MSU/Wiscy-UM/Indiana scenarios

"upsets are in the minds of the favorite." but in any regard, winning doesn't automatically breed overconfidence. Or else there would never be an undefeated team. By you reasoning, Michigan wouldn't be overconfident vs. App St., because they hadn't won any games that season. So they had no wins to breed overconfident. But overconfident they were. (Though I attribute it as much to that as to team bad chemistry going into the season with your star receiver in the dog house, and injuries, because when Hart was in they basically couldn't stop us). You miss the meaning of the quote, in that it's the mental state of the team that causes it; not success. Winning breeds confidence, that no matter how bad the situation, you have a chance, and not to quit. No, it's not an endless loop...but what does losing breed? Winning, by having a chip on your shoulder? No, I don't think do (I think it breeds Illinois games where you hit some adversity and crumble). Bo thought do too. Everyone remembers "when your team is winning, be ready to be tough, because winning can make you soft", but they always seem to forget the second half "when your team is losing, and the fans and press are getting on your players, stick by them, keep believing." Because he knew the dangers of losing, that players get down, question themselves, and quit. Bo knew that was as big a danger, and had to be guarded against. Say what one will about Lloyd, but he was a master at righting the ship and not letting seasons spiral out of control. He had a good teacher.

In any case it's moot unless MSU loses by 40 to Wisconsin and we win by 80 vs. Indy, because neither team will be that big a favorite. (Or vice versa, I guess). "Upsets" are when one team is heavily favored. A three point spread isn't a "no one believed in us" underdog. Besides, we shouldn't in any way think of ourselves as favorites, no matter how the teams are going in. We've lost the last two. How can they sneak up on us? And they won't ever take us lightly...we're their season. So yes, I believe we were better off when we had won 6 in a row vs. them, and even when they were winning, they were waiting fir the other shoe to drop, and "here we go again...". Now they have confidence they can win here; and that they can win in tight dramatic fashion. That is not good. We have to take that feeling away from them. But they're not just going to give it up because they think it's in the bag.