The latest edition of the Spring Game might not have been the shootout last spring’s was, but junior quarterback Kirk Cousins was about as sharp as he could have been, completing 66.6 percent of his passes for 254 yards and one touchdown.

The guys he and his counterpart, redshirt freshman quarterback Andrew Maxwell, were throwing to did not disappoint either.

There is no question senior receiver Mark Dell and junior receiver B.J. Cunningham were missed in the 2010 Valero Alamo Bowl, and now that they are back on the field, the duo appears poised for a big comeback next season. The two receivers arguably were the most exciting players on the field Saturday, catching passes down the field and turning short throws into big plays.

However, the depth at receiver might be the unit’s strongest asset, as Cunningham and Dell are not even listed as starters. Juniors Keshawn Martin and Keith Nichol currently are the top receivers on the depth chart, and although both had solid spring games, they were outshined by the returns of Dell and Cunningham.

With Cousins entering his second season as a starter and as a captain, he is the undisputed leader of a dangerous aerial attack with plenty of weapons.

As was the case last season, though, the running game might be the Achilles’ heel for the Spartans’ offense. Head coach Mark Dantonio has talked all spring about freshman running backs Nick Hill and Le’Veon Bell being potential breakout players, and Hill showed it Saturday with 51 yards on just five carries. But other than one long run by Hill — which he fumbled at the end — all four MSU running backs struggled to find holes and break big runs, combining for just 4.1 yards per rush.

Not having two offensive lines pieced together during the season like they were for the scrimmage will help, but the Spartans need to see an improvement on the ground to compete in the Big Ten.

Defensively, MSU looked much better Saturday than in last spring’s scrimmage, when the offenses combined for 75 points.

All-American senior linebacker Greg Jones is the anchor of the defense, but plenty of other players have shown this spring they are capable of being key contributors.

Senior Eric Gordon and sophomore Chris Norman have been the most talked about linebackers other than Jones, but it was two other linebackers who stole the show Saturday.

Freshman Denicos Allen was all over the field, accounting for seven tackles, two sacks, a forced fumble and a pass breakup, and sophomore Steve Gardiner, Jones’ backup at middle linebacker, also had seven tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss.

Much like the rushing attack on the offensive side of the ball, the play of the secondary could be the only thing holding back the MSU defense. None of the MSU quarterbacks had too much trouble finding open players during the scrimmage, and when the defensive backs did have a chance to make a play, they dropped the ball — literally.

Sophomore Johnny Adams might be the missing link to an effective secondary, though. After redshirting last season, the speedy Adams had an impressive Spring Game with four tackles, two sacks and a fumble recovery.

As the optimism level is at its peak following a productive spring game and month of practices, MSU heads into summer. If the Spartans continue to work and build off of a strong spring, there is no reason next season should not only be exciting, but successful as well.

Jeremy Warnemuende is a State News sports reporter. He can be reached at warnemu3@msu.edu..