The MSU football team got their 2015 football season underway Friday night with a 37-24 victory over Western Michigan. Here are five takeaways from the game.
1. Offensive line play
Five takeaways from Friday night's MSU football victory
The return team brings back senior receiver R.J. Shelton, who pairs up with redshirt-freshman Darrell Stewart Jr., and both receivers are certainly explosive. For now, Shelton is listed as the replacement for punt returns, where last season, Macgarrett Kings Jr. drove fans crazy with his muffed catches and lack of big returns. It is too early to tell if the return game will step up a notch with Shelton and Stewart Jr., but both looked comfortable fielding kicks and returning in practice.
The talent level of the offensive line was a storyline all summer long and it was on full display Friday night.
The unit kept senior quarterback Connor Cook on his feet all night long—not allowing a single sack in over 28 minutes of possession time.
"They did great, they were picking up blitzes," Cook said of his offensive line. "Like I've said multiple times before they're an experienced group of guys and they know how to pick up certain things that other offensive lines don't. So, they did exceptional in the run and pass game."
2. Running back situation
After Friday night, questions still remain as to who is the best running back on the roster— but that's not a bad thing as the three backs who got carries performed well.
"I think that was a question mark coming in," MSU head coach Mark Dantonio said of his running back situation. "I think we're good. We're good at that position."
True freshman L.J. Scott finished with 13 carries for 77 yards. Sophomore Madre London, who was the starter, finished with 13 carries for 66 yards and two touchdowns and redshirt freshman Gerald Holmes finished with nine carries for 55 yards and a touchdown.
"I thought they played excellent," Cook said. "L.J.'s got a lot of talent, Madre ran his butt off and Gerald did as well. So, I think that's encouraging obviously our offensive line is doing great you know keeping me protected, opening up the holes for the running back and the running backs really did the dirty work."
3. Front seven
While the pass coverage was spotty, the run defense looked great against a quality back in Broncos sophomore Jarvion Franklin.
The Spartans held WMU to just 18 net rushing yards, while getting seven sacks and 11 total tackles-for-loss.
Since 2012, MSU leads NCAA FBS in games in which the defense held opponents under 50 yards rushing in a game with 16.
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4. Team was rusty
Playing against your teammates and playing live action for the first time are very different and it showed in MSU's victory.
The Spartans stormed out early but the signs of rust showed late. Junior linebacker Riley Bullough missed several tackles he could've made, Cook missed some throws he could've made, but its happens to the best of them.
"I think I was fairly average, for my expectations I know what I'm capable of," Cook said. "I know what I want to do out there on the field, I think there were some throws I would like to have definitely like to have back...I think I can definitely improve for next week."
This is a talented team, expect them to be prepared for Oregon next week.
5. Plans for Terry
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Third string quarterback Damion Terry is very athletic and has the potential to impact the game in many ways.
It was interesting to see Terry lined up a wide receiver a couple of times during the game. He was used as a decoy, but his versatility makes him a threat.
Keep an eye on Terry he could carve out a role on this team. He even took a snap at quarterback during the game in a design run up the middle.
