No. 2 Michigan travels to Michigan State for a prime-time matchup at Spartan Stadium on Saturday – and the focus needs to stay on the field this time.
The Wolverines beat the Spartans 29-7 on Oct. 29, 2022, and an ugly fight in the Michigan Stadium tunnel that resulted in the suspension of eight Michigan State players broke out afterward. That was the latest chapter in an in-state rivalry that has grown increasingly toxic on and off the field.
A look back at the tunnel fight from 2022, the fallout and why the Wolverines and Spartans need to keep it clean off the field moving forward.
What happened in Michigan State-Michigan tunnel fight?
There was pushing on the field between Michigan and Michigan State players after the Wolverines' 29-7 victory last season, and that spilled into the tunnel, which both teams share, afterward.
Several Michigan State players attacked Michigan's Ja'Den McBurrows and Gemon Green. The Detroit News captured video of the incident.
Footage of the scuffling pic.twitter.com/cipLWi5RBS
— Matt Charboneau (@mattcharboneau) October 30, 2022
Detroit Free Press reporter Chris Solari also had a first-hand account of the incident. He wrote: "I was still recording, as Itayvion 'Tank' Brown in front of me picked up the Wolverines' No. 1 — it was Ja'Den McBurrows after reviewing video later — and threw him back through the metal doors that remained open despite the U-M player hitting it after being tossed into them. After that, I watched Zion Young and Angelo Grose both connect on punches and then shove McBurrows to the ground."
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh addressed the incident afterward.
"Two of our players were assaulted," Harbaugh said. "You saw the video, the 10 on 1. Pretty bad."
Michigan-Michigan State tunnel fight aftermath
Eight Michigan State players were suspended after the fight in the tunnel. Malcolm Jones was later reinstated.
Defensive back Khary Crump was sentenced to probation for misdemeanor assault, according to MLive.com. Jacoby Windmon, Zion Young, Itayvion Brown, Brandon Wright, Angelo Grose and Justin White all were charged with one count of misdemeanor aggravated assault.
Six of those eight players are on Michigan State’s roster this season.
The Big Ten fined Michigan State $100,000 – the largest fine for an on-field incident in Big Ten history – and reprimanded Michigan for failing to adequately protect players on either team.
Will Michigan-Michigan State tone down Big Ten rivalry?
Michigan State interim coach Harlon Barnett – who replaced Mel Tucker this season — had high praise for the in-state rivalry between the Wolverines and Spartans.
"It's the best rivalry in football, in my opinion," Barnett said in his press conference Monday. "And so you're trying to tell them (the players), but sometimes they just don’t know until they play. It’s not until afterwards sometimes once they get in it do they really understand what you’ve been trying to tell them."
This rivalry intensified after former Michigan running back Mike Hart – now a running backs coach for the Wolverines – compared Michigan State to a "Little Brother" after the Wolverines rallied for a 28-24 victory at Spartan Stadium on Nov. 3, 2007.
Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio – now an associate coach for the Spartans – responded by asking if Hart had a little brother.
Michigan State defensive end William Gholston was suspended for one game after two personal fouls in the 2011 game. In 2014, Michigan linebacker Joe Bolden planted a stake on the field at Spartan Stadium, and Michigan State scored a TD with five seconds left to punctuate a 35-11 blowout. In 2018, Michigan linebacker Devin Bush was on the field when Michigan State players did their walk-through across the field. Bush didn’t move, shoving with Spartans' players ensued and Bush responded by scuffing and stomping on the Spartans' logo.
With UM vs MSU coming up this weekend, let’s revisit when Devin Bush destroyed MSU’s logo after a pregame scuffle (2018) pic.twitter.com/ELZfmZqOgc
— College Football Report (@CFBRep) October 17, 2023
There have been other incidents on both sides along the way, but it boiled over last season in the Michigan tunnel. With the prime-time spotlight on Spartan Stadium, that cannot happen again.
