Walking into Ohio Stadium, you could sense it was going to be a defensive game. There were overcast skies, rain was drizzling down and it was just cold enough to see your breath.
It just had that feeling. If the Spartans (4-1) were going to pick up their first win against Ohio State (3-2) in 12 years, the defense would have to carry them there.
And that is exactly what happened. MSU won the game, 10-7, and if not for a touchdown by Ohio State with 10 seconds left in the game, it would have been a shutout.
In my five years at MSU, it was hands down the best performance I have seen out of the MSU squad. Nine sacks and 178 yards allowed to the Buckeyes’ offense. That was nothing short of dominant.
The team always talks about it.
“We want to be dominant,” they have said.
And without a doubt, they have done so several times this season, but it happened against teams that really do not belong on the same field as the defending Big Ten champions.
This time it was a “real” opponent, and the Spartans nearly ran them off of their own field.
After sacking quarterback Braxton Miller four times, they did just that. Off the field was the only place he could run, with nine carries for minus-27 yards and later needing to be replaced by his backup.
The Spartans defense was and has been amazing — the No. 1 defense in the nation through five weeks. Tell me you thought you would ever be able to say that.
A few years ago, the MSU secondary was feared only by their own fans. An opposing receiver would run deep, one of two things would happen: a touchdown or defensive pass interference.
Not anymore, though. The Spartan secondary, comprised of one senior, a junior and two sophomores is not allowing squat. Ask Notre Dame wide receiver Michael Floyd, who is regarded nationally as a first-round NFL talent.
After two weeks of racking up receptions and 100 yard games, he was held to six catches for 84 yards and did not find the end zone — mostly being covered by a sophomore cornerback.
And the defensive line is a whole different story. Since the days of Jonal Saint-Dic, a former Spartan defensive end nicknamed “Sackmaster,” who left in 2007, the Spartans have failed to get the type of pressure Spartan fans saw Saturday.
After getting 20 sacks all of last season on the way to a Big Ten title, the defense already has tallied 14 in 2011, including Saturday’s nine-sack performance.
This is a group with two seniors, six underclassmen and seven first-year starters. Two will graduate at the end of the season and one — junior defensive end Jerel Worthy — will most likely enter his name into the 2012 NFL Draft.
Although they might not finish as the best defense in the country, this defense is going to be good for quite some time. And that is not something Spartan fans had the privilege of saying a couple years ago.
A confident defense, who wants to be feared and wants the game in their hands when that final quarter comes around. That is the identity we are beginning to see. It’s not definite.
With two early Heisman Trophy candidates coming to town in Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson and Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson, it can’t be finalized yet.
But if the Spartan defenders come out with the same attitude and emotion as they did in Ohio Stadium, MSU can hang with any team in the nation.
Now if only the offense could get its act together.
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