On October 9, 1976, Michigan State played its cross-state rival Michigan in the annual battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy. The Wolverines had won six straight games with the last victory for the Spartans dating back to 1969. Michigan extended the streak to seven games with a 42-10 victory at Michigan Stadium.[7] Michigan's 42 points was the most it had scored against Michigan State since 1947.[8]
Fullback Rob Lytle rushed for 180 yards on 10 carries, including a 45-yard gain on a fake punt and a 75-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. After the game, Bo Schembechler said of Lytle, "If that guy isn't an All-American, I don't know who is."[9] Lytle added, "All backs like to break away on a long one like that. It was the longest run I've had at Michigan. In fact, I think this was my biggest day ever."[9]Harlan Huckleby rushed for 126 yards and three touchdowns on 23 carries. Russell Davis added 91 yards on 13 carries. In all, the Wolverines rushed for 442 yards on 62 carries against the Spartans. Quarterback Rick Leach completed five of seven passes for 93 yards and rushed for 36 yards on 11 carries.[7] Wolfman Jerry Zuver scored Michigan's final touchdown on a 60-yard interception return in the fourth quarter.[8]
In the AP Poll released on the Monday after the game, Michigan retained its #1 ranking with 57 out of 60 first-place votes and 1,194 points out of a possible 1,200 points. Pittsburgh was ranked #2 with the remaining three first-place votes.[10]
^ ab"Michigan Football Statistic Archive Query Page". MGoBlue.com. University of Michigan. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved December 2, 2012.(To retrieve team statistics, enter the applicable year in the "Enter Year" box under the heading "Games & Totals by Season." Press "Display Season." At the next prompt, click the box for "Michigan State" and then click icon for "Display Chosen Game Stats".)