“They’re frustrating,” Dantonio said in regard to his seniors getting penalties. “I think the key to anything is how you handle disappointment or how you handle some things that don’t go right for you. We aren’t going to lose our minds out there, we are going to keep coaching, coach for the next play, and that’s what we did.”

That being said, the Spartans have plenty of room for improvement before they head to South Bend, Ind. to renew the rivalry with Notre Dame. Bright spots existed throughout the team, but some sores were also exposed. Here are overall grades on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being best, and game balls from MSU’s opening game victory over Furman:

OFFENSE:

Senior quarterback Tyler O’Connor looked comfortable enough in the pocket and ended the night with a solid stat line: 13-18 and 190 yards with three touchdowns and one interception, a slip up that was erased after sophomore linebacker Andrew Dowell intercepted Furman the following play. Regardless, O’Connor was judgmental about his performance.

“I kind of look at myself as a perfectionist and I try to do things 100 percent right all the time, and I don’t think I did that today,” O’Connor said. “That being said, you can’t get too low and you can't get too high as a quarterback. I’ve learned that over the years.  A win’s a win, and we are OK with it, but we've got a lot of things we have to fix up.”

One offensive bright spot was LJ Scott who, after carrying the ball 20 times for 105 yards, looked to separate himself as the top back in the rotation. Sophomore Madre London only carried the ball five times for 14 yards, and junior Gerald Holmes failed to get into the contest.

“He (Scott) certainly has earned the starting position and earned to be sort of a lead guy,” co-offensive coordinator Dave Warner said. “He’s done that throughout, especially this camp in August. Moving forward LJ is the guy, and those other guys certainly I want to get in there more so than what happened tonight.”

Senior receiver R.J. Shelton left the game in the first quarter following a “minor injury," Dantonio, and it opened up the door for some younger guys to step in. Felton Davis III reeled in three catches for 40 yards and a touchdown, and freshman Donnie Corley caught two receptions and ran the ball once, garnering 18 total yards during his first collegiate action.

The pair of senior tight ends of Price and Jamal Lyles each caught one pass for touchdowns, but the most impressive receiver of the night was senior Monty Madaris, who showcased his speed and juke ability, hauling in five catches for 85 yards with the majority being after the catch.

The offensive line was stable, but not perfect. A few holding calls and two sacks allowed doesn't look great, but getting a game under their belt as a unit will only be beneficial.

Game Ball: LJ Scott for separating himself from running back field, taking hits on bruising late in the game to burn clock.

Grade: Six

DEFENSE

The defensive line struggled as Furman was able to generate 87 yards rushing by getting to the second level, forcing linebackers and secondary players to step in and finish the play. That’s why the three linebackers — senior Riley Bullough, junior Chris Frey and sophomore Andrew Dowell — were the three leading tacklers for MSU.

The secondary unit played well, primarily clamping up in the red zone and forcing Furman to kick two short-range field goals in their three red zone opportunities. They were led by senior safety Demetrious Cox with seven tackles, but starting corner Vayante Copeland and other safety Montae Nicholson finished with six tackles a piece.

The player Furman picked on most was senior cornerback Hicks, who was seemingly thrown to every time Furman quarterback P.J. Blazejowski dropped back. Hicks had only two tackles and two pass interference penalties, but accumulated a team high four pass break ups.

“I thought he (Hicks) played really good,” Cox said. “The pass interferences, we can only control what we can control. He was playing like he was coached to play, lot of open field tackles and a lot of plays on the deep balls. Some calls didn’t go our way, but we just buckled down and kept going.”

Overall, the linebackers were the ones who stole the show, especially considering that junior linebacker Jon Reschke was kept out of the game because of a minor injury. They were slow to react a few times, most likely surprised by the opponent getting through the menacing MSU defensive line, but wound up stopping plays before they turned into big gainers. Frey led the team with nine total tackles, while Bullough and Dowell finished with eight, each having four solo tackles.

Game Ball: Slight edge to Dowell over the other two linebackers because of the crucial interception in the fourth quarter.

Grade: Seven

SPECIAL TEAMS

The special teams unit was shaky to start the season last year, and things didn't change in 2016. Senior kicker Michael Geiger missed his lone field goal attempt from 43 yards out, and senior Kevin Cronin sent his first kickoff out of bounds for a penalty.

There was, however, one major improvement from the opener against Western Michigan University last season to the opener against Furman on Friday night. That difference resides in the punting unit as a whole, whether it be the coverage team or the leg of sophomore Jake Hartbarger.

Hartbarger totaled only three punts, all in the first half, but wound up pinning the Paladins inside the 10-yard line on two of those three occasions. The other punt went 58 yards, only two yards shy of the MSU football record. Hartbarger averaged 44.7 yards per punt, and the coverage team was there to either down the ball or prevent any major return from Furman.

Not much happened in the return game for MSU, but sophomore Brandon Sowards and redshirt-freshman Darrell Stewart Jr. did a solid job of replacing Shelton fielding kicks.

Game Ball: Jake Hartbarger

Grade: 5

The team has patches to fill in across the board, but some injuries and penalties really halted a lot of progress the team made throughout the game. Discipline should be a focal point of Spartan practices heading into their bye week, and minor injuries to key players like Shelton, Davis III and Reschke should help fill some gaps in the coming weeks.