Homecoming weekend is a time for celebration and remembrance. But Spartan fans don’t have much to celebrate.
MSU (3-3 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) was embarrassed last Saturday in Iowa City, Iowa, to the tune of a 44-16 loss. The Hawkeye players even went as far as to say the Spartans lacked toughness.
Junior linebacker Monquiz Wedlow said the whole situation was insulting, adding several Spartans became more vocal following the nationally televised beating.
“The seniors and upperclassmen just have to take control,” he said. “This is our team, and that’s the way we’ve got to do it.
“If we’ve got to play every down on offense, special teams and defense then that’s what we’ve got to do.”
Spartan head coach Bobby Williams agrees, as he’s made a few lineup changes.
MSU fans can expect to see seniors like strong safety Thomas Wright, cornerbacks Cedric Henry and DeMario Suggs, Wedlow and others getting even more playing time on special teams.
“He’s putting it on all of us to go out there and win,” Wedlow said.
“We’re just inches away from where we want to be at. It seems like miles away for a lot of people, but we’re so close.”
Indeed, inches have been the difference for MSU. The Spartans committed 12 of their 15 turnovers against California, No. 7 Notre Dame and No. 15 Iowa. The Green and White gave the pigskin away five times against both the Golden Bears and Hawkeyes, which were the only two embarrassing losses.
But the Spartans insist they can’t dwell on the past or even think about losing to Minnesota (6-1, 2-1).
“I don’t think that’s the way to think about things,” senior wide receiver Ziehl Kavanaght said.
“We’ve got to stay positive and think about winning.”
Collecting a win against the Golden Gophers will, for the second-straight week, depend on the Spartans’ ability to stop the run, as Minnesota leads the Big Ten with 254 rushing yards per game.
“Minnesota was second last week. Now they’re first because we shut down Iowa,” Wedlow said. “So we’re just going to go out and play ball.”
The Hawkeyes sat atop the conference in rushing, but MSU held them to 127 yards. Now, Iowa ranks third at 225.7 yards per game.
Fans can expect plenty of defense Saturday. The Golden Gophers and Spartans rank first and second, respectively, in the conference for total defense.
So the key to victory lies on the offensive side of the ball.
Whichever team can break the other’s defense will most likely walk away with the win.
“I don’t know what it takes,” junior wide receiver Charles Rogers said. “There’s a lot of questions, and there’s not a lot of answers.”
And the Spartans know their poor start has diminished their support that seemed endless in the preseason.
“All we’ve got is ourselves right now and everybody knows that,” Rogers said. “We’ve just got to stick together and get over this. And we will.
“That’s what it’s about, Spartan pride.”
