Jonathan Smith said team 'helped' Michigan defense look better in loss to Wolverines

No. 25 Michigan football came away with its fourth-consecutive victory in the rivalry with Michigan State and secured a 31-20 win at Spartan Stadium on Saturday night.

While the Wolverines were imperfect and have plenty of things to work on if they wish to play their way into the College Football Playoff this season, on the other end of the rivalry, the Spartans are in complete disarray having lost five games in a row, with many who root for the Green and White wondering if head coach Jonathan Smith should still be leading the MSU program.

When Smith spoke to reporters after the Michigan loss during his postgame press conference, he didn't go out of his way to give a whole lot of credit to the Wolverines' defense, who held MSU's offense to just over 300 total yards, generated four sacks and came away with several key stops when it seemed like momentum was shifting toward the Spartans at times.

"They've got a solid scheme, they've got some solid players. We definitely helped them to look better," Smith said when asked how much of his team's offensive struggles had to do with the Michigan defense.

Sherrone Moore Jonathan Smith — Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore shakes hands with Michigan State head coach Jonathan Smith after 31-20 win at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on Saturday, October 25, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Several minutes after that question, the MSU head coach was asked about Wolverine running back Justice Haynes and what makes him so difficult to gameplan for, as the back returned from injury and ran for 152 yards and two scores. Smith didn't elaborate much on that front either.

"Yeah, he's a solid player," said Smith. "Scheme, they've got some guys up front. I think he runs hard."

It's understandable that Smith wouldn't want to stand up at his postgame presser and praise his program's biggest rival for several minutes, but oftentimes, coaches will tip their cap to the opposition as a sign of respect and ownership that the winning team executed better than the team who came out on the losing end.

Smith is likely just frustrated in general that he hasn't been able to get the program moving in the right direction in his second year with the Spartans, which could be another reason why he didn't go into great detail regarding the questions about the Wolverines.

Michigan will next face Purdue back home at the Big House on Nov. 1 for a 7 p.m. EST kickoff, while the Spartans will travel to Minnesota to take on the Golden Gophers at 3:30 p.m. EST on the same day.

More from Michigan on SI