October 30, 2013 at 1:00 am
Michigan State's Mark Dantonio rekindles burning rivalry with Michigan
East Lansing — Mark
Dantonio has always made Michigan State’s game against Michigan a big deal.
He did so when he
took over in 2007, installing a clock that counted down the days, hours and
minutes until kickoff, he did so when he announced how the game would always
mean something to Michigan State, even after a tough loss in his first
season.
But the man who has
been around rivalries with Michigan for the better part of the last 18 years —
first as an assistant at Michigan State under Nick Saban, then as the defensive
coordinator at Ohio State and now as the Spartans’ head coach — understands it
can truly only be classified as a rivalry if it is competitive.
And that’s what he
has brought to this series, winning four straight from 2008-2011 before the
streak ended with a 12-10 loss last year in Ann Arbor.
“I think for it
truly to be a rivalry, it cannot be one-sided,” Dantonio said Tuesday as his
team prepared to host the Wolverines Saturday. “I mean, it can still be a
rivalry, I guess, but I think it makes ... when it’s much more competitive,
obviously things take on a whole new meaning. (Otherwise) it’s just words. If
you can’t back up the words, it’s just empty words.”
Michigan State
certainly has made things competitive since Dantonio arrived. Before he took
over, the Spartans had lost five straight and had just two wins in the previous
11 years.
But things have
flipped since 2008, though some still wonder how Michigan State has been able to
do it with such a perceived gap in talent. That, however, isn’t the way these
Spartans see things.
“I think if you ask
the Michigan players that have played us the last four, five, six years they
wouldn’t even know what gap you’re talking
about, and
I quite frankly don’t, either,” senior linebacker Max Bullough said. “We’re
Michigan State, we’ve got good football players here, we always have. We don’t
take a back seat to anybody, Michigan or anything.
about, and
I quite frankly don’t, either,” senior linebacker Max Bullough said. “We’re
Michigan State, we’ve got good football players here, we always have. We don’t
take a back seat to anybody, Michigan or anything.
“We can play with
the best. We’ve always had as good a talent as you can have.”
And they’ve parlayed
that talent into one of the best, if not the best, defense in the nation that
has led the Spartans to a 7-1 record, 4-0 in the Big Ten.
They’ve been able to
build consistency that didn’t exist before Dantonio’s arrival. Evidence to that
are six straight bowl appearances that will reach seven after this season and
back-to-back 11-win seasons in 2010 and 2011.
Doing that with
Michigan right down t he road is just part of the deal.
“We’ve got great
programs throughout the Midwest that have been around for a long time,” Dantonio
said. “I think we compete with the University of Michigan
every single day, every single week, whether it’s on recruiting, whether it’s
fundraising, a lot of different things.”
of Michigan
every single day, every single week, whether it’s on recruiting, whether it’s
fundraising, a lot of different things.”
Much of that
competition is magnified this week as the rivals meet on the football field in
one of the more intense games each team will play all season.
It’s enough that
Dantonio did his best to limit what his players might say heading into the game,
brining just the team’s captains to the weekly news conference. However, there
was no limit for the coach. When asked if he respected Michigan coach Brady
Hoke, he got straight to the point.
“Yeah, that’s
accurate,” he said. “But I will say this, so you guys can print all this: Just
because you like somebody in the family doesn’t mean you like the whole family.
But I have a great
deal of respect
for Brady and his coaching abilities. Very close with his brother back in the
day. Good man.”
of respect
for Brady and his coaching abilities. Very close with his brother back in the
day. Good man.”
That’s about as
touchy-feely as you’ll get this week.
Senior defensive
back Darqueze Dennard addressed the media on Tuesday and he made a point to
never say the word, “Michigan.”
“Yeah, that’s a bad
word,” he said. “I’m going to stay away from that. … I don’t want to give them
acknowledgment. … It is what it is.”
For senior offensive
lineman Blake Treadwell, whose first career start came as a true freshman
against Michigan, there is no comparison to winning and losing to the
Wolverines.
“Probably one of the
worst feelings I’ve felt,” he said about last season’s loss. “You know, playing
Michigan, that’s one of the first times we’ve lost, me being here, and I’ll tell
you what, the locker room and stuff I’ll never forget. I can’t explain the
feeling.”
That feeling has been
fostered by Dantonio. Playing and beating Michigan has always been a big deal to
him, and that will likely never change.
His players have
simply become an extension of that approach.
“I think if you come
to a school like Michigan State and you don’t admit that Michigan is our
rivalry, if you don’t emphasize it or you don’t point to it and obviously say we
want to win that game maybe a little bit more than all the others, then you’re
lying to yourself and you’re lying to your team,” Bullough said. “I agree with
everything Coach has said and done. It makes us excited because that’s how we
feel, and everyone knows that. Everyone knows that we’re excited to play this
game, and so are they.”
And as Dantonio said,
he’ll never shy away from it. To him, it’s about more than just him. Beating a
rival that you may dislike but respect at the same time is important to the
entire Michigan State community.
“I have a great deal
of respect for who they are and the game, a great deal of respect for that, and
I think that everybody should understand that,” he said. “But at the same time,
I’m a competitor, too, just like our players are, so there are times when I need
to stand up and be accountable for who I am and the position I hold because I
represent a lot of people. A lot of people have feelings towards this game. I
think that’s important to recognize, because that’s a part of it, too.”
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From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20131030/SPORTS0202/310300019#ixzz2jEqLoHyD
