Is Michigan football fueled by the tunnel fight and more?

Last fall, after Michigan football defeated Michigan State by 22 points at the Big House in Ann Arbor, the infamous tunnel fight broke out, where a few Wolverines were attacked by groups of MSU players. This weekend, nearly a year after last fall’s fight, Michigan and Michigan State are slated to face off once again — are the Wolverines using last year’s game as fuel for Saturday? Yesterday, team captain and all-star cornerback Mike Sainristil explained.

Is Michigan football fueled by the tunnel fight against Michigan State?

Mike Sainristil has seen his ups and downs with Michigan football — so far, he is 2-2 against Michigan State, suffering heart-breaking losses in both 2020 and 2021. Heading into this weekend’s game, Sainristil will get his final shot at leaving his mark on the Michigan-MSU rivalry, and while events of the past are not a priority for the Maize and Blue right now, he says that the Wolverines remember everything that has happened.

“We’re not worried about (the past),” Mike Sainristil said on Wednesday. “What happened, happened. All we can do is just go out there Saturday and handle our business — the right way.

“Coach (Jim) Harbaugh says that a faithful man forgives, a smart man forgets, and the Harbaughs remember,” he added. “We remember what happened last year in the tunnel; we remember what happened in 2021 (a 37-33 road loss). But none of that matters on Saturday. All we can do is just focus on where we are right now in this moment and what we can do to be the best team on Saturday.”

So, while the tunnel fight is not the end-all-be-all for Michigan football this weekend, it’s clear that the Wolverines are motivated by what happened and are planning accordingly. Ideally, even though this year’s game has low expectations for the Spartans, and will be a night game in East Lansing, the 2023 Michigan-Michigan State game will be far less eventful than in years past.

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