For just the second time all season, Michigan lost the opening coin toss on Saturday night in East Lansing. Michigan State deferred to the second half, and the Wolverines started the game with the ball.
After Semaj Morgan questionably ran the opening kickoff out of the end zone, J.J. McCarthy and the Michigan offense marched right down the field on the Michigan State defense, making a big opening statement. The 12-play, 84-yard drive lasted 6:05, and Michigan was quickly on top of its rival.
The ensuing drive went for 51 yards on five plays and resulted in a touchdown. Then, the third drive of the game went for 11 plays, 66 yards and yet another touchdown.
Jim Harbaugh's Wolverines jumped out to a commanding 21-0 lead fewer than 20 minutes into the game, and it was clear the second-ranked team had intentions of leaving no doubt regarding its primetime performance.
Michigan scored three more offensive touchdowns throughout the remainder of the game, and Mike Sainristil added a defensive score with a 72-yard pick six of Michigan State quarterback Katin Houser.
After the game, Harbaugh said his team looked like a buzzsaw in the 49-0 win.
"I thought our guys did a tremendous job of just taking it one play at a time, and they were a real buzzsaw," Harbaugh said. "Just played really great football."
Saturday's game against the Spartans was the first contest since allegations arose on Thursday alleging that Michigan has been stealing the signs of its opponents. The NCAA and Big Ten have launched investigations into the Michigan football program, but Harbaugh said the team has remained laser-focused.
"There's been attempts to diminish the team in a lot of ways," Harbaugh said. "Starting with the 'Easy schedule,' just 'Too easy a schedule, these guys aren't very good,' that kind of thing, but they just play... their focus was laser-like."
Alleging that Harbaugh and his team have been cheating during some of the best seasons in program history is certainly diminishing the team, but the Wolverines continue to dominate their opponents and prove that they're one of the best teams in the nation.
"We didn't really have any 'Rah Rah' speeches about anything like that; we were just keeping the main thing the main thing, and that's winning football games," J.J. McCarthy said.
McCarthy explained how Harbaugh discussed the matter with the team when the news broke on Thursday.
"He just let us know what his stance was on it," McCarthy said. "I think it was when it just came out, whether it was Wednesday or Thursday this week, and he was just totally up front with us, and he just told us the same thing: It's not gonna distract us."
Michigan certainly didn't let the allegations distract it on Saturday night, out-gaining its rival in yards, 477-190. With the win, the Wolverines improve to 8-0 on the season.
The second-ranked team in the country currently boasts an average of nearly a five-touchdown scoring margin in its eight games so far this season.
Allegations or not, Michigan proves week in and week out that it's a national title contender.
The Wolverines will enjoy a bye week next week before taking on Purdue in the first week of November at the Big House. The time and television information are still to be determined.
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