Then-junior linebacker Kaleb Thornhill takes down Michigan
MSU head coach Mark Dantonio has made it known one of the keys this season for his football team is to win the fans back. After the team’s 3-0 start, the Spartans are closer to achieving that goal, and the unified, white-clad student section has loudly voiced its support at Spartan Stadium.
This week, though, those fans will be silenced as they sit at home in East Lansing.
MSU is on the road for the first time this season as they travel to South Bend, Ind. They will enter Notre Dame Stadium to a vicious student section that wishes to exact revenge on the boys in green and white who drove a flag through the heart of Notre Dame’s team, fans and field two years ago.
This will be anything but home.
“It’s a tough crowd down there,” senior strong safety Travis Key said. “They have pretty tough fans, a pretty good momentum booster I guess you could say.”
In actuality, though, it’s been the away team that has momentum in this rivalry matchup. MSU has won its last five games in Notre Dame while the Fighting Irish have won three straight in East Lansing.
Statistics don’t matter to Dantonio, though. He prefers to emphasize the playing environment, which will be different this weekend while on the road.
“It’s always more special when you’re playing at home,” Dantonio said. “It’s very difficult to win away games. You look across the Big Ten and you can see that every day.
“But it’s important if you’re going to be a great football team, you have to be able to go on the road and play. You have to be able to go on the road and take a crowd out of the game.”
The Spartans have prepared for the Notre Dame crowd by practicing with noise this week, which they say helps them focus and brings an in-game element to practice. The players hope the distractions at practice will help them to limit false start and offsides penalties, as well as maintain communication in the huddle.
Even if they learn to play through all the ruckus, MSU players and coaches will still miss their own fans.
“I’m going to miss our fans and our students,” Dantonio said. “But they’ll be there watching TV. I’ll miss those and I’ll miss playing in this environment, it’s a great environment here.”
The Spartans are ready for a nasty welcome from the Fighting Irish fan base. And while they will miss their fans, they’re ready to prove they can win anywhere.
“It’s going to be a hostile environment,” senior running back Jehuu Caulcrick said. “It just comes down to playing on their field.”
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