Saturday was supposed to be a day when the MSU football team was going to clinch a top bowl bid with a win over a Purdue squad led by its leader Joe Tiller.
It was supposed to be a day when I, as a senior, was going to partake in an abundance of pregame activities, stumble into Spartan Stadium and watch our prolific offense and outstanding defense pick apart the Boilermakers.
But that is nothing like what it's going to be. I'm still going to go to the game, and I'm still going to overindulge myself, but I'm not going to watch an 8-2 team annihilate a young Purdue team.
As the Spartans (4-6 overall, 2-4 in the Big Ten) take the field on Saturday, they're going to be in for a battle with a team that just came off a heartbreaking loss to Ohio State, the No. 1 team in the Bowl Championship Series rankings.
As much as a debacle as this season has been for the gridders on and off the field, I have to give them credit for overcoming adversity (beating Indiana 56-21 on last Saturday) and for continuing to come and play the game.
In the last few weeks, it seems Saturday afternoons at the old ball field have become a release for the Spartan team.
Some of those Saturdays' we'd like to forget (getting steam-rolled 49-3 against Michigan on Nov. 2), but for all the bad things that have loomed over this team's head, there are some bright spots.
With two captains being suspended indefinitely and another unable to control his barbaric impulses, that leaves one lone Spartan leader - senior strong safety Thomas Wright.
Last weekend, I was listening to the Spartan broadcast on the radio, and I remember the announcer saying something along the lines of, "If there were more Thomas Wrights on the team, the team would be loaded with hard workers."
Now it may sound cliché, but Wright has played some incredible football this season. During the Nov. 2 massacre, the Lake Wales, Fla., native recorded 12 solo tackles and assisted on four more.
The 6-1, 193-pounder is the epitome of what a Spartan should be. Stoic, brave, warlike and highly disciplined - are all adjectives that accurately describe Wright.
Not only is he a highly respected athlete among his teammates and coaches, but he is also respected nationally. In the preseason, he was ranked as the 12th best strong safety by The Sporting News.
Despite all this recognition, Wright has been level-headed throughout the Jeff Smoker saga and the firing of Bobby Williams - and that is commendable.
Seeing No. 43 on the field is something that I've become accustomed to seeing on a weekly basis. I've seen Wright improve his games over the four-and-a-half years I've been here, and it's something I hope will continue on Sundays.
So on the eve of our final home game at Spartan Stadium, I once again have a reason to go to the game.
I'm not just going to watch the mediocre Green and White take on the one-too-many heartbreakers, AKA Purdue. Instead I'm going to cheer and applaud the seniors as they are introduced for the last time.
Then I'm going to watch our one familiar captain walk out to the 50-yard line and participate in the coin toss.
From then I'll take in the atmosphere of the 72,000-plus crowd, and wait for the No. 43 jersey to walk through the tunnel for the last time.
Ryan Wallace, State News sports editor, can be reached wallac89@msu.edu.
