When No. 5-ranked MSU hosts No. 7-ranked Oregon, it will be the biggest game Spartan Stadium has seen in recent memory.
ESPN’s College GameDay will be on campus this year and East Lansing will be buzzing as the game will have huge implications on the rest of the season.
“We have a great opportunity in front of us,” head coach Mark Dantonio said. “GameDay will be here. It’s everything that you think about when you want to come to play at a place like this and very exciting for all Spartan fans and Spartan Nation in general.”
“Big football games have occurred here in the past. I guess this is one of the biggest ones in terms of nationally ranked teams, I guess, but more importantly for us, we’ve played in big games. Looking forward to the opportunity.”
The set up
On Jan. 12, 2015 the Spartans watched as the two teams they were defeated by in the regular season played for a national championship.
After a 46-27 loss to Oregon on Sept. 6, 2014 and a 49-37 loss to Ohio State on Nov. 8, 2014 MSU watched Ohio State crush Oregon for the ultimate honor in college football.
Watching Ohio State and Oregon play for the title is part of the reason senior quarterback Connor Cook returned to East Lansing.
“One of the main reasons I came back is to compete and have another opportunity to play against Oregon and Ohio State, teams that we lost to in the past,” Cook said. “Last year left a pretty bad taste in our mouth, it kind of stunk watching the national championship and seeing the two teams that you lost to play for a title.
“Throughout the whole offseason (we were) talking about the losses that we had, marking those on the calendar for next year so we can go out there and avenge our losses.”
The Spartans had a realistic opportunity to win both of those games last year. This is where the idea of “reach higher” came into play.
Winning 11 games is great, but when winning becomes a staple, losing the biggest games of the year becomes unacceptable.
“We’ve lost three games out of the last 30, and we know the teams we’ve lost to (Notre Dame in 2013, Oregon and Ohio State in 2014),” Dantonio said. “Our MO was to try to reach higher, and to do that, right now, it runs through Oregon.
“I also think that if you look at last year’s football team, if we win that football game you’re talking beyond. And you just keep trying to move your program forward and reach a little bit higher. So that’s what we’re trying to do.”
It is a very realistic possibility that the winner of the upcoming MSU vs. Oregon rematch will find themselves in the playoffs.
“I think we’ll be very motivated for the game, as will they, because this is a stepping stone game,” Dantonio said. “It’s not a conference game, but it’s a big, national game, and I think we all understand that. That’s why GameDay is here. That’s why people talk about it. It’s a big game. It has ramifications that go beyond this game later on down the line.”
Senior center Jack Allen wants the team to keep last year’s loss in the back of their minds because a win in that game could have given the team an opportunity to reach its ultimate goal — a national championship.
“We want to win this year,” Allen said. “We know we lost to these guys last year and they kind of took something from us and that’s something that we definitely need to have at the back of our minds this week when we’re pushing forward.”
What went wrong
A common belief amongst the team is that they let last year’s game against Oregon get away.
“Just not finishing drives in the second half, that was probably one of the biggest things,” Allen said. “That kind of kills momentum. If you’re only getting three instead of seven that’s huge.”
MSU took a 27-18 lead at the beginning of the third quarter last year, but Oregon scored 28 straight points to end the game.
“There’s definitely extra motivation,” junior tight end Josiah Price said. “We had a lead at halftime and then we lost it a little bit and couldn’t execute down the stretch.”
Cook has spoke multiple times about last year’s loss to the Ducks leaving a bad taste in his mouth, and this year the senior quarterback is looking for redemption.
“I just want to redeem myself,” Cook said. “I think last year I left some chips on the table, we had a great first half as an offense and then came out in the second half and didn’t really do so hot. So, we’re really focusing this week to emphasize the finishing aspect of the football game and come out there and redeem ourselves.”
The rematch
Most teams would downplay a game of this magnitude, but the Spartans know what is at stake and aren’t afraid to talk about it.
“We understand it’s a big game and we’re not going to shy away from that by any means,” senior linebacker Darien Harris said. “Some pressure is good pressure, that’s what coach always says. There’s pressure for us to play at night, with GameDay, with the entire country watching— we know it’s going to be primetime and we’re really looking forward to it.”
Dantonio believes this time his team has the weapons to keep up with Oregon on offense.
“If you look across the board, I think our tailback situation is extremely healthy right now,” Dantonio said. “I think our wide receiver situation is strong. Our tight end situation is extremely strong. I think our quarterback situation maybe as good as there is in the country.”
Dantonio believes his team is prepared to win in a shootout or a defensive struggle.
“Bottom line at the end of the game is do you win or do you lose?” Dantonio said. “So, whether we win 10-9 or 40-39 really makes no difference. They’re all going to count one.”
