Viktor
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- Mar 19, 2019
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Added Willekes: "Growing up in the state of Michigan, you always hear about the Michigan-Michigan State rivalry. There's so much weight on it, because if you lose, you have to hear about it for a year. There's bragging rights for an entire year. So, when you go back home, if your friends and family are Michigan fans, they're going to let you hear it. That game, I say it's a backyard brawl. They obviously don't like us and we don't like them on the field. We go at it. It's a lot of fun to play in, to be honest."
Speaking of bragging rights between the two, Metellus holds those honors as the Wolverines topped the Spartans in three of the past four seasons.
But even though the two defensive players did all the could to help their respective teams, the duo also noted the respect they had for the other side, and one another.
"I know a lot of the guys on offense on my team, especially on the O-line who I'm real cool with, they had to face him," Metellus said. "I heard in practice, 'Well you can't do that, because if Kenny does that then it will be a sack.'
"I've always known about him and he's one of the best players in the Big Ten," Metellus added. "You hear about him on social media as well."
Willekes said: "I appreciate that, my guy. We talked about him a lot when breaking down the defense. I lived with Brian Lewerke … the [starting] quarterback, obviously … and he was always talking to us about their team and where he can and can't throw. [Josh] came up in conversation and we talked about it a lot."