Michigan State football's rivalry game usually main event. This year, it's an afterthought.
EAST LANSING — In the days leading up to Michigan State football’s biggest moment in a turmoil-filled season, the most talked-about topics have had nothing to do with Saturday’s game.
Urban Meyer and allegations that Michigan improperly scouted opponents ring any bells?
It’s understandable. The last thing Spartan fans want to keep talking about is Mel Tucker. Or the limbo which he left the program in for the past month, two games into the season. Or their four-game losing streak since his undoing. Or the recruits who have begun to decommit since.
Yet somewhat quietly amid the chaos Wednesday came a glimmer of optimism. Keshawn Williams, an off-the-radar but fast-rising recruit from Tennessee, committed to MSU. Site unseen. Without knowing who he will be playing for if he signs a letter of intent.
It might not be a splashy five-star prospect, but Williams — who talked about his relationship with interim coach Harlon Barnett — looks and sounds like the type of prospect Barnett and Mark Dantonio built the program with in the late 2000s and 2010s. And it shows that, even with so much uncertainty, the upgrades to the football facilities and the program itself remain a draw.
Whether high-end recruits follow, though, largely will be determined by what happens after Saturday’s game against No. 2 U-M. And that 7:30 kickoff in the first rivalry night game in Spartan Stadium history clearly is MSU’s high point for the season.
SHAWN WINDSOR: Never forget how quickly Michigan-Michigan State football rivalry can change
After enduring a fatiguing month of Tucker’s suspension and eventual firing, followed by the fallout from back-to-back fourth-quarter road collapses at Iowa and last week at Rutgers, the Spartans needed something to get them emotionally grounded. And there’s nothing better for that than facing an unbeaten Wolverines team seeking a third-straight Big Ten title and College Football Playoff berth, a second straight win over MSU and redemption from last year’s tunnel fight after the game — and now dealing with their own in-season scandal.
“It would make our (season),” sophomore cornerback Dillon Tatum said Tuesday. “I mean, this would be the start of it. Losing (four) games in a row, we need to win something. This would be the start of it. We feel we can go 6-0 these last six games.”
But win or lose, close game or blowout, everything after this game for the Spartans will be about the future.
Meyer rumors aside, as his situation as a free agent/broadcaster is as much an anomaly as MSU’s job being open since September, most currently employed coaches won’t begin to entertain future opportunities until the calendar flips to next month and the regular season approaches its end.
And that’s just the collegiate candidates, such as Duke’s Mike Elko, Kansas’ Lance Leipold, Washington State's Jake Dickert, Oregon's Jonathan Smith, Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline or any of the other names already bandied about as if they have interviews in place. Should athletic director Alan Haller look toward potential candidates currently in the pros, their availability would push closer toward the end of the NFL season.
In other words, despite remaining games with No. 2 Ohio State and No. 6 Penn State, the month of November will be become more about Haller’s search and the start of Tom Izzo’s highly anticipated basketball season. The Spartans’ last five football games will be almost as much of an afterthought as their bowl hopes.
Unless they somehow beat Michigan to revive a postseason hope and some buzz for the last month. Even then, MSU still would need three more wins to improbably become bowl eligible. A seemingly remote possibility with two more top-10 opponents, road trips to Minnesota next week and Indiana on Nov. 18 and Nebraska on Nov. 4 at home.
As much as Barnett’s job is to get his first win since taking over the program on Sept. 10, his task moving forward is to keep Williams and the other nine currently committed high school recruits, including four-star River Rouge wide receiver Nick Marsh, in the fold going into the early signing period that runs from Dec. 20-22.
Like Tatum saying MSU will beat U-M this week, it’s a task that’s easier said than done.
CARLOS MONARREZ: Michigan, MSU coaches show lack of preparation a year after ugly tunnel incident
“Just like that. We against the world mentality,” Tatum said. “Really it's like, y'all can doubt us all you want. But we're gonna come out there and give it our best shot. Really, this is THE game, THE game. And I said earlier, it's important, it matters, and it matters the freakin' most. So we're gonna go out there and ball, I believe.
“And I believe we're gonna win this football game.”
Even though the biggest victory for MSU would be keeping things together enough for the next coaching staff to position the program for the future.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter. Subscribe to the "Spartan Speak" podcast for new episodes weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at freep.com/podcasts.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football's game vs. Michigan an appetizer to wild 2023
