Michigan State coach Dantonio rips players for bashing Michigan on Twitter

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Mark Dantonio isn't exactly a Twitter expert, but he got very familiar with the site over the weekend.

And for all the wrong reasons.

Some of the Spartans players took to the social media site during Michigan's loss to Alabama to bash their in-state rivals. That didn't sit well with Dantonio.

"I think that's disrespectful. I don't think it's something we should be doing," the head coach said. "Especially those that aren't even playing."

Dantonio said he'll address the issue with his team.

Most of the tweets in question were raised in criticism of Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson. The MSU players subsequently deleted the messages, but a sampling have been caught online.

"DENARD IS SOOOO BAD!" safety Kyle Artinian tweeted. "And it makes me feel so good."

"I can play quarterback for the school in blue. (Le'Veon Bell) for heisman > the other guy in the great state of michigan," linebacker Jamal Lyles tweeted.

Dantonio pointed to his team's experience against the Crimson Tide just two years ago as a reason to respect the game.

"The credit goes to the person in the arena. That's the way I look at things. Michigan has a tremendous football storied tradition. I didn't see much different when we played the University of Alabama a couple years ago. It's tough."

While prominent basketball and football programs in the country have banned players from using the public, open forum of Twitter, Dantonio said he'll instead use the episode as a lesson.

"Our guys need to keep their mouths shut. Is that blunt enough?"

Michigan and Michigan State square off October 20.

Brad Galli is a Sports Reporter for WXYZ Detroit. Follow Brad on Twitter: @BradGalli .