Michigan State fan and alumnus here. I think most of our fanbase is excited about playing another Top 20 team in WSU but somewhat disappointed in doing so in the Holiday Bowl instead of a NYD game (Citrus or Outback). OSU not getting in the playoff created a lot chaos in our bowl selection. Since the Orange Bowl selected one of the three Big Ten NY6 teams not in the playoff, the Citrus Bowl (where we were projected to go) was no longer eligible to select a Big Ten team. Somehow, an 8-4 Michigan team (who we beat), finished 4th in the Big Ten East, and didn't beat a single team with a winning record got the Outback Bowl Bid on NYD. Clearly, on field performance has nothing to do with bowl selection these days. Anyway, here is my take on MSU...
This year's MSU squad is one of the 3 youngest teams in the Power 5, with only 4 seniors in our 2 deep. We've had a lot of success over the last decade or so (Rose Bowl win, Cotton Bowl win, CFP Appearance, etc) but had a very disappointing 3-9 year last season...our worst season in 35 years or so. Last season culminated with 4 of our top players being kicked off the team due to off field issues during the off season.
Considering our struggles last year and player attrition, I'd say most of our fan base was hoping for a 6-6 / 7-5 type year after last year's debacle. 9-3 including a road win over Michigan and a home win vs. Penn State has most of us feeling this team has overachieved and is ahead of schedule considering their youth. It seems that the locker room issues have been cleaned up.
Our QB (Brian Lewereke) is a RS Sophomore with great potential and this is his first year as our starter. He had a couple of 400+ yard games (including the game against Penn State) but has had a couple of ugly games as well...some of this is due to the fact that we've played in a few cold/sloppy weather games, which has limited effective passing opportunities. He is also a mobile QB and has ripped off some long runs this year. We primarily operate out of a pro style offense.
Our primary RB is LJ Scott...he is a 3rd year starter as a Junior but has had trouble holding on to the football this year. Overall he is a great talent but the ball security issues have been very frustrating. In spite of this, he may still be projected to go high enough in the NFL draft to leave school after his junior year.
Our top WR target is Felton Davis, a RS Jr. He has 8 TD's on the year. We also have a true freshman in Cody White who has been very effective and made the conference All-Freshmen Team.
Our OL is very young (like most position groups). They have done a good job pass protecting but we've done a poor job being able to pound the ball on the ground this year...very few holes for our RB's to utilize.
Defensively, I saw somewhere that we ranked in the Top 10 nationally in total defense. Other than the Ohio State game, our defensive line has been pretty stout against the run. Our DB's have been a pleasant surprise, with some young players like Josiah Scott being named to the all-conference team as freshmen. We typically struggle more with teams who run up tempo style offense and spread the ball out to make us tackle in space...WSU is not a great matchup for us in this regard. We are usually pretty effective against pro style / traditional offenses. We typically play press man coverage, which puts a lot of pressure on our DB's to perform.
Special Teams are okay. We have a true freshman kicker who was 15/19 this year...he missed 2 field goals at Northwestern, contributing to our loss in 3OT. Our punter (Jake Hartbarger) is very effective and might even be considered a weapon for us. We struggle to kick touchbacks on kickoffs and our return men leave a lot to be desired.
Our head coach, Mark Dantonio, is one of the best in the business, in my opinion. MSU doesn't get the most talent but Dantonio coaches these guys up. (Kirk Cousins and Le'Veon Bell were 2 star recruits, for example). Our campus is located 65 miles from U of M, 150 miles from ND, and 250 miles from OSU (3 of the winningest programs of all time) so recruiting is always a challenge. Most of our fanbase is frustrated with our offensive playcalling. We don't have the horses on the OL to pound the ball this year but the staff is too stubborn to go away from their run first philosophy and air the ball out a bit more. We tend to waste a lot of early downs running the ball into our O-Line's kidneys for no gain.
Unfortunately, I will be unable to attend the game in San Diego as I will be in Florida visiting family for the holidays (another reason I selfishly wanted the bowl game to be in Orlando or Tampa). I've already heard a lot of complaints that plane tickets are extremely expensive out of Detroit to San Diego during the bowl game time frame, I'll be interested to see how many MSU fans make it out that way. We typically have a very good following and have a large alumni base, so we shall see...
This year's MSU squad is one of the 3 youngest teams in the Power 5, with only 4 seniors in our 2 deep. We've had a lot of success over the last decade or so (Rose Bowl win, Cotton Bowl win, CFP Appearance, etc) but had a very disappointing 3-9 year last season...our worst season in 35 years or so. Last season culminated with 4 of our top players being kicked off the team due to off field issues during the off season.
Considering our struggles last year and player attrition, I'd say most of our fan base was hoping for a 6-6 / 7-5 type year after last year's debacle. 9-3 including a road win over Michigan and a home win vs. Penn State has most of us feeling this team has overachieved and is ahead of schedule considering their youth. It seems that the locker room issues have been cleaned up.
Our QB (Brian Lewereke) is a RS Sophomore with great potential and this is his first year as our starter. He had a couple of 400+ yard games (including the game against Penn State) but has had a couple of ugly games as well...some of this is due to the fact that we've played in a few cold/sloppy weather games, which has limited effective passing opportunities. He is also a mobile QB and has ripped off some long runs this year. We primarily operate out of a pro style offense.
Our primary RB is LJ Scott...he is a 3rd year starter as a Junior but has had trouble holding on to the football this year. Overall he is a great talent but the ball security issues have been very frustrating. In spite of this, he may still be projected to go high enough in the NFL draft to leave school after his junior year.
Our top WR target is Felton Davis, a RS Jr. He has 8 TD's on the year. We also have a true freshman in Cody White who has been very effective and made the conference All-Freshmen Team.
Our OL is very young (like most position groups). They have done a good job pass protecting but we've done a poor job being able to pound the ball on the ground this year...very few holes for our RB's to utilize.
Defensively, I saw somewhere that we ranked in the Top 10 nationally in total defense. Other than the Ohio State game, our defensive line has been pretty stout against the run. Our DB's have been a pleasant surprise, with some young players like Josiah Scott being named to the all-conference team as freshmen. We typically struggle more with teams who run up tempo style offense and spread the ball out to make us tackle in space...WSU is not a great matchup for us in this regard. We are usually pretty effective against pro style / traditional offenses. We typically play press man coverage, which puts a lot of pressure on our DB's to perform.
Special Teams are okay. We have a true freshman kicker who was 15/19 this year...he missed 2 field goals at Northwestern, contributing to our loss in 3OT. Our punter (Jake Hartbarger) is very effective and might even be considered a weapon for us. We struggle to kick touchbacks on kickoffs and our return men leave a lot to be desired.
Our head coach, Mark Dantonio, is one of the best in the business, in my opinion. MSU doesn't get the most talent but Dantonio coaches these guys up. (Kirk Cousins and Le'Veon Bell were 2 star recruits, for example). Our campus is located 65 miles from U of M, 150 miles from ND, and 250 miles from OSU (3 of the winningest programs of all time) so recruiting is always a challenge. Most of our fanbase is frustrated with our offensive playcalling. We don't have the horses on the OL to pound the ball this year but the staff is too stubborn to go away from their run first philosophy and air the ball out a bit more. We tend to waste a lot of early downs running the ball into our O-Line's kidneys for no gain.
Unfortunately, I will be unable to attend the game in San Diego as I will be in Florida visiting family for the holidays (another reason I selfishly wanted the bowl game to be in Orlando or Tampa). I've already heard a lot of complaints that plane tickets are extremely expensive out of Detroit to San Diego during the bowl game time frame, I'll be interested to see how many MSU fans make it out that way. We typically have a very good following and have a large alumni base, so we shall see...
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