ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) – Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh says the countdown clocks for Michigan State and Ohio State from Schembechler Hall. Harbaugh says nothing is ever more important than the next game. This week, the seventh-ranked Spartans are coming to the Big House to play the surging, 12th-ranked Wolverines. In a series that dates to 1898, Saturday’s showdown holds more than provincial interest because both teams are ranked and potentially have a lot at stake. Harbaugh has led a dramatic turnaround in his first year, matching last season’s total with a five-game winning streak since opening with a setback at Utah. Mark Dantonio is 6-2 against Michigan, doing and saying all the right things to help Michigan State have its best stretch in the series in more than a half-century.
