There is certainly no love lost between Illinois and Michigan State football, especially in a rivalry that spans 71 years.
The Illini, which defeated Michigan State 38-37 in overtime on Saturday, have won four of their last five matchups against the Spartans. They have turned this rivalry around in recent years, highlighted by a monster comeback in 2019, when Illinois scored 27 points in the fourth quarter.
Illinois stirred up some negative emotions in East Lansing on Saturday, and it left fans of the green and white furious. They did not enjoy what transpired at Spartan Stadium, and it led to the creation of this one-of-a-kind social media video from Illinois' media department.
A warm welcome on the road. pic.twitter.com/cR6oKUzhaN
— Illinois Football (@IlliniFootball) October 12, 2026
With 13:14 left in the fourth quarter, freshman quarterback Michael Clayton II completed a 14-yard touchdown pass to Collin Dixon that gave Illinois a 31-17 lead over Michigan State. Dixon's score became crucial to Illinois' success, especially after the Spartans scored 10 unanswered points.
The East Lansing faithful became extremely perturbed by Dixon's touchdown, leading to one of the best social media edits of 2026 by Illinois' media team. They highlighted the anger and frustration of the Spartans' fans perfectly, showing that the hatred is still alive and well, even during a down season.
Illinois football needs to continue playing with a chip on their shoulder in order to save this season
A social media video is all well and good, but Illinois football needs to continue playing with a chip on their shoulder throughout the rest of 2026. They need to come into every game like it's their last and feed off of whatever rivalry exists throughout their conference schedule.
The Illini will be without fifth-year senior Katin Houser, who reportedly suffered a broken left hand while trying to make a tackle during an interception return on Saturday. Clayton will take over at quarterback after an impressive debut against Michigan State, where he completed 6-of-8 passes for 88 yards and two touchdowns.
The defense, on the other hand, needs to continue improving from week to week. They had an impressive first half against the Spartans, allowing only seven points compared to the 24 points they gave up in the second half. But they need to stay consistent, especially with the tough schedule ahead.
Simply put, Illinois is going to need to support a young quarterback who has been thrown into the fire midseason, and a defense that is still trying to find its identity. There are a lot of factors working against them, which is why they need to play with the toughness and grit they showed against Michigan State.
Make the opposing team slam their hats and flip gestures on a weekly basis. It's going to take a lot more than toughness and grit to get to a bowl game, but going into games looking for a fight will help elevate everyone's mentality.
Add us as a preferred source on Google