ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The run-up to this year’s in-state rivalry was rather tame by normal standards, with Michigan players saying they were over the tunnel drama that plagued the 2022 game with MSU.
As it turns out, that may have been a little fib.
Offensive lineman and team captain Trevor Keegan on Tuesday made it clear that the Wolverines, 49-0 winners this year, went into the Oct. 21 game in East Lansing with a chip on their shoulder to leave no doubt.
We came into that game hoping to make a statement for the bye week,” Keegan said. “I think it was really the thing that happened last year, the tunnel, motivated us as well. I know guys were like, ‘Don’t let it distract you,’ things like that, and ‘we’re over it.’
“No, we weren’t over it. We wanted to come there and really beat down on ‘em.”
Michigan, 8-0 and ranked No. 3 in the first College Football Playoff poll of the season, accomplished its mission. Keegan and the Wolverines jumped out to an early 14-0 lead and never let up, out-gaining the struggling Spartans 477-182 on the field while keeping them out of the end zone. It was the most lopsided result in the rivalry since 1947, when Michigan won 55-0, and first shutout since the Wolverines won 14-0 in 2000.
The comments come as accusations swirl over Michigan, which now faces a second, separate NCAA investigation into in-person scouting. The probe has largely been centered around staffer Connor Stalions, who has been suspended with pay, who has been linked to the purchase of game tickets to more than 30 games involving Big Ten teams and alleged signal stealing. Head coach Jim Harbaugh has denied any knowledge or involvement in the scheme.
But on Tuesday, the investigation took a new turn when Central Michigan University said it had opened an investigation into whether someone resembling Stalions was on its sideline for a game Sept. 1 against MSU. If it was Stalions, it would be a direct violation of NCAA Bylaw 11.6.1, in effect since 1994, prohibiting “off-campus, in-person scouting of future opponents.”
Keegan said he saw Stalions around the building from time to time but declined to say much else, and at one point was cut off by a Michigan spokesman when asked about the low-level staffer’s role within the program.
“Like coach (Harbaugh) said, people got their opinions,” Keegan said. “They’re welcome to have it. As a team, as a leader, we’re going to continue to be us like the past three years. We’re going to continue to work, continue to do what we do, and continue to work for each other, this team, and this program.”
On the field Michigan boasts a top-10 scoring offense led by a quarterback in the thick of the Heisman Trophy race averaging more than 40 points per game. The Wolverines have lopsided wins over Indiana (52-7), Minnesota (52-10) and Nebraska (45-7), all while J.J. McCarthy remains one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the country with a QB rating (199.13) and completion percentage (78.1) that ranks second in the country.
