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Paul Bunyan Trophy — Looking Back – 2011

Looking Back is a Special Feature by Jeff Cummins

The fourth installment of the series looking back at the football rivalry between Michigan and Michigan State takes us back to 2011. After three years of Rich Rodriguez, the football gods (and Dave Brandon) rescued the maize and blue from the defensive chaos that existed throughout the Rodriguez regime. Brady Hoke was named the new coach, and his team tore through the first six games on its schedule, highlighted by a thrilling comeback victory over Notre Dame. Suddenly, Michigan fans and alumni were looking at the football world through maize and blue shades!

Unfortunately, every party ends on a sober note, eventually. Hoke had long served as an assistant under both Gary Moeller and Lloyd Carr, and he was well acquainted with the nuances of the Paul Bunyan rivalry. One of the quirks of the series is that first-year coaches are often given a rude introduction to the game.

Hoke appeared to have the Wolverines ready to face Michigan State, but Spartan coach Mark Dantonio was obsessed with beating Michigan. Adding another challenge, this game would be played at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, a venue with a dubious history in the series.

Wearing throwback alternate uniforms, the Wolverines struck first when Denard Robinson scored on a 15-yard run. Michigan got off to a good start, but Hoke sensed a serious threat to his team’s perfect record.

By 2011, many teams preferred to use complicated passing schemes, but the Paul Bunyan rivalry has always been decided by fundamental execution of no-nonsense power football. On this day, Michigan State seized the moment by committing to a hard-nosed running game, gaining 213 yards on 39 carries. After repeatedly probing the Michigan defense, Edwin Baker rammed the ball over the goal line to tie the score in the first quarter. Baker’s touchdown enabled the Spartans to take control of the game, and it also opened up the Michigan secondary, allowing Kirk Cousins to connect with Keshawn Martin for a pair of touchdown passes in the third quarter. Michigan closed the gap when Robinson connected with Roy Roundtree for a 34-yard scoring pass, but that was as close the Wolverines got. Michigan State went on to win, 28-14, for the Spartans’ fourth consecutive victory in the rivalry.

Michigan rebounded from the loss to finish the season with an 11-2 record, topping Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl. The victory restored Michigan’s place in the national college football discussion. Unfortunately, the next step wouldn’t be so easy.

Thanks to ESPN, YouTube, and YouTube poster MSUAndyHRCMB for the accompanying highlight video of the game. As always, we own nothing and this blog postis provided strictly for the enjoyment of readers.

About Jeff Cummins

Jeff Cummins has written about football since 1998, including nine years with The Record of Hackensack, N.J. He frequently contributes feature stories to Touchdown Illustrated, an insert in the national college football game program, published by University Sports Publications, and he has also written the official pregame stories for the game programs of the Rose Bowl, the Cotton Bowl, the Sugar Bowl, the Gator Bowl, and the BCS National Championship game. He has written the preview story for the official program for the NHL Winter Classic at MIchigan Stadium, and numerous college basketball feature stories for College Hoops Illustrated, another game program insert published by University Sports Publications. In addition, he has written stories about theater, music, physical therapy, and newsletter marketing. He’s an avid Michigan football fan and long-time New York Jets season ticket holder, and he can be reached at jeffcummins@optonline.net.