beatdown against Wisconsin.

Michigan is playing their best football of the season in all phases, and it’s coming at a critical time. Ohio is looming, and anything less than Michigan’s best will look a lot like the record-setting curb stomp they delivered last season. 

It took a lot longer than expected, but we are finally seeing the things the Michigan coaching staff told we would see this season. Better late than never, I suppose.

2-0 feels damn good. On to the next one.

Bye Sparty 

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