Not much has gone right for MSU this season, and the result was Monday’s firing of head coach Bobby Williams.
The Spartans (3-6 overall, 1-4 Big Ten) have struggled with high expectations from day one. Add in the indefinite suspension of junior quarterback Jeff Smoker and dismissal of senior tailback Dawan Moss, and many around MSU feel it’s an all-time low in East Lansing.
“I would say this team has pretty much hit rock bottom,” sophomore linebacker Ronald Stanley said. “To lose two of our captains and then our head coach, I mean, the bottom has pretty much fell out.”
But the Spartans don’t have time to dwell on the negatives, as a trip to Bloomington, Ind., marks the beginning of a new era in MSU football.
And Spartan fans everywhere are curious to see how MSU takes the field against Indiana (3-6, 1-4) without Williams, who has led the team onto the field the past 33 games. Williams was 16-17 at the helm, but just 3-9 away from Spartan Stadium (1-9 in the Big Ten).
“You can’t judge that until it happens,” senior strong safety Thomas Wright said. “I’m waiting to see myself.”
With 42 years of coaching experience (12th at MSU) interim head coach Morris Watts knows the ropes well, and the players have plenty of confidence in him.
“Coach Watts is going to lead us in the right direction,” freshman tailback David Richard said. “He wants to bring the best out of us.”
But most of the Spartans still feel Williams should have been allowed to finish out the season.
“People basically said the season is over. That’s how we took it,” junior linebacker Monquiz Wedlow said. “But for us, especially the underclassmen, it means a lot. We need to finish on a positive note.
“We’re going to go out there and we’re going to get a victory. And that’s all he’d want.”
Wedlow, like many of the Spartans, feels like he let Williams down. He said it was the players that failed this season, not Williams.
But that isn’t why the loss of Williams hurts so much.
“He’s not only a football coach, he’s a great man,” Richard said. “When I came up here on my visit I could see how he cared more about you as a person than an athlete.
“It’s kind of hard for me. Coach Williams is one of the main reasons why I came in. Now he’s gone, but that’s life and you’ve just got to move on. I’m going to still have Coach Williams with me when I play.”
Many of the Spartans said Williams will be with them during Saturday’s game. But regardless, senior right guard Paul Harker said the move opened some eyes inside the MSU locker room.
“It really caught guys off guard and got them motivated,” he said. “It definitely lit a fire under some guys.”
Most of that fire is in the form of frustration. But the Spartans know that can be turned into a positive thing.
“We’ve got to use the frustration as motivation,” Richard said. “Just take our anger out on the opposing team.”
That frustration has been evident in practice this week, and Watts encouraged the Spartans to utilize it. But the Spartans can only take so much out on each other.
“We do definitely need to play a game,” junior center Brian Ottney said. “We’re definitely looking forward to playing Saturday.”
Win or lose, Saturday’s game can’t fix everything that’s gone wrong this season. But a win would certainly make all in green and white feel a lot better.
“Coach Williams meant a lot to us and we’re never going to forget him,” Wedlow said. “He’s still in everybody’s heart and you can’t take what’s in our hearts.”
Eric McKinney can be reached at mckinn54@msu.edu.
