Michigan football quarterbacks coach Koy Detmer Jr. met with the media on Wednesday, and he made it clear what the Wolverines want to do against Michigan State offensively: run the ball.
“Want to beat the hell out of them. … Slobber, snot, heavy breathing. Bones cracking, bruises. That’s what this game is," according to Michigan's QB coach.
Michigan QB coach Koy Detmer on his approach to the Michigan State rivalry:
— Austin Meek (@byAustinMeek) November 4, 2026
“Want to beat the hell out of them. … Slobber, snot, heavy breathing. Bones cracking, bruises. That’s what this game is.”
Can Michigan do what it wants to against Michigan State?
It's true that just like Michigan-Ohio State, the team that tends to win the battle of rushing yards tends to the win game, although that's probably true for most football games.
If you control the line of scrimmage, you are going to win. As complicated as people try to make football, even some high-level coaches, it really is a simple game when you can block and tackle.
Michigan football has done well on the tackling, for the most part. The defense has been spectacular, outside of the 21 points, a season high, surrendered to Rutgers last week. Sometimes, you just need to get a bad hole out of the way, to use a golf reference, so hopefully, that's what happened last Saturday.
With Rod Moore expected back in the lineup this week, that should help limit the explosive plays. The bigger concern is will Michigan be able run the ball the way Detmer said they want to?
The Wolverines have yet to have a single 100-yard rusher this season. Last year against the Spartans, Justice Haynes and Jordan Marshall each went over 100 yards.
Michigan has been atrocious running the ball, especially in Big Ten play. The Wolverines are only getting 3.5 yards per attempt. They are also ninth in the league in rushing yards per game, during Big Ten games, with 132 yards per game.
However, Michigan State is worse as stopping the run than Michigan is at running it. The Spartans are allowing 4.3 yards per attempt. They are 14th in yards allowed, while ranking 17th in rushing offense.
Jordan Marshall has seen his role reduced, in part, because he doesn't seem 100 percent healthy. Savion Hiter hasn't met expectations. The biggest disappointment has been the offensive line, although at times, it has been missing both tackles. Andrew Sprague will be out again, too.
The Spartans are dealing with a crazy amount of injuries in their own right. Their top two quarterbacks and running backs were the on injury report, along with MSU's best defender.
Both teams are hobbled and it would be a great time for the Wolverines to truly establish the run for the first time this season.
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