For me, my first fall as an alum—
Eddie Smith and Gibson. We were doormats and on probation. Funny, Gibby was really, really fast, but looked average as he was so big.
What a huge upset---
Michigan had beaten Michigan State eight consecutive years, and then entered the 1978 game ranked No. 5 in the country.
Many expected more of the same.
Until, that is, the first play of the game for Michigan State -- an incomplete pass, albeit one that opened some eyes.
"You remember it?" Kirk Gibson asked. "I just ran a straight bomb right by the guy, and Eddie Smith overthrew me, by an inch! I was gone. We kind of served notice right away."
While MSU missed a field goal on that first possession, it scored on its next three, took a 17-0 lead into halftime, and ended up shocking the masses at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, with a 24-15 victory.
Michigan State used the Michigan triumph as a springboard to finish the season with seven consecutive Big Ten victories, and at 7-1, the Spartans tied for the Big Ten championship -- with the Wolverines, who went to Pasadena while MSU was wrapping up its third and final year of bowl ineligibility.
GO GREEN!
Eddie Smith and Gibson. We were doormats and on probation. Funny, Gibby was really, really fast, but looked average as he was so big.
What a huge upset---
Michigan had beaten Michigan State eight consecutive years, and then entered the 1978 game ranked No. 5 in the country.
Many expected more of the same.
Until, that is, the first play of the game for Michigan State -- an incomplete pass, albeit one that opened some eyes.
"You remember it?" Kirk Gibson asked. "I just ran a straight bomb right by the guy, and Eddie Smith overthrew me, by an inch! I was gone. We kind of served notice right away."
While MSU missed a field goal on that first possession, it scored on its next three, took a 17-0 lead into halftime, and ended up shocking the masses at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, with a 24-15 victory.
Michigan State used the Michigan triumph as a springboard to finish the season with seven consecutive Big Ten victories, and at 7-1, the Spartans tied for the Big Ten championship -- with the Wolverines, who went to Pasadena while MSU was wrapping up its third and final year of bowl ineligibility.
GO GREEN!
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