Despite overwhelming victory, Spartans still have things to improve upon
No. 9 MSU made quick work of Eastern Michigan on Saturday at Spartan Stadium , embarrassing the Eagles, 73-14.
MSU (2-1 overall) outgained EMU (1-3 overall) 320 to one in total yards in the first half, releasing some built up frustration from its loss out in Eugene, Ore. Here are four takeaways from the Spartans’ impressive victory this past week.
Not the same old Spartans
In the past, MSU hasn’t always looked good against not-so-good opponents. That simply hasn’t been the case in 2014. MSU got off to a hot start against the Eagles on Saturday, jumping to a 49-0 lead at halftime and never giving EMU a chance.
“I knew we were heavy favorites in the football game (and) I wanted to make sure, or we wanted to make sure as coaches, that we played up and that we did not play down to the point margin that they were predicting,” head coach Mark Dantonio said during a teleconference on Sunday.
With its decisive 73-14 win this week, MSU has outscored its opponents 118 to 28 in its two victories this season.
QB mobility
MSU’s offense rolled out plenty of different looks on Saturday, including some new plays and packages centered around running the ball with its quarterback.
Junior quarterback Connor Cook ran the ball three times, two of which were designed QB run plays, for 11 yards and one touchdown. MSU also instrumented a special package featuring redshirt freshman quarterback Damion Terry . The new package utilized Terry’s mobility, with multiple read option runs totaling 17 rushing yards.
Dantonio and co-offensive coordinator and running backs coach Dave Warner have been harping on getting more rushing production out of its quarterbacks, with Saturday serving as an improvement.
“It is critical that our quarterback is able to move in the pocket, drop back and pass, scramble and create, stretch plays out a little bit,” Warner said. “It’s good stuff as long as our quarterback is going north, south and getting positive yards. We are getting into it here this year, it’s good stuff.”
Secondary can still improve
If there was anywhere that could be picked at and criticized about MSU’s effort on Saturday, the secondary would be the spot.
MSU was able to hold EMU to only 115 passing yards, but big plays remain an issue. The Spartans’ pass defense was exposed a few weeks ago at No. 2 Oregon and EMU was able to score a 43-yard touchdown through the air.
Eliminating big plays in the passing game will remain an area that needs to improve for MSU to experience success this season.
Take it with a grain of salt
It’s easy to get wrapped up in the numbers and stats from MSU’s convincing win on Saturday but don’t forget who it came against.
EMU is a bad team. There’s a reason why the Eagles were picked to finish last in the Mid American Conference at the beginning of the season. They’ll struggle to win more than two games this year as they break in a new head coach and probably would have lost to the same Jacksonville State team MSU rolled in the season opener.
So while it was a strong performance on both sides of the ball for MSU, don’t look too much into all of the numbers. Winning a championship won’t come from blowing out one of college football’s worst teams, so don’t act like it will.
