Michigan State used the toughness card in the early 1990s to explain closer than expected losses to the Wolverines. They pulled one from that playbook again following a 32-23 loss to Michigan.

Michigan didn’t react well to such talk back then, tight end Tony McGee once saying the Wolverines would play the Spartans “anytime, anywhere,” including the parking lot if necessary. And they didn’t react well to it Saturday.

“I don’t know how long it’s been since we rushed for 200 yards in a game as an offense,” Michigan State quarterback Tyler O’Connor said. “Obviously, there are no moral victories, but if a d-lineman comes up you after the game and says you might not have won the game, but you guys kicked our ass … we were more physical. We were tougher.”

Which, of course, sounds like someone claiming a moral victory. But Michigan defensive end Taco Charlton tweeted no Michigan lineman said any such thing.

To their credit, the Spartans played hard, especially in the fourth quarter when the game was all but over.

“I thought in the fourth quarter certainly, we made a couple plays, with LJ [Scott] especially,” Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio said. “So it's fourth quarter, but they all count. So bottom line is how many touchdowns did we [need to] get back in it? Five seconds to go, we break the seven points. You know, we needed that to happen at the four-minute mark, which was the challenge. Get that at the four-minute mark. Get within one score at the four-minute mark.

“That didn't happen. So … they sort of hung on a little bit. Who knows what defense they're playing and what philosophy they have at that point in time?”

Essentially, it was a “hang on to a 20-point, fourth quarter lead” philosophy. They could have made it easier on themselves by converting some short third downs and keeping the ball, something that will likely be a point of emphasis in practice this week.

The bottom line, though … the Wolverines are 8-0 and control their destiny, with all goals still in front of them.

The Spartans, meanwhile, dropped their sixth straight and were trying to figure out whether Saturday’s game was a moral victory or not.

“Yeah [it was a moral victory] … but not really,” tight end Josiah Price said. “We’ve got to get a win here. I think we came out and played with a mission, we played with passion and with energy.

“It was fun playing that game. It was fun offensively moving the ball. It was fun making plays. You look at years past and who runs the ball better wins this game. We ran for 217 and they ran for (192). We ran the snot out of the ball, and that was fun.”

Michigan, meanwhile, ran for 192 yards, but seemed to play to hang on in the second half. The Wolverines were 5-for-12 on third down but again, missed some opportunities to put the game away for good on third and shorts in the second half. Still, they didn’t punt until 9:13 remained in the game.

Dantonio decided to go for two on MSU’s meaningless touchdown at the end, as well, a decision that backfired when redshirt sophomore Jabrill Peppers scooped up a fumble and returned it for two points the other way.

“We never stopped playing - never quit. Showed some resilience and toughness,” Dantonio said. “We’ve got to be able to get off the field on third down. They made plays. They're a good football team. I thought we would have to be able to make them punt in the first half, and that did not occur.

“Some things we did do and some things we didn't. And that's the end result. I'm going to keep scratching. So if there's one second on the clock, were going to go for two. At that point in time, we're probably losing the game. So, we went for two. It's unfortunate that it had to end in a big celebration for them. But, it happened.”

And sullied the moral victory just a bit.

“We gotta take it, but I think that you can feel good that you competed,” Dantonio said. “You can feel good that things went this direction. You can feel good as a coach that we got an opportunity to win this football game. We really do.

“I'm very proud of how we came out the second half … [down] 27-10. And somehow -- I'm not sure really how, because they beat the ball up enough on us -- they had 30 points until the two-point deal. We played and got back in the football game, but we’ve just got to convert opportunities.”