Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio walked up to the podium for his weekly press conference Tuesday.

"The day we've all waited for has arrived, huh?" Dantonio said.

Michigan-Michigan State week.

Across the Great Lakes State, people will take sides. Families, friendships and workplaces will be divided.

But this year's game may be one of the most pivotal in the rivalry's history, with both programs at a crossroads. As Dantonio and Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez develop relationships in the state of Michigan, Saturday's result could have a long-term impact on in-state recruiting.

As many steps as he has made in in-state recruiting, Dantonio has yet to earn the credibility that comes with beating Michigan. The then-unranked Spartans nearly beat the Wolverines in Dantonio's first matchup last year. Michigan State led by 10 with seven minutes left but fell to then-No. 15 Michigan, 28-24 — its sixth straight loss to the Wolverines.

Several Wolverines held a moment of silence at midfield of Spartan Stadium after the game. And Michigan running back Mike Hart rubbed in the Wolverines' dominance over the Spartans in the postgame press conference.

"I was just laughing," Hart said. "I thought it was funny. They got excited. Sometimes you get your little brother excited when you're playing basketball and you let him get the lead. Then you just come and take it back."

In his press conference the following Monday, a visibly agitated Dantonio fired back about Michigan's postgame antics.

"They need to check themselves sometimes," Dantonio said. "Just remember, pride comes before the fall."

A lot of Dantonio's frustration can probably be attributed to the importance of the rivalry.

"All across Michigan, people are choosing sides as they grow up," Dantonio said at Big Ten Media Days in July. "They just are. It's just a fact."

Saturday's game could have big impact on which side Michiganders pick.

The traditional power, the Wolverines, are 2-5. The Spartans, who have seemingly been up and down forever, are 6-2.

Saturday will mark just the ninth time in 101 meetings Michigan will enter the game with more losses than Michigan State. Although he Wolverines won five of the eight such games already played, they've never had three more losses.

Dantonio has made no secret about the importance of his team's rivalry with the Wolverines. Shortly after Michigan State hired him last year, Dantonio installed a clock at the Michigan State football facility counting down to the Michigan game.

"There's a measuring stick there, and we want to measure up," Dantonio said.

The present

Thomas Gordon, a senior quarterback and safety at Detroit Cass Tech High school, said last summer he would accept a scholarship offer if the Wolverines offered him, calling Michigan his "dream."

But when the offer to play for the Wolverines came in September, Gordon waffled. Michigan State had offered a scholarship first, and that meant a lot to Gordon, ranked a three-star athlete by rivals.com.

Still, Gordon chose Michigan over the Spartans in late September. He described what came to mind when he though of each program.

Michigan: "winged helmets."

Michigan State: "hard work."

For years, the Wolverines could stockpile local talent because they were the only consistently successful team in the state.

But Dantonio's aggressive in-state recruiting has given players like Austin Gray, a junior linebacker at Warren Fitzgerald High School who has drawn interest from Michigan and Michigan State, a viable alternative to the Wolverines. Gray describes himself as laid-back, which doesn't exactly mesh with his image of Michigan.

"A lot of tradition, a lot of tradition," Gray said. "It's kind of intimidating actually when you start thinking about it because some of their ways, they're so set in."

Hart's "little brother" comments cast the Spartans in a negative light, but they also gave Dantonio a chip on his shoulder. In emphasizing his displeasure for Hart, Dantonio has set Michigan State up as foil to Michigan.

"By Rich coming from West Virginia with a new staff, it kind of opened the door," Oak Park High School coach Timothy Hopkins said.