Michigan State vs. Western Michigan
Michigan State and Western Michigan have 14 meetings on file, the first in 1918; officially, Michigan State leads 13–0; as played, 14–0 in the games on file. Over the last 10 meetings it’s Michigan State 10–0, and Michigan State has won the last 14. The NCAA vacated Michigan State’s win (2022); it doesn’t count officially. This page counts every game as it was played. Share
2028 at Michigan State; 2031 at Michigan State. As the programs’ Wikipedia articles list them (CC BY-SA).
- Official series
- Michigan State leads 13–0
- Michigan State wins on file
- 14
- Western Michigan wins on file
- 0
- Ties
- 0
- Earliest on file
- 1918
- Longest streak
- 14 Michigan State
- Current streak
- 14 Michigan State
- Last 10 meetings
- Michigan State 10–0
- Most recent
- 2025
The series at a glance
| ’0 | ’1 | ’2 | ’3 | ’4 | ’5 | ’6 | ’7 | ’8 | ’9 | W–L | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 1–0 | ||||||||||
| 1980s | 3–0 | ||||||||||
| 1990s | 1–0 | ||||||||||
| 2000s | 2–0 | ||||||||||
| 2010s | 5–0 | ||||||||||
| 2020s | 2–0 |
- Average margin
- 20.2 points; 2 decided by one score (8 or fewer)
- At Michigan State
- 13–0 Michigan State’s record at home
- At Western Michigan
- 0–1 Western Michigan’s record at home
Every meeting on file, as played. Ranks are the AP poll’s going in.
Games that tell the story
- Michigan State’s biggest win2009: Michigan State 49, Western Michigan 14by 35 points
Both programs through the years
Our Elo rating at the end of each season, a measure of how strong a team was, not a forecast; 1500 is an average FBS team.
Stars of the series
Biggest days
| Jacoby Windmon Michigan State | 7 tackles, 4 sacks, 4 for loss | 2022 Defense |
Biggest days: the week’s best individual games by our big-days rule, from box scores (2004 on).
Photos
Photo: Stillnotjayjay, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons 
Photo: BenjaminSmithChef, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
From the rivalry’s and its games’ categories on Wikimedia Commons (free licenses only, each credited).
Every game
| Aug 29, 2025 | Michigan State 23, Western Michigan 6 | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 2, 2022 | 15Michigan State 35, Western Michigan 13vacated | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 7, 2019 | 19Michigan State 51, Western Michigan 17 | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 9, 2017 | Michigan State 28, Western Michigan 14 | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 4, 2015 | 5Michigan State 37, Western Michigan 24 | at Western Michigan | ||
| Aug 30, 2013 | Michigan State 26, Western Michigan 13 | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 4, 2010 | Michigan State 38, Western Michigan 14 | at Michigan State | ||
| Nov 7, 2009 | Michigan State 49, Western Michigan 14 | at Michigan State | ||
| Aug 30, 2003 | Michigan State 26, Western Michigan 21 | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 6, 1997 | 25Michigan State 42, Western Michigan 10 | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 27, 1986 | 19Michigan State 45, Western Michigan 10 | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 28, 1985 | Michigan State 7, Western Michigan 3 | at Michigan State | ||
| Sep 27, 1980 | Michigan State 33, Western Michigan 7 | at Michigan State | ||
| Nov 2, 1918 | Michigan State 16, Western Michigan 7 | at Michigan State |
Every game is listed as played on the field; a win the NCAA later vacated is marked “vacated”; the official series above counts them the NCAA’s way.