On Saturday afternoon, Shea Patterson played the best game of his Michigan career in one of his most important games as a Wolverine – with hated rival Michigan State in Ann Arbor.

The senior completed 24-of-33 passes for 384 yards, shattering Tom Brady’s prior record for most passing yards against the Spartans. Of those 24 completions, 14 went for at least 15 yards.

“We can start with Shea,” head coach Jim Harbaugh said when asked about players who impressed him in the win. “Getting the ball to nine different receivers. Somebody told me he broke a record for the most passing yards by a Michigan quarterback in a Michigan State game – 384, and the old record was 285 by Tom Brady. by 99 yards. I’d call that a whale of a game. That’s a heck of a game by the kid.”

Patterson played the whole game for the Wolverines, including the final snap where he took a knee to conclude a 44-10 beatdown of Michigan State.

“I told him before he went out there to take that snap, ‘This year, after you take the kneel down, keep the ball and don’t throw it up into the air,’” Harbaugh said with a smile. “Because he had a heck of a game, and I thought he should have the game ball.

“Then he said, “I have another plan.’ And I said, ‘What?’ and he said, ‘You’ll see.’ He came over and gave me the ball, and that was neat. But, I went back into the locker room and it’s now in his book bag. I shoved it back in his backpack. He had a great game. That’s just a great game by a quarterback. It was a real gem.”

In addition to the passing yard record versus MSU, the 384 yards was the first time Patterson reached 300 passing yards in a Michigan uniform. The senior’s four touchdown passes against the Spartans were also a new high as a Wolverine.

“The O-line did a heck of a job of giving me time and the receivers just found the open space,” Patterson said. “We had a good gameplan all week. We had an extra bye week to prepare and really diagnose what they do on defense. I just thought we had a good gameplan. The plan wasn’t to pass the ball all game, but our guys were getting into open space and making plays.”

The quarterback’s play drew praise from his teammates in addition to his head coach. Junior wide receiver said Patterson brought something extra to practice this week ahead of the rivalry contest.

“He just brought a different type of passion today,” Peoples-Jones said. “He’s always passionate, but today, the whole team, it means a little bit more. All throughout the week, I could see it in practice, he was confident with his reads, confident with his throws and he trusted us. He trusted the gameplan, and we all trusted each other. We came out victorious and it feels really good.”

Following the game, as Patterson was conducting an on-field interview with Fox Sports’ Jenny Taft, defensive captain Khaleke Hudson brought the coveted Paul Bunyan trophy over to Patterson to celebrate.

“I was going towards the M, and I saw Shea doing an interview with Fox I believe,” Hudson said. “I just wanted to give him a chance to take it all in, give him a chance to see the Paul Bunyan trophy, and give him a chance to celebrate with us.”

Patterson appreciated the moment.

“Usually it’s kind of the other way around,” he said. “Usually the defense is the one being thanked and everything.”

But on Saturday, it was a total combined effort of offense, defense and special teams, and Hudson enjoyed watching Michigan’s offense more than hold up their end.

“Shea was throwing the ball, putting it in the right place,” Hudson said. “The receivers were blocking, they were catching the balls, and the offensive line was playing their tails off also with the running backs. So, I’m very proud of them guys today. I’m very proud of how they played, how they executed and I just want them guys to keep up this energy.”

Saturday’s showdown in Ann Arbor was Patterson’s final opportunity to play against the Spartans, and the senior put on a performance that he’ll remember for a long time.

“Just wish I had two more shots at them,” Patterson said. “I wish I could’ve started here and gotten four shots at them, but…it was a lot of fun today.

“This one’s special. I’m proud to just be a part of this team and part of a win like that, a dominant win like that. We knew how important this game was, and we prepared our tails off.”