Michigan State football is quickly learning about the Michigan rivalry

EAST LANSING – Just before kickoff, Tanner Miller and Jack Velling shared a quick hug and pep talk on the field.

I'm preparing to let go of a year of pent-up hostility. A familiar enemy awaits. In enemy territory with a hostile crowd roaring.

Ready for rivalries.

Although visiting Michigan State was just another game on the schedule for No. 2 Oregon and its fans, the two new Spartans couldn't shake their deep-rooted anger toward the Ducks from their years as the Oregon State Beavers.

They'll get their first taste of MSU's true rivalry on Saturday, a road game at Michigan (7:30 p.m., Big Ten Network). And Miller and Velling will not be alone in their indoctrination of what everyone in the state has known for most of their lives.

The Spartans (4-3, 2-2 Big Ten) have had 61 new players on their roster between transfers and true freshmen a year ago. They only brought back 30 players from last year's 49-0 loss to UM, and seven of them were sidelined with injuries. They have a new head coach in Jonathan Smith and eight of his top 10 assistants who have never played or coached in the last 116 meetings between MSU and the Wolverines (4-3, 2-2).

They all spent time this week delving into the rivalry's past and present with the few colleagues in the program who have experienced them.

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“I was watching from the West Coast and saw a lot of these games and the passion behind them,” first-year offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren said Tuesday. “And then listening to a lot of the former players and some of our staff that were involved, listening to them talk about it and how important it is to them, that’s pretty cool.”

“Getting the chance to be part of a big rivalry like this was really fun for me. And you notice that the energy is increasing.”

Lindgren, who played college at Idaho, is one of six assistants who followed Smith from Oregon State and had no connection to the MSU-Michigan rivalry. Defensive coordinator Joe Rossi experienced a different rivalry in Minnesota with the Wolverines, where the programs played for the Little Brown Jug three times during his tenure there.

However, two coaches on Smith's staff are well-versed in what the UM rivalry is all about: wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins and cornerbacks coach Demetrice Martin, both of whom played for the Spartans. Hawkins played for George Perles from 1988 to 1991 and has been on MSU's coaching staff since 2020, while Martin played for both Perles and Nick Saban from 1992 to 1995.

“I came in and just brought the energy and what it meant to be a 'Spartan buddy' and stuff like that,” Martin said in April. “Obviously, with coach Hawk here, we’re just showing the guys the old way we did things and kind of mixing it up with the new ways.”

Smith said Monday he's leaning on Martin and Hawkins to give him and the others a feel for how intense it can get against UM, and relying on Rossi's understanding of the Big Ten as he prepares for the trip to Michigan Stadium.

“You get it,” Smith said. “They lived this rivalry and its meaning.”

However, due to the transfer portal's ongoing impact on college football, not many MSU players have done so.

Of the 30 players who took part in last year's big loss at Spartan Stadium, five transferred to MSU in recent years, including three – running back Nate Carter, kicker Jonathan Kim and currently injured receiver Alante Brown – who made their first impression from that got rivalry. Six others were true freshmen a year ago.

“We’re taking this game like we take every single game,” Carter said Tuesday. “We understand it's a big game, we understand it's a rivalry – although our focus doesn't change, the way we approach training doesn't change. The way we approach something doesn't change.

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“We have to constantly develop. It doesn’t matter who’s out there, whether it’s Michigan or Iowa.”

Linebacker Jordan Turner, who transferred to MSU after his first five seasons at Wisconsin, grew up in Farmington Hills. Although this will be his only opportunity to experience the rivalry as a player, he has a unique perspective as he is immersed in the banter and contention between the two fan bases.

“Every year we wore either green or blue to school,” Turner said Tuesday. “People are always talking here. But I'm just happy to experience it in it for the first time. I'm going to embrace it and hopefully come out with a 'W'.”

Only a handful of high school recruits in Mark Dantonio and Mel Tucker remain who have experience in the rivalry.

Defensive tackle Maverick Hansen is in his sixth week at Michigan, having played three times. Wide receiver Montorie Foster Jr. and defensive back Angelo Grose (the only remaining Spartan to participate in the 2022 tunnel battle) have each played in the last four games, including MSU wins in 2020 and 2021 and back-to-back losses in the last two Seasons. Cal Haladay has been on the roster for four years and played for the Paul Bunyan Trophy three times, while fellow linebacker Sam Edwards and defensive end Avery Dunn each played twice and were on the team four times.

For those in the know, this week was about teaching others why “we circle it on our schedule every year,” Haladay said, and letting the newcomers know what to expect between the lines.

“We don’t have to be heroes, we don’t have to do anything special,” Haladay said Wednesday. “Just do your job and stay balanced because we know what kind of game we have coming up. It’s going to be a pretty crazy environment too and we just have to stay on track and be disciplined the whole game.”

That's exactly what Miller said he needed for the Spartans to win, which will be his only experience in this rivalry.

“I think it will be an intense game, probably a bit changeable. They will keep up, we will keep up,” he said. “And it will be a fun, fun atmosphere. …

“The stage is big. But as long as we do our thing, we will be successful.”

Contact Chris Solari: [email protected]. Follow him @chrissolari.

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Michigan State football is quickly learning about the Michigan rivalry

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