CHICAGO — Michigan State senior running back L.J. Scott felt the magnitude of the Michigan-Michigan State rivalry as soon as he got to The Big House his freshman year.
He said both the Michigan fan base and players didn’t give the Spartans any respect, firing him up and sending his dislike for U-M to the next level.
“Respect. It’s just like, we get no respect when it comes to them, so that’s pretty much why it’s important to me,” Scott said. “I learned that when I first got here as a freshman.”
When asked why he feels MSU doesn’t get any respect from Michigan, he was blunt.
“I don’t know. Probably because they’re our little sister,” Scott said.
The quip is a play off of former U-M running back Mike Hart’s little brother comments, which he made back in 2007 about the Spartans.
Michigan State currently holds the bragging rights in the rivalry, however, Scott himself didn’t play in last year’s contest.
Redshirt junior quarterback Brian Lewerke did, completing 11-of-22 passes for 94 yards and one touchdown in a monsoon. He added 61 yards and a score on the ground.
“Coming from Arizona, I didn’t fully understand [the rivalry] before I moved, but now that I’ve lived in Michigan, instantly when I got to Michigan State I knew that this game is important,” lewerke said. “It’s something that all of us care about, something all the alumni care about, and we try to play our best and come out and win it every time. You kind of learn as time goes on that the game means a lot.”
He didn’t travel to the 2015 game, broke his leg in the 2016 game and finally got the chance to play all four quarters in 2017.
This year, Lewerke wants to improve his totals and hit 3,000 yards, 25-plus touchdowns and complete 60 percent of his passes.
He had good things to say about Michigan’s defense, which shut down the MSU attack for most of last year’s game.
“They were solid,” Lewerke said. “Very physical up front, the linebackers were good. They flowed well with the ball. It takes a lot of beating cover one and blitzes to be able to beat them and we were able to do it well enough to beat them.”
This year, the game is headed back to Spartan Stadium, which is where Michigan last beat MSU in 2016.
“I expect it to be intense,” MSU senior safety Khari Willis said. “Everybody is going to be turned up and live. Spartan Nation is going to show up and show out, and we have to do the same.”
Willis, who gave the keynote speech at the Big Ten Media Days Kickoff Luncheon, grew up in Michigan, so he’s always understood the meaning behind the rivalry and its importance.
“The Michigan game is so important because of the history behind it,” Willis said. “There’s been a long battle throughout the years. They’ve gotten the best of us at times, we’ve gotten the best of them at times. The two schools really don’t like each other. It’s fun, it’s competitive.”
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