Ricky White wasn’t the first, and he won’t be the last.
But who’s next? That’s what we’re all waiting to find out Saturday, when the Michigan-Michigan State football rivalry adds another chapter in East Lansing. It’s the 114th meeting in this series, the 69th time the Paul Bunyan Trophy will be awarded to the winner, and the first time since 1964 that both teams will enter the game sporting a top-10 national ranking.
And if we’ve learned anything about what happens in this red-letter game — especially over the last quarter-century or so — it’s that Saturday’s clash will be remembered not just for how it’s decided, but by whom. Because this rivalry has a knack for helping star players become campus legends and occasionally turns anonymous college athletes into household names. (Sometimes, it even turns unsuspecting students into viral memes.)
“I told the players this morning, and I've told them this before,” Michigan State coach Mel Tucker said Monday, “when you have rivalry games like this, ultimately your legacy and your reputation … really a lot of it is formed by how you play and how you coach in these games. That’s the reality of the situation, which is a good thing. Because not everybody has these opportunities.”
And when opportunity knocks, there’s no telling who might answer.
Take last year’s upset in Ann Arbor, when the Spartans stunned the Wolverines, 27-24, a week after a turnover-filled debut for Tucker as Michigan State’s head coach. They did it by airing it out, as quarterback Rocky Lombardi riddled Michigan’s suspect secondary with deep shots. White, a true freshman, hauled in a 30-yard touchdown pass to open the scoring and finished his afternoon with eight catches for 196 yards.
And when I asked Michigan cornerback Vincent Gray on Tuesday night if he even knew who White was before that game, the senior — burned a few times in that 2020 loss — shook his head.
"I didn’t know who he was, no," Gray said, while acknowledging that won’t happen again. “I feel like we’ll be prepared for anybody they match us up against. … What happened, happened. We’ll never look past them again.”
Brighter spotlight
But that’s exactly what can happen in a rivalry like this, where the perceived slights often lead to glaring oversights and, as former Michigan captain Carlo Kemp explained prior to Michigan's win in 2019, “Anything that happens in this game gets written down. And nothing gets forgotten.”
Like Mike Hart’s infamous “little brother” dig, or Eddie Brown tripping Desmond Howard in the end zone. Like Spartan Bob’s clockwork or Joe Bolden’s motivational (mis)stake.
And since there’s more at stake in this rivalry renewal than there has been in years, the stage is set for an even brighter spotlight Saturday, as ESPN’s "College GameDay" brings its traveling roadshow to the Michigan-Michigan State rivalry for the fourth time.
The first trip was in 1997, when Charles Woodson’s Heisman Trophy campaign got its first big push in a 23-7 win over the Spartans thanks to a pair of game-changing interceptions, including a leaping, one-handed sideline grab that Woodson later credited to divine intervention.
The second "GameDay" appearance was in 1999, when another clash of unbeatens lived up to the hype and Michigan State won it, 34-31, thanks to a 400-yard passing day from Bill Burke and a record-shattering performance by receiver Plaxico Burress, who torched Michigan's secondary for 10 catches and a school-record 255 yards.
The last "GameDay" visit came six years ago, when Michigan’s fumbled punt snap with the game all but decided led to Jalen Watts-Jackson’s unbelievable touchdown return to win it as time expired. Watts-Jackson, who suffered a dislocated hip on the "Trouble with the Snap" play, later admitted, “It’s crazy that 10 seconds take you from just being on a team … to people tweeting you and text messaging you, saying, ‘You’re a legend, you’re a hero.’”
Faces in the crowd
So who'll be the hero Saturday?
There are the obvious guesses, of course, and they start in the backfield, which is where this game often hinges. Michigan leans heavily on its tailback tandem of Blake Corum and Hassan Haskins, while Michigan State’s Kenneth Walker III ranks No. 2 nationally in rushing and could bolster his Heisman Trophy candidacy with a big day Saturday — something we’ve seen plenty of from running backs in this series.
Chris Perry’s huge day against the Spartans in 2003 — a school-record 51 carries for 219 yards in a 27-20 win — helped punch his ticket to New York as a Heisman finalist that season. Michigan State’s Javon Ringer (2008) and Jeremy Langford (2014) both had monster days as well.
“It’s definitely important to keep Kenneth Walker contained,” said Michigan linebacker Josh Ross, a fifth-year senior co-captain. “That’s a guy that can make big plays and can make you pay if you’re not in the right spots on defense.”
Or maybe this is the week that Jim Harbaugh’s faith in starting quarterback Cade McNamara pays off in a big rivalry win. Michigan fans keep clamoring for freshman J.J. McCarthy, but McNamara remains the No. 1 guy for the sixth-ranked Wolverines. And the No. 1 question mark heading into this game against No. 8 Michigan State, according to ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit.
“Because he’s gonna have to take care of the football the way he has all year, but he’s also gonna have to make some plays,” Herbstreit said. “I think he’s capable of doing it, but he’s gonna have to make some plays, especially early downs. Michigan State’s gonna be like, ‘You know what? Make that kid McNamara, make him beat us.’ … So, can he make the throws to win the game for Michigan? I think that will be the whole story of the game.”
Will it? Michigan State’s Payton Thorne might have something to say about that. Because it’s the explosive ability of the Spartans’ offense — nation-best seven plays of 60 yards or more — that has helped carry them to this 7-0 start. A handful of those were passes from Thorne to his top two receivers, Jayden Reed and Jalen Nailor, either of whom is capable of the kind of day White enjoyed a year ago.
Then again, maybe it’ll be a defensive star that makes the plays to win this one, the way Woodson did nearly 25 years ago. Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson has been dominant all season — “He’s an NFL guy, I’m not gonna sugarcoat it,” MSU tight end Connor Heyward said — while safeties Dax Hill (Michigan) and Xavier Henderson (MSU) figure to be in the crosshairs as well.
Yet while the list of names is probably as long as the enmity is deep, “at the end of the day, it is nameless, faceless opponents, regardless of who we play,” Ross insisted, repeating a season-long mantra for the Wolverines. “That’s how we view it. … But it is Michigan State week.”
And history tells us this is the week that one of those faces in the crowd makes a name for himself.
