The Michigan–Michigan State rivalry began in 1953 when the Paul Bunyan Trophy, was established. The teams in this rivalry include the Michigan Wolverines of the University of Michigan and the Michigan State Spartans of Michigan State University compete in the Big Ten Conference in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). A four-foot-tall wooden figure of American folklore's enormous lumberjack, Paul Bunyan, is set atop a five-foot base. It honors Michigan's past as a significant producer of lumber. In observance of Michigan State's inaugural football season in the Big Ten, Michigan Governor G. Mennen Williams first handed out the trophy.
Michigan State was the first team to be the recipients of the Paul Bunyan trophy, when it was first introduced in 1953. Michigan got their first share of the title on November 13, 1954. Since then, ther Paul Bunyan Award has continued to be presented to both these teams over the years. Notably, both these teams have played against each other 117 times so far.
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What is the rivalry between Michigan and Michigan State called?
The rivalry between Michigan and Michigan State have been going on for 117 years, as of 2024. This rivalry is called the Battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy. This trophy is named after Governor G. Mennen Williams, who first presented the trophy in 1953 as a gesture of welcoming the Michigan State into the Big Ten Conference. Notably, the award for the rivalry is the Paul Bunyan Trophy, named after Paul Bunyan, notable for being the giant lumberjack in American folklore. Notably, it is believed to be one of the largest trophies in college football history. Moreover, it is made up of wood. However, it is also considered to be one of the ugliest trophy in college football as per Paul Bunyan Trophy. That being said, once a team loses that trophy, they realize how valuable the Paul Bunyan trophy is for the team.
The Paul Bunyan Trophy Mini Trophy Winner Year by Year
The Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans have been rivals for 117 years, as of 2024. These two teams first faced each other on October 12, 1898, when Michigan defeated Michigan State 39-0. However, Michigan State got their first victory in the rivalry on October 18, 1913, when they defeated Michigan 12-7. As of 2024, Michigan leads the rivalry with a record of 74-38-5. The following table shows all the scores of the rivalries between the two teams from the beginning till now -
| No. | Date | Location | Winner | Score |
| 1 | October 12, 1898 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 39–0 |
| 2 | October 8, 1902 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 119–0 |
| 3 | October 12, 1907 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 46–0 |
| 4 | October 3, 1908 | East Lansing | Tie | 0–0 |
| 5 | October 15, 1910 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 6–3 |
| 6 | October 14, 1911 | East Lansing | Michigan | 15–3 |
| 7 | October 12, 1912 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 55–7 |
| 8 | October 18, 1913 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 12–7 |
| 9 | October 17, 1914 | East Lansing | Michigan | 3–0 |
| 10 | October 23, 1915 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 24–0 |
| 11 | October 21, 1916 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 9–0 |
| 12 | October 20, 1917 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 27–0 |
| 13 | November 23, 1918 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 21–6 |
| 14 | October 18, 1919 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 26–0 |
| 15 | October 16, 1920 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 35–0 |
| 16 | October 15, 1921 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 30–0 |
| 17 | November 4, 1922 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 63–0 |
| 18 | October 27, 1923 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 37–0 |
| 19 | October 10, 1924 | East Lansing | Michigan | 7–0 |
| 20 | October 3, 1925 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 39–0 |
| 21 | October 9, 1926 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 55–3 |
| 22 | October 8, 1927 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 21–0 |
| 23 | November 17, 1928 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 3–0 |
| 24 | October 5, 1929 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 17–0 |
| 25 | October 4, 1930 | Ann Arbor | Tie | 0–0 |
| 26 | November 14, 1931 | Ann Arbor | Tie | 0–0 |
| 27 | October 1, 1932 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 26–0 |
| 28 | October 7, 1933 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 20–6 |
| 29 | October 6, 1934 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 16–0 |
| 30 | October 5, 1935 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 25–6 |
| 31 | October 3, 1936 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 21–7 |
| 32 | October 2, 1937 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 19–14 |
| 33 | October 1, 1938 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 14–0 |
| 34 | October 7, 1939 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 26–13 |
| 35 | October 5, 1940 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 21–14 |
| 36 | September 27, 1941 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 19–7 |
| 37 | October 3, 1942 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 20–0 |
| 38 | September 29, 1945 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 40–0 |
| 39 | November 9, 1946 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 55–7 |
| 40 | September 27, 1947 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 55–0 |
| 41 | September 25, 1948 | East Lansing | Michigan | 13–7 |
| 42 | September 24, 1949 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 7–3 |
| 43 | September 30, 1950 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 14–7 |
| 44 | September 29, 1951 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 25–0 |
| 45 | September 27, 1952 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 27–13 |
| 46 | November 14, 1953 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 14–6 |
| 47 | November 13, 1954 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 33–7 |
| 48 | October 1, 1955 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 14–7 |
| 49 | October 6, 1956 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 9–0 |
| 50 | October 12, 1957 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 35–6 |
| 51 | October 4, 1958 | East Lansing | Tie | 12–12 |
| 52 | October 3, 1959 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 34–8 |
| 53 | October 1, 1960 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 24–17 |
| 54 | October 14, 1961 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 28–0 |
| 55 | October 13, 1962 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 28–0 |
| 56 | October 12, 1963 | Ann Arbor | Tie | 7–7 |
| 57 | October 10, 1964 | East Lansing | Michigan | 17–10 |
| 58 | October 9, 1965 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 24–7 |
| 59 | October 8, 1966 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 20–7 |
| 60 | October 14, 1967 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 34–0 |
| 61 | October 12, 1968 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 28–14 |
| 62 | October 18, 1969 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 23–12 |
| 63 | October 17, 1970 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 34–20 |
| 64 | October 9, 1971 | East Lansing | Michigan | 24–13 |
| 65 | October 14, 1972 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 10–0 |
| 66 | October 13, 1973 | East Lansing | Michigan | 31–0 |
| 67 | October 12, 1974 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 21–7 |
| 68 | October 11, 1975 | East Lansing | Michigan | 16–6 |
| 69 | October 9, 1976 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 42–10 |
| 70 | October 8, 1977 | East Lansing | Michigan | 24–14 |
| 71 | October 14, 1978 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 24–15 |
| 72 | October 6, 1979 | East Lansing | Michigan | 21–7 |
| 73 | October 11, 1980 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 27–23 |
| 74 | October 10, 1981 | East Lansing | Michigan | 38–20 |
| 75 | October 9, 1982 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 31–17 |
| 76 | October 8, 1983 | East Lansing | Michigan | 42–0 |
| 77 | October 6, 1984 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 19–7 |
| 78 | October 12, 1985 | East Lansing | Michigan | 31–0 |
| 79 | October 11, 1986 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 27–6 |
| 80 | October 10, 1987 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 17–11 |
| 81 | October 8, 1988 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 17–3 |
| 82 | October 14, 1989 | East Lansing | Michigan | 10–7 |
| 83 | October 13, 1990 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 28–27 |
| 84 | October 12, 1991 | East Lansing | Michigan | 45–28 |
| 85 | October 10, 1992 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 35–10 |
| 86 | October 9, 1993 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 17–7 |
| 87 | October 8, 1994 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 40–20 |
| 88 | November 4, 1995 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 28–25 |
| 89 | November 2, 1996 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 45–29 |
| 90 | October 25, 1997 | East Lansing | Michigan | 23–7 |
| 91 | September 26, 1998 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 29–17 |
| 92 | October 9, 1999 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 34–31 |
| 93 | October 21, 2000 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 14–0 |
| 94 | November 3, 2001 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 26–24 |
| 95 | November 2, 2002 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 49–3 |
| 96 | November 1, 2003 | East Lansing | Michigan | 27–20 |
| 97 | October 30, 2004 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 45–37 |
| 98 | October 1, 2005 | East Lansing | Michigan | 34–31 |
| 99 | October 7, 2006 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 31–13 |
| 100 | November 3, 2007 | East Lansing | Michigan | 28–24 |
| 101 | October 25, 2008 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 35–21 |
| 102 | October 3, 2009 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 26–20 |
| 103 | October 9, 2010 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 34–17 |
| 104 | October 15, 2011 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 28–14 |
| 105 | October 20, 2012 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 12–10 |
| 106 | November 2, 2013 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 29–6 |
| 107 | October 25, 2014 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 35–11 |
| 108 | October 17, 2015 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 27–23 |
| 109 | October 29, 2016 | East Lansing | Michigan | 32–23 |
| 110 | October 7, 2017 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 14–10 |
| 111 | October 20, 2018 | East Lansing | Michigan | 21–7 |
| 112 | November 16, 2019 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 44–10 |
| 113 | October 31, 2020 | Ann Arbor | Michigan State | 27–24 |
| 114 | October 30, 2021 | East Lansing | Michigan State | 37–33 |
| 115 | October 29, 2022 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 29–7 |
| 116 | October 21, 2023 | East Lansing | Michigan | 49–0 |
| 117 | October 24, 2024 | Ann Arbor | Michigan | 24-17 |
FAQs on List of Paul Bunyan Trophy Mini Trophy Winner Year by Year
A. The Paul Bunyan Trophy is a wooden figure awarded in the Michigan-Michigan State football rivalry.
A. The Michigan-Michigan State football rivalry started in 1898 and has seen 117 games.
A. The Paul Bunyan Trophy symbolizes the rivalry between the two Michigan universities and honors Michigan's lumber heritage.
A. The Paul Bunyan Trophy is presented to the winner of the annual game between the University of Michigan and Michigan State University.
A. Michigan leads the series with a record of 74–38–5, with periods of dominance by both sides.
