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Back to .500: MSU-Illinois Postgame Thread

KJ@theonlycolors — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 19:23:08 -0000

More photos » by Seth Perlman - AP

2 months ago: Michigan State's Larry Caper (22) out runs Illinois' Garrett Edwards (20) for a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Champaign, Ill., Saturday, Oct. 10, 2009. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)

Browse more photos »

MSU gets the job done, taking Illinois down 24-14. Larry Caper leads the way with 139 total yards and a TD.

Two reasons for concern:

Getting outscored 14-7 in the second half by a team that showed a complete lack of offensive cohesion.
Injuries: Glenn Winston, Larry Caper, Caulton Ray, A.J. Jimmerson, and Keith Nichol all got dinged up. Winston's (sprained knee) and Nichol's (dislocated left elbow?) injuries looked particularly bad.

Still, our conference record stands at 2-1, which will be good for no worse than a tie for 3rd place in the league at the end of the day.

Preview: Michigan State vs. Montana State

LVS — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:50:30 -0000

Home, home again

Your MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS vs. MONTANA STATE BOBCATS
SPARTAN STADIUM, EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN
12:00 NOON ET
TV: BIG TEN NETWORK (coverage map). RADIO AFFILIATES HERE.
WEATHER: SUNNY, 78 DEGREES (IIIIIIT'S A BEEEEEAUTIFUL DAAAAAAAAAY FOR FOOTBALL!)

Good riddance, offseason. It's time to play, as Montana State comes to town on what looks to be an utterly beautiful football Saturday. The Bobcats are the first FCS (1-AA) opponent Michigan State (herein MSU, dammit), has ever faced; Montana St. finished 2008 on something of a high note, winning 4 of their last 5; additionally, they shouldn't be intimidated by the large Spartan Stadium crowd, as in recent years they have played on the road against Minnesota, Kansas State, Texas A&M, and Colorado (whom they beat, lololol). Still, this is a game that MSU must win and will win. The bigger question is whether we'll be able to resolve some of the remaining controversies at quarterback, running back, and elsewhere.

When Michigan State is on defense: As you can imagine, writing this preview is relatively difficult. I've never seen Montana State play, and after tomorrow, likely never will again. Nonetheless, it is clear that they return several of their skill position leaders from last season:

Cody Kempt will play quarterback. Last season, he completed almost 52% of his passes, and threw nine touchdowns and twelve interceptions, for a highly meh 105.2 quarterback rating.
C.J. Palmer figures to be the feature back; he was very impressive in limited action last year, rushing for 312 yards (5.0 per carry) and 7 touchdowns. At 6'0" and 235 pounds, and with that high touchdown total, it seems that he may have been last season's goal line specialist, a la Jehuu Caulcrick.
DeSean Thomas was the Bobcats' leading receiver, and returns. He grabbed 24 passes for 4 touchdowns last season..

Additionally, as commenter MSUBobcats has pointed out, Montana State is reasonably experienced on the offensive line. Their line has 70 combined starts, which is less than Ivan Maisel's magic number of 75, but is relatively more experienced than MSU's line.

From MSU: I think I'm not alone in hoping, above all else, to see a dominating performance from the defensive line. Our guys have potential but the results weren't always there last season. A good showing by Trevor Anderson should be a given; similar performances by Colin Neely and our interior linemen would be very encouraging. Last season, Minnesota sacked Montana State twice and allowed the Bobcats 138 rushing yards. I'd like to see us improve on both of those numbers.

At linebacker and in the secondary, I'll be watching to see the new guys: true freshman Chris Norman is in the two-deep at OLB, and I'll be interested to see if he can live up to his considerable, and growing, hype. Obviously, we're not at all worried about Greg Jones, but he is switching to a new position. All eyes would be on him anyway, but I'll be interested to see how he acquits himself in the middle. These are probably unrealistic expectations, but against Montana State, anything less than a dominating performance would be a bit of a disappointment. In the secondary, I'll be honest, I'm most looking forward to seeing Trenton Robinson play. Even though he won't be starting, he's been hyped ever since spring practice, and I haven't seen him play yet. Additionally, I'll be paying attention to Chris L. Rucker, as he transitions to nickelback, and to how our new starting corners perform.

From our friends at Jolly Green Giants.

When Michigan State is on offense: As to Montana State's defense, I'll let their coach speak for himself:

Defensively, we’ve got a headline player named Dane Fletcher, a defensive end who’s a candidate on the watch list for the Buck Buchanan Award, which is awarded to the top defensive player in the country in the FCS [Football Championship Subdivision] division. He’s a great player with a very high motor; he’s a high-energy, active defensive lineman.

Overall, our defensive front seven is pretty strong. But we’ve been riddled with injuries in the secondary, so to me the big question mark in this game is, ‘Can we hold up in the secondary.’ I don’t mean just against the pass, but can we come up and make tackles and get people stopped. We have very little experience there because of the injuries we’ve had.

For those of you keeping score at home, Dane Fletcher is #47.

The offensive preview is short and sweet, as we all know the issues and concerns. In a perfect world, I'd love for either Kirk Cousins or Keith Nichol to create some separation from the other, so that we have a clear starter going into the Central game. Given that they've been LOCKED UP IN A TIGHT ONE for the past nine months, that's probably unrealistic. So, I hope they both play well; given the banged-up condition of Montana State's secondary, this probably shouldn't be too much of a challege.

More realistically, I'd love for one of our running backs to separate himself from the pack. It's highly disconcerting to me that there's no clear choice between our top three running backs (Caulton Ray, Larry Caper, and Edwin Baker) and hardly any difference between them and the next three (Glenn Winston (ugh -- ed.), and presumably A.J. Jimmerson and Andre Anderson). This has to end. We need to narrow the bulk of the carries down to one or two guys, and soon. I'm guessing that it'll ultimately be one of the freshmen; a great performance from either of them would make me a very happy man while leaving the stadium.

Finally, much as I'd like to see a great performance from the defensive line, I really hope to see our offensive line dominate. Interestingly enough, the aforementioned Dane Fletcher is a left defensive end, so he'll be lined up against Brendon Moss, one of our new starters; he may/should provide a good test. Nonetheless, this is the area where a halfway-decent big conference team should be able to separate itself from a FCS opponent: we're bigger and stronger than they are, and we need to thoroughly win the line of scrimmage battles.

FINAL PREDICTION: While these guys aren't terrible, we're simply the better football team. This looks a lot like the UAB from two seasons ago, and I'd bet that it gets ugly in a hurry. 49-13, M(ichigan)SU. Please comment away with your thoughts and predictions.

More than that, though, I'm so flippin' excited to get back to the stadium, I can hardly contain myself. Hope to see many of you in EL tomorrow. (For those of you watching at home, there'll be a game thread right here for your chatting enjoyment.)

GO GREEN!

Kirk Cousins is MSU's Name Only Starter, and Other Observations on Michigan State Depth Chart

Pete Rossman — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:30:27 -0000

Coach Mark Dantonio named Kirk Cousins the starter for the Montana State game Saturday. However, Keith Nichol is still listed as a co-starter, and will also play in the first half. That's probably one of the least interesting parts of today's release of the depth chart (depth chart can be found here in PDF). Let's break down all the positions:

RB: Caulton Ray is the starter; Edwin Baker and Larry Caper are both listed in the #2 spot. All three of them will probably see a decent amount of snaps on Saturday.
WR: Blair White is the starter on one side, Mark Dell and B.J. Cunningham are co-starters on the other side. Keshawn Martin is backing up Blair White - no real surprises here with the exception of redshirt freshman Myles White at third string.

OT: Rocco Cironi might be more injured than we've been led to believe, as Bowling Green transfer D.J. Young is listed as a co-starter at left tackle along with Cironi. At right tackle, fifth-year senior Brendon Moss has the start ahead of another fifth-year senior, Mike Schmeding. Don't be surprised if someone else starts at right tackle in a couple games.

OG: Joel Foreman holds down his spot at left guard ahead of Ethan Ruhland. Jared McGaha has won the spot at right guard, beating out J'Michael Deane.

C: No surprises, as Joel Nitchman's starting. One time D-Lineman John Stipek is listed as the backup.

TE: The only surprise here is that Dion Sims is listed as the third tight end, behind Charlie Gantt and Brian Linthecum.

FB: Recuited as a linebacker in the JLS era, Andrew Hawken is the starting fullback ahead of Josh Rouse and Andrew Pendy.

DE: Nothing drastic has happened since camp started, as Trevor Anderson and Colin Neely are starting, with David Rolf and Tyler Hoover as the back-ups. Not much to see here.

DT: Oren Wilson has kept one of the starting spots, and Kevin Pickelman has won the second starting spot from Jerel Worthy. Antonio Jeremiah's at third string still, and isn't likely to see the field unless he can get under 320 pounds.

MLB: Greg Jones, duh. Adam Decker's behind Jones, also duh.

OLB: Eric Gordon's keeping the starting spot he had last year, and Brandon Denson's starting on the other side. It looks like all the hype around freshman Chris Norman wasn't just hot air, he's got a spot in the two deep. Jon Misch battled injuries last year, and now healthy, he's got the other OLB two-deep spot.

CB: Jeremy Ware and Ross Weaver are co-starters at one spot, and that's the only news here.

S: Danny Fortener and Marcus Hyde are starters, as announced last week.

K/P: Swenson. Bates. Done. Of note: Swenson will be performing kickoffs.

PR: Keshawn Martin will return punts in this game, with Dell backing him up.

KR: A.J. Jimmerson will be one kick returner, and either Martin or Glenn Winston will be the other starter. I'm guessing Martin will eventually win the job, since Winston probably still needs some time to get into playing shape.

Know thy Opponent 2009: Michigan State Spartans

BoilerTMill — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 14:15:49 -0000

My Big Ten road trip last season was to East Lansing. I braved the wind and cold to officially watch our bowl chances go up in smoke. This year, Michigan State comes to West Lafayette on Senior Day. It will be the final home game for 21 Purdue seniors, and if we don't have five wins or more at this point, it could mean the difference between a bowl game and another season home for the holidays.

Michigan State is an interesting team. We did not adapt to the cold well last year and had a number of dropped passes. We handed them seven points on an awful interception before halftime. Also, at one point we had to play a fourth string walk-on scout team quarterback. Still, we did not play that badly (at least on defense) in a 21-7 loss. That gives me hope that this year can be different.

2008 Record: 9-4, (6-2 Big Ten)

Bowl Result: lost Capitol One Bowl 24-12 to Georgia

Blog Representation: The Only Colors, The Enlightened Spartan, Sparty MSU

Series with Purdue: Michigan State leads 30-28-3

Last Purdue win: 11/4/2006 at Michigan State 17-15

Last Michigan State win: 11/8/2008 at Michigan State 21-7

Last season for the Spartans:

Last year was a Purdue-esque season for Michigan State. I think we can all agree that the Big Ten as a whole was in the middle of a down year. Michigan State played nine mediocre-to-bad teams and four really good teams. Predictably, they finished with a 9-4 record. They lost a relatively close game on the road at California, got trucked by Ohio State and Penn State, then lost the Capitol One Bowl to a good Georgia team. There was little doubt they were the third best team in the conference, as there was clear separation between them, the top of Ohio State and Penn State, and everyone else.

Are Sparty and Pete long lost brothers?

A huge reason for their success, Javon Ringer, is now gone. Brian Hoyer is also gone at the quarterback position. Their 2009 non-conference schedule is sneaky tough. Aside from a gimme game against Montana State, Michigan State hosts two of the better teams in the MAC. Games against Central Michigan and Western Michigan are hardly easy wins because both teams feature solid offenses with veteran quarterbacks. Both are more than capable of pulling an upset. There is also a trip to Notre Dame, where everyone in the country hopes the Spartans can continue their ownership of the Irish in Notre Dame Stadium. The hopes of a nation are with the Spartans that day, as a Michigan State victory would give Notre Dame one of the critical four losses needed to assure they don't get another undeserved BCS bowl bid.

As far as our game last season with the Spartans, I felt it was another missed opportunity. The defense played well and prevented Ringer from going totally nuts, but our offense failed to do anything until a final 98 yard drive that prevented a shutout. We had a good game plan, but one mistake (Siller's awful pick six) pretty much ruined any chance of a victory.

Michigan State offense:

Michigan State must find a way to replace Javon Ringer. Ringer had a monster season, rushing an astounding 390 times for 1,637 yards and 22 TD's. For good measure, he added 28 receptions for another 190 yards and even returned 11 kicks for 224 yards. He outscored the kicker, which is rare, and accounted for more than a third of Michigan State's total yardage gained on the season. Andre Anderson was second on the team in rushing attempts and yards with only 26 carries for 97 yards. Hoyer and Ashton Leggett are the only other players that had a rushing touchdown, each scoring once. Glenn Winston, who was recently released from jail, has now been reinstated as well.

How do you replace a guy that touches the ball on 429 different plays? Anderson, now a sophomore, is first in line to be the starter at tailback. Most likely, however, they will try to replace the yards by committee. A.J. Jimmerson and Leggett will also be contributors as Michigan State looks, at this early stage, to have the same running back-by-committee approach that we will have. They also have a star running back recruit that is a bit of a wild card like our own Al-Terek McBurse. Edwin Baker was one of the best high school running backs in the country last season. He is 5'10", 205 and already has enough size to make an early impression.

The quarterback battle is another key area for Michigan State. Kirk Cousins and Keith Nichol appear to be dead even for the starting job at the moment, and both could play significant minutes. Nichol sat out last season after transferring from Oklahoma, while Cousins saw a decent amount of action as Hoyer's backup. Cousins' 32 completions on 43 attempts gave him a very high percentage. He ended up with 310 yards passing and two touchdowns against one interception. That in-game experience may give him a very slight edge for now.

Many of the top receivers return from a unit that was very balanced. Blair White (49-659-1) had the most receptions, but tight end Charlie Gantt (19-304-4) was the leader in touchdowns. Michigan State was not afraid to go to Gantt in short yardage situations or at the goal line. Gantt actually had the longest reception of the season for Michigan State with an 82 yard catch and run. B.J. Cunningham (41-528-0) will be the main #2 receiver, while Mark Dell (36-679-3) led the team in receiving yards. This is an experienced receiving unit that should help the growth of either Cousins or Nichol.

The Spartans must replace the entire right side of their offensive line, which was possibly the best part of the line. Rocco Cironi at 6'6" 308 is the anchor at left tackle, and he is an excellent run blocker. This line will likely excel at run blocking once again as the passing game gets used to a new quarterback. Of course, this late in the season Michigan State should be together and will likely be playing much better than at the beginning. Joel Foreman and Joel Nitchman provide stability as returning starters at left guard and center, respectively.

Michigan State defense:

It is no surprise that Michigan State's defense continues to get better, as Mark Dantonio is a defense-first style of coach. This year, the Spartans return eight starters from a unit that got better, but still struggled against the really good teams on its schedule. Cal, Penn State, and Ohio State scored seemingly at will on the Spartans, but this unit did play a respectable game against Georgia in the bowl game.

One of the biggest losses on defense was safety Otis Wiley. Wiley delivered a hit on Kory Sheets in the 2007 game that led to a fumble return for a touchdown that sealed the game for MSU. Junior Marcus Hyde is the leading candidate to replace him after registering 31 tackles and an interception in reserve action. Johnny Adams could see the field at cornerback, and he already has hurt us. It was his pick six just before halftime in last year's game that virtually sealed that loss. Unfortunately for him, Ross Weaver and Chris Rucker already have the starting spots nailed down. Danny Fortener will man the other safety spot, giving Michigan State one of the most experienced secondaries in the Big Ten. The group managed 14 interceptions last year, but four came from Wiley.

Linebacker Greg Jones is probably the player to watch on the defense. He led the team in tackles and tackles for loss last year, registering 127 stops and 14 behind the line of scrimmage. He is excellent against the run and could be one of the top linebackers in the nation. Eric Gordon and Brandon Denson will play the outside spots, though Denson is a bit undersized by Big Ten standards. Gordon was second on the team with 85 tackles and added three sacks in 2008. This unit is not afraid to blitz the quarterback, making pass protection difficult.

Senior defensive end Trevor Anderson has been with Dantonio since his time at Cincinnati. He had 8 sacks a year ago, but three came against Michigan. He tends to play in streaks, so he will either have a monster game or all but disappear against us. Colin Neely is the newcomer to the defensive line at the other end position. He and tackle Kevin Pickleman are undersized, but will be sued more as pass rusher than run stoppers. That's to be expected as good as MSU's linebackers are. Oren Wilson is a true sophomore, but he started every game at tackle as a freshman last year.

Michigan State Special Teams:

Brett Swenson makes sure that the Spartans get points any time they get near the end zone. He was 22 of 28 on field goals with a long of 50 yards. He has made 52 career field goals in his time in East Lansing, making him one of the Big Ten's most proficient kickers. Aaron Bates also returns as a solid punter, averaging 42 yards per boot. The punt coverage wasn't great, however, as teams averaged 10 yards per return and MSU did give up a touchdown.

The kickoff return game struggled mightily, not even averaging 20 yards per return. It should be a lively competition to see who gets the starting job here, but A.J. Jimmerson is the leading candidate. With Wiley gone, Michigan State also must find a new punt returner.

Intangibles:

It is senior day for us, so that has to be worth something. Unfortunately, we are getting Michigan State at the end of the season instead of the beginning. By this point, both the quarterback and running back derbies should be settled. The defense will likely play at a very high level all season long. All they need is an offense that can go out and give them 20-25 points per game. With no Ohio State on the schedule, it is possible that the Spartans will be a week away from a very big home game against Penn State for the Big Ten title. If they are looking ahead it will be beneficial to us, but I doubt they will be looking ahead.

Still, I don't think this is a daunting team. Last year they were good and just beat up on a mediocre league. They are in the same position to do so this year. Our game in East Lansing was hardly a dominating blowout. Our mistakes gave MSU more than enough to win. We handed them seven points and generated virtually nothing on offense because of dropped passes. This has been a wild series since 1997 where the best team hasn't necessarily won every game. That was true of our surprising upset in 1999 as it was of Michigan State's in 2000.

I hate myself for leaving this game early

Game Outlook:

Again, I don't like that this game is at the end of the year. Michigan State is too solid of a team and could have too much to play for. Look at some of our recent wins over them. In 1997 and 1998 we won because of their mistakes late in games they dominated. Our last win in the series in 2006 came about because of a late interception that set up Casey Welch's late field goal. When we have won it has been because the Spartans screwed up. If they play a mistake free game we lose. I see that happening again here.

Prediction:

We had better five wins at this point, because if we're counting on this one as #5 I think we will be in for a long wait. I still think Indiana is our ace in the hole for getting win #6 and the bowl bid that comes with it. Beating Michigan State would be nice, but they simply are better and more experienced than us right now. I think we lose a close one at home where their maturity comes through. Michigan State 24, Purdue 21

Previewin': Michigan State

Beauford — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 10:00:18 -0000

Maize n' Brew mercilessly drifts through yet another preview; this one long overdue. Ladies and Gentlemen, the Michigan State Spartans

Previously: Illinois, Northwestern, Penn State, Iowa

Explanation and indemnifications found: here

The Michigan State Spartans enter this season with high expectations tempered with the knowledge that a workhorse running back and a marginal but experienced quarterback need replacing.

Javon Ringer was a good back who probably isn't irreplaceable. His numbers - detailed below - are largely a matter of increased work load.

Hoyer was pretty inconsistent during his senior season with a 9/9 TD to INT ratio. That, uh, that isn't so good (of course, when you're dealing with a Threet/Sheridan situation, anything looks good, so don't rush to judge).

On the positive side, the defense returns 8 starters including the vast majority of defensive backs, and every starting linebacker. That defense had better be good; they're going to be carrying an offense that may take some time to get their act together. Another plus for the Spartans is their special teams which return kicker Brett Swenson and punter Aaron Bates. Space emperor, he is not, but Bates is a very good punter.

More Previewin' Dead Ahead; Click Below

2009 Schedule

9/05	Montana State	12:00 PM
9/12	Central Michigan	12:00 PM
9/19	@ Notre Dame	3:30 PM
9/26	@ Wisconsin	TBA
10/03	Michigan	TBA
10/10	@ Illinois	12:00 PM
10/17	Northwestern	12:00 PM
10/24	Iowa	7:00 PM
10/31	@ Minnesota	8:00 PM
11/07	Western Michigan	TBA
11/14	@ Purdue	TBA
11/21	Penn State	TBA

Michigan State opens the season fairly tamely with a pair of OOC patsies, and follows with Notre Dame. Much like the Michigan schedule, Notre Dame will be this team's first test, and will serve as a good barometer for how the season will play out. Important to note that despite last year's 9 win season, the Spartans still lost to the four best teams on the schedule; Cal, Ohio State, Penn State, and Georgia. This year they duck Ohio State and pick up Illinois.

One thing the media will harp on that is off base:

I alluded to this in the front section of this preview, but the departure of Ringer might not be as devastating as many are predicting. Javon Ringer put up some monster numbers last year, mostly due to a workload that averaged just over 30 (30!) carries a game. The rushing attack as a whole, however, averaged just 130 yards per game - good for 77th in the country. For a one-time Heisman candidate (early in the season last year there was some talk, IIRC), 130 YPG is pretty weak. Ringer's numbers are largely a matter of attempts being super inflated. Iowa's Greene - the other workhorse back - had only 23 attempts per game. Ringer, for all his accolades, only averaged just over 4 yards per attempt - 18th in the conference in terms of rushing. On the one hand, this could be construed to be a positive for the Spartans. While they are replacing a workhorse senior, they're not exactly replacing Berry Sanders. Durability is certainly a trait that is admirable in a running back, and I'm not saying that Ringer wasn't any good. Rather, I think his numbers are a result of his increased workload, not a truly stellar rushing attack. The bevy of backs they expect to suck up the work load should be able to replicate the 4.2 yards per attempt that Ringer averaged. Who are those backs? Glad you asked.

Senior Back A.J. Jimmerson

Ashton Leggett, Andre Anderson, and AJ Jimmerson are the primary candidates fighting it out for playing time, and I expect all three to get significant carries throughout the season as they fill Ringer's void. Leggett was a two star to Scout from Muskegon, MI and at 5'11" 235, he's a big boy. Recruited as a fullback, I would expect him to see some time at the goal line and in short yardage situations. On the other side of the coin, Andre Anderson is a fleet footed Sophomore of the 190 lbs. variety capable of breaking off big plays. The change of pace should be effective for the Spartans as D'Antonio continues to use the clock management and down-and-distance strategies learned under Tressel. AJ Jimmerson rounds out the trio, but by no means should be considered lacking. A 4-star prospect out of Missouri, he looks to be a strong, balanced back.

One thing the media will completely ignore that is integral to this team's success:

With all the focus on the replacement of the two starters, and a defense that returns 8 starts, one of whom is linebacker/deathbringer Greg Jones, there are two facets that I believe are being overlooked. First, the wide receiver position actually returns quite a bit of talent, headed up by Mark Dell. Dell led the conference last year in yards per catch at just under 19. He's a big-play target that will bail out his fledgling QB. The other two returning starters, Blair White and BJ Cunningham had 84 receptions between the two of them. Add into the mix preseason all-conference tight end Charlie Gantt, and the receiving options are very good, and very deep.

However, the offense isn't without a trouble spot looming that has nothing to do with quarterback or running back. The entire right side of the offensive line is being replaced, which could have Nichol or Cousins running for their lives.

Most important contributors on each side of the ball:

Offensively, it's going to be whichever quarterback slides into the roll of starter. D'Antonio, for the time being, has said that his quarterbacks, Oklahoma Transfer Keith Nichol and in-state talent Kirk Cousins, will platoon at the position. It's been said a million times, but if Michigan State wants to be successful they'd better pick one of these guys to be the starter, and make sure he's confident enough to not look over his shoulder every time he throws a pick. Platooning QB's can be a very dangerous game to play in terms of the quarterback's psyche. Cousins offers perhaps more of a pocket presence, but Nichol is dangerous on the run. A 4-star out of MI-Inkster (Lowell - not Inkster. Corrected in comments - B2), I predict that Nichol will be getting the majority of snaps by season's end by virtue of more upside, and his ability to make plays with his legs should things break down.

McGuffie did not break this tackle

Defensively, I cannot say enough about Greg Jones, linebacker, humanitarian, and all around nice guy. He destroys the run, rarely getting sucked into blocks, and he'll be playing exclusively in the middle this year. Last year he was a first team all conference player. This year he's been named to preseason watch lists for three national awards: Butkus Award (top collegiate linebacker), Lombardi Award (college lineman of the year) and the Lott Trophy (defensive player of the year).

Area that scares you as Michigan Wolverines:

Mark Dell and his big-play ability scares me. Last year, the defense was good on a down-to-down basis, but very susceptible to the big play. The Spartans return one of the biggest play makers in the conference.

Area that makes you salivate as the Michigan Wolverines:

The Wolverines get Michigan State relatively early in the schedule. There is a good possibility that State will still be gelling on offense, and struggling to put points on the board. The new QB/RB tandem will be interesting to watch. Additionally, while the defense does return 8 starters, we had one of our more successful days offensively against the Spartans last year. I just hope our offense is clicking by the time we make the trip to East Lansing (a long shot, perhaps).

Random factor that you think will come into play this season:

First road game remains a mystery under Rodriguez. For Carr, it certainly meant death. It is a rivalry game under the lights (maybe) with a true freshman QB. I smell trouble.

Overall Record:

While some have predicted a 10-win season for the Spartans (I'm looking at you, Chengelis [note, a link was provided, but is now behind a paywall. - B2]) I don't see it happening. In fact, I look at this Michigan State team and see more question marks than Penn State, Ohio State, and Iowa. Again, Michigan State has improved, but seems unable to get over the hump to beat teams that are truly in the top-tier either in conference or out.

8-4

Final Big Ten Standing:

4th

Bowl Destination

Outback Bowl

Michigan State Football Unit Preview - Special Teams

Pete Rossman — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:00:15 -0000

(As KJ alluded to a few days ago, LVS and I will be previewing the football team unit by unit. First up, special teams.)

Special teams bailed the Spartans out in more than one game this past season, with Wisconsin being the game that immediately pops to mind (hat tip to YouTube user msusparty2000 for the vid). However, there were also special teams failures in that game as well; a botched fake punt nearly cost MSU the game. As a surprise to no one, Brett Swenson and Aaron Bates will perform the kicking duties this season. As for the kick and punt returning duties...that's anyone guess. After the jump, I break down Swenson's and Bates's performance in the past year, and take reasonable guesses (guessing methods: dartboard, duck race, cow pie raffle) at who'll hold the returning duties.

First up, the kickers:

STARTER: Brett Swenson (Sr., 5'8", 175 lbs.)

Season	0-19	20-29	30-39	40-49	50	Total	Long	Extra Points
2006	0-0	6-6	5-8	4-4	0-1	15-19	46	33-33
2007	1-1	6-8	5-6	3-5	0-2	15-22	46	53-54
2008	0-0	9-10	6-8	6-7	1-3	22-28	50	34-34
Career	1-1	21-24	16-22	13-16	1-6	52-69	50	120-121

I wouldn't say Swenson made a quantum leap in terms of his statistics last season. Where he did distinguish himself was in the big games; MSU would not have won the Iowa and Wisconsin games with a lesser kicker. His field goal percentage was about 79% this past season. However, I feel his percentage last year would have increased if the snapping had been adequate in a couple plays, most notably during the Michigan game. There's not really much else to say about Swenson except that he's been rock solid from inside the 50 during his career. The one flaw in his game? His range, he's been 1-6 for his career from outside 50 yards. If he can make a couple from outside the 50 this season, he'll make the jump from very, very good to elite, and set himself up to be an NFL draft pick.

BACKUP: Kevin Muma (Fr., 6'0", 170 lbs.)

He is the future, the only question is whether he'll be redshirted or ]perform the kickoff duties now that Todd Boleski has graduated. Muma averaged 59.4 yards on his kickoffs as a senior at Troy High School with 40 of his 52 kickoffs going for touchbacks. The 59.4 yards might be a bit understated, as any kickoff that goes beyond the goal line is given a length of 60 yards, thus it could be larger. Still, he might have add about 5-10 yards on his kickoffs to get it to the endzone.

My feeling? I think he should be redshirted. Give him a year, and have him be the kicker for the next four years. I might be a bit conservative on this point, but I still shudder whenever the name "John Goss" comes up in conversation.

Well, the punters must be next.

STARTER: Aaron Bates (Jr., 6'0", 190 lbs.)

Season	Punts	Average Yds	Long	Touchbacks	Fair Catches	Inside the 20
2007	69	39.7	67	10	10	23
2008	71	42.0	59	9	15	22
Career	140	40.9	67	19	25	45

Bates had a good freshman season and was named as an honorable mention to the Sporting News Freshman All-American team. However, it seamed to me that while his punts were long, they lacked hang time. He improved upon that though this past season, as he had a few more of his punts fair caught, and increased his average yardage. He's the punter for the next two years, and he's still got room to improve. If Bates stays on the same track, he'll average 45 yards a punt. That'll do just fine.

BACKUP: Kyle Selden (R-Fr, 6'5", 187 lbs.)

He hasn't seen game action yet. His player biography on msuspartans.com is blank. The only information I could dig up on him was that he once had a punt with a 4.5 second hang time at a kicking camp. If he was a Pearl Jam song as of now, he would definitely be "Nothingman". He's not going to stay that way forever - if Bates goes down, he'll be the starter, and if Michigan State can't bring in a punter in the 2010 or 2011 class (MSU is gunning for Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern punter Mike Sadler this year though - he has an offer), he'll start in Fall 2011.

KICK AND PUNT RETURNERS

I'm not even going to pretend to know this one. The only returning players with experience kick returning are A.J. Jimmerson and Keshawn Martin, and Martin's the only one who has punt return experience. This would be easier if Glenn Winston's status was known, but he's still suspended indefinitely. I could easily see Caper and Baker out of the freshmen get a chance to return kicks, and it wouldn't stun me to see Blair White get an opportunity. As for now, it's anyone's fiesta. My guess is that Jimmerson and Martin are your kick returners, and Martin returns the punts, because of their brief experience (9 kick returns for Jimmerson last year, 2 kick and 3 punt returns for Martin).

Next - on to offense? Or defense? Let us know, The Only Colors does take requests.