How Getting Paul Bunyan Back Changes Larger Outlook for MSU
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One thing that's so interesting about football is how different things can be, week to week. A win can cure lots of ills, and it can feel like the sky is falling after a loss.
It felt like the sky had already fallen and landed on top of Michigan State. The Spartans entered their annual game against Michigan on a six-game losing streak and with an injury report that rivals "War and Peace." UM had plenty of its own problems, but they didn't seem quite as daunting and more fixable compared to what MSU had been dealing with.
Nothing indicated that Michigan State had any serious chance of going into Michigan Stadium and winning. MSU responded by playing its most complete game of the season, by far, in a stunning and convincing 15-6 victory. The 3-6 overall record and 1-5 mark in Big Ten play still aren't where the Spartans want to be overall, but boy, does upsetting your arch-rival on the road change some things.
Proof of Progress
This program needed something good to feel about, in the worst way. Michigan State is still almost certainly going to finish with a losing record for a fifth consecutive year, but there has been an understanding that this year is a rebuilding/foundational year.
Even with that in mind, a sort of bottoming-out season at 2-10 couldn't happen in Pat Fitzgerald's first year, either. A 2-10 finish or a 3-9 mark with a meaningless win at the end against Rutgers isn't going to inspire a lot of confidence. Beating Michigan gets the fanbase (and the donors) in East Lansing to believe in you and your finish.
Coaches get a miniature honeymoon phase again after a victory in a rivalry game, especially when a win is unexpected. That's the biggest benefit for Fitzgerald, and it's something he'll be able to ride through the end of the 2026 season and into the transfer portal window.
"I learned a long time ago, when I was a player (at Northwestern), when we were trying to turn a program around, it's about faith," Fitzgerald said. "It's about having belief without evidence, and that's what I've talked to the guys about in different ways. But that's been ingrained in my heart and in my mind since I was a player."
"Like, which comes first, the chicken or the egg? Confidence, how does it all work out? Well, you've got to have faith, and you've got to believe. I don't think that has wavered since we've gotten together. We've had some tough outcomes, we've had some tough games, we've had some calls we'd love to have back, but this is a huge catalyst."
A Big Win for Alessio
Alessio Milivojevic has been in a pressure cooker lately. That's the nature of playing quarterback at this level, but QBs only have so many chances to make big impressions in the transfer portal era. Milivojevic hadn't been playing well enough this year to make his status at QB1 for 2027 feel secure. It would've been a tough decision for Michigan State, but Milivojevic certainly doesn't want it to come to that.
Saturday night was a huge result for Milivojevic's future in East Lansing. His status was in doubt for this game with an apparent right thumb injury he suffered against Northwestern that sidelined him the next week at UCLA. Milivojevic was confirmed to be available on the game-day availability report, and he came out for warmups and the game with tape over the thumb on his throwing hand.
"'Les is one of the toughest guys I've ever coached, period," Fitzgerald said. "He's just a warrior. The way he played today, the way he managed the game...I think he'd maybe like to have one throw back the whole game. Yeah, I mean, he looked pretty darn special today."
It's tough to know just how much that injury affected Milivojevic, but he delivered in his first start against Michigan. Milivojevic threw for just 188 yards and no touchdowns, but he was turnover-free and faced a very difficult task against UM's third-ranked defense. PFF says Michigan generated 18 pressures on Milivojevic, the most he's faced all season. That's despite season-low ADOT (6.4 yards) and time-to-throw (2.38 seconds) numbers.
Pushing Milivojevic away this offseason would feel a lot more surprising now than it would a few weeks ago. That's part of the effect this game against Michigan can have. Michigan State, of course, moved away from Rocky Lombardi after 2020, despite a Paul Bunyan victory, but Milivojevic is undoubtedly the better quarterback of the two.
"It's an amazing feeling," Milivojevic said after the win. "One of the best feelings of my entire life, to be honest. Just seeing my teammates so happy, just knowing how much work that we've put in together since January, since Coach Fitz got here, and just seeing it come to life in a game like this and on a big stage like this, it's awesome."
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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