Michigan and Michigan State will meet this weekend in Ann Arbor for their annual football rivalry game. How do the stakes shift when both teams have had their struggles?
For more on that and the Detroit Lions' quest to extend their winning streak, Michigan Public sports commentator John U. Bacon joined Morning Edition host Doug Tribou.
Football this weekend:
Michigan State at Michigan - Sat., 7:30 p.m.
Detroit Lions at Miami Dolphins - Sun., 1:00 p.m.
DT: In college football, Michigan got a conference win over Rutgers last weekend behind a stronger performance by freshman quarterback Tommy Carr. But the Wolverines are 5-3, not where they had hoped to be at this point in the season.
Michigan State, however, is in worse shape. The Spartans have lost six straight and are 0-5 against Big Ten teams. On Saturday, these two teams will meet on the field. You touched on this last week, John, but how do down years — especially when both teams are somewhat down — affect rivalry games and vice versa?
JUB: Henry Kissinger himself. How about [his] quote on this?
DT: That's where I was expecting we'd start. [Laughs]
JUB: Of course, it's the obvious one. His great line about academics is: the academic fights at Harvard are so fierce because the stakes are so low.
Here we are, Doug. I think this is going to be a more intense game, because neither team is playing for anything else at this point. And to lose this game for Michigan, of course, means you're going to hear about it for a whole year.
DT: And Michigan's rivalry with Ohio State gets the most attention. But what do you like about the energy and the long history between MSU and U of M?
JUB: Well, it's an underrated rivalry. It should be a nationally acclaimed rivalry in my opinion. A lot of great back and forth, a lot of great Michigan State teams. It's rare for both teams to be riding high at the same time. The big difference between the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry is you will never see a Buckeye at a Wolverine tailgate, or vice versa.
When you walk around Ann Arbor on Saturday, you will see almost all the tailgates are what I would call "integrated" with [Michigan State] green and [Michigan] blue, which I think is very refreshing.
And the last 58 contests... okay, Michigan has won 40, but of the 18 Michigan State victories, 11 were upsets. Nobody is better at upsetting the Wolverines — by a long shot — than the Spartans. So, Michigan fans, heads up.
DT: Who do you like to win the Paul Bunyan Trophy this year?
JUB: Who's more likely to lose it in this case? [Laughs] Michigan's not a very good team, and Michigan State is worse. And then they got injured. So I have to go with Michigan. But again, this is the classic "throw out the records" game.
DT: The Lions got a major win over the previously undefeated Minnesota Vikings last weekend. But that outcome was tempered by a serious neck injury to linebacker Jack Campbell after making a tackle. Campbell was motionless, face down on the field.
On Wednesday, though, he released a statement saying he had full movement in his lower body, but still has work to do to regain movement in his upper body. Obviously, some good news there, John, but the whole story is a reminder of how violent the game of football is that so many of us watch.
JUB: Well, exactly right. And the NFL and football in general has done a very good job of changing the protocols, the procedures to reduce the number of traumatic injuries, including concussions, in the game. And the progress there is tremendous, but it's still a violent game. And that's why many still perceive that watching the game is a guilty pleasure. And this is more proof that there's a lot of risk.
"The Dolphins are aspiring to struggle. That's kind of the reach goal for them on Sunday."John U. Bacon on the Detroit Lions' next opponent, the Miami Dolphins
DT: Well, with Campbell on their minds, the Lions will be back on the field on Sunday to face the Dolphins in Miami. The Dolphins have struggled this season. They're just 1-6. They have not been scoring a lot of points, but have also managed to give up quite a few, and that's usually not the greatest combination. [Laugh] I assume this game for the Lions falls into your category of "win the games you're supposed to win."
JUB: I think this is the whole category, in this case. The Dolphins represent that. You mentioned earlier they're struggling. Doug, the Dolphins are aspiring to struggle. That's kind of the reach goal for them on Sunday.
DT: [Laughs] That's the new bumper sticker for my car.
JUB: [Laughs] Leave me alone. I'm aspiring to struggle.
DT: [Laughs] That's right. Also, back off.
JUB: I think at that point they're going to, Doug.
DT: [Laughs] John, thanks a lot. Have a good weekend.
JUB: Thank you.
Editor's note: Some quotes in this article have been lightly edited for length and clarity. You can play the full audio of the interview near the top of this page.
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