Michigan State’s weekend is packed, and the headliner is obvious: a trophy game in Ann Arbor.
The Spartans head to Michigan on Saturday night for the battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy, with kickoff set for 7:40 p.m. It’s the biggest item on a busy slate that also includes women’s basketball, women’s soccer, hockey, tennis and volleyball all in action.
Before football takes center stage, Michigan State men’s basketball already handled business. No.
6 MSU rolled past Toledo, 91-61, on Thursday night at the Breslin Center to move to 2-0. Four Spartans finished in double figures, led by Jasiah Jervis with 16 points.
Jordan Scott and Jeremy Fears Jr. added 12 apiece, and Coen Carr chipped in 10.
Women’s soccer delivered one of the week’s most dramatic results. No. 4 seed Michigan State beat No. 5 seed Washington, 3-2, in St.
Louis on Thursday night to advance in the Big Ten Tournament. Bella Najera scored twice, including the winner in the 96th minute, sending the Spartans into the semifinal round against Michigan on Sunday.
Hockey also gets a major test at home. No.
3 Michigan State opens a two-game series against No. 13 Boston University at Munn Ice Arena, with games Friday and Saturday.
The Terriers come in at 6-2-0.
Women’s basketball hits the road for the first time this season, traveling to Toledo for a 2 p.m. tipoff on Saturday at Savage Arena.
On the volleyball side, Michigan State fell in four sets to No. 7 Wisconsin at the UW Field House on Thursday.
Senior outside hitter Alanna Bankston powered the attack with a career-high 22 kills. Senior middle blocker Zora Hardison added 13 kills on .500 hitting, and freshman outside hitter Madi Andrews put together a first-career double-double with 12 kills and 14 digs while also leading the team with two service aces.
Women’s tennis will host its second home fall tournament this weekend, with the Michigan State Classic running Friday through Sunday.
And there was a major off-court note, too: Michigan State alums John and Becky Duffey made a $10 million commitment to FOR SPARTA, adding to their long history of giving back to the university.
In Other News...
Michigan State Just Gave Pat Fitzgerald His First Defining Win
Michigan States 15-6 win over Michigan gave Pat Fitzgerald a signature moment early in his tenure, and it came in the kind of game that can tell you a lot about a programs direction. The Spartans had to piece things together through injuries and roster challenges, but they still found enough from Tommy Carr, Brandon Tullis, Chrishon McCray and a steady special teams effort to grind out a result that felt bigger than a single rivalry game.
For Fitzgerald, the value of the victory goes beyond the scoreboard. Michigan State did not just survive a difficult afternoon, it showed the sort of toughness and structure that coaches spend months trying to build, especially when the roster is stretched thin. A win like this can become a reference point for a new era, and the Spartans now have one to point to as they keep shaping what this team is supposed to look like. [Read more 🡒]
Mark Dantonio Had The Perfect Reaction To Michigan State's Rivalry Win
Michigan States rivalry win over Michigan landed as one of those results that instantly travels beyond the box score, especially with the Spartans pulling it off as a double-digit underdog. The game had the kind of defensive edge that tends to define this matchup, and for a program still measuring itself against its biggest in-state rival, it carried the sort of weight that goes well beyond one afternoon.
Mark Dantonio noticed. The former Michigan State coach took to social media to celebrate the upset, nodding back to his famous line about the rivalry and reminding everyone how deeply these games can resonate around East Lansing. Under current coach Pat Fitzgerald, the Spartans now have a victory that fits squarely into the programs larger culture, even if the conversation around it is still very much alive. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Just Exposed A Bigger Problem Than Losing To Michigan State
Michigans 15-6 loss to Michigan State did more than flip the scoreboard in a rivalry game where the Wolverines were favored by two touchdowns. It put a spotlight on the kind of offensive unraveling that has followed Michigan through stretches of the 2026 season, with just 192 total yards, four turnovers and a ground game that was outperformed by the Spartans.
For Michigan State, the win was the cleanest possible answer to a game the Wolverines were expected to control, but the bigger takeaway for the maize-and-blue side is how many problems surfaced at once. The offense never found rhythm, the coaching decisions came under scrutiny and even special teams became part of the conversation, leaving Michigan with more to sort through than a single bad result. [Read more 🡒]