MSU head coach Mark Dantonio took the podium on Tuesday in what he described as a “broken record,” as the team has yet to improve upon the things he has consistently talked about during the Spartans seven-game losing streak.
The offense against Illinois was only able to generate nine points in their first six possessions, all which found their way into Illinois territory. Both sides of the ball committed numerous penalties, a recurring theme throughout the season.
Here are the takeaways from Dantonio’s comments regarding Rutgers and his team's mission this week to get its first Big Ten win.
1. Dantonio “shocked” at the way season has gone.
Dantonio was asked Tuesday on if he ever expected the season to go the way it has, and if he was as surprised with the turnout as fans and media were.
“Shocking,” Dantonio put simply. “I live it. Like I told my players, I live it. You guys will go write another sports story for somebody else. I live this. I work 90 hours a week at this, okay? Our players are young people, they're resilient, but they're living it, too. Our coaches, this is what we do for a living. They live it. You scratch your head a little bit, how this could happen, how that could happen.”
Going from a College Football Playoff appearance to a 2-7 record with recurring mistakes is certainly shocking and frustrating. Players have called meetings, as have coaches, to help analyze what has been going wrong. Unfortunately for the Spartans, it hasn’t seemed to work yet.
2. Injuries, quarterback update
The depth chart released from MSU had sophomore Tyson Smith, who had two detrimental pass interference calls against him on Illinois’s game-winning drive, listed as a starting cornerback. He fills in for Vayante Copeland, who suffered a season-ending broken foot injury.
Dantonio could not comment on any other injuries, including those to junior defensive lineman Malik McDowell and junior safety Montae Nicholson.
At quarterback, fifth-year senior Tyler O’Connor was knocked out of the game against Illinois with a head injury, and junior Damion Terry filled in and nearly led a comeback victory for the Spartans.
“I think Tyler is earning his stripes," Dantonio said. "I think coming into this season, he was a guy that had quarterbacked one and a half games. I think right now the way he's handled the situation that's been thrust upon him has been very mature. He's been very competitive. I think he's playing pretty good football. I would say the same about Damion.”
Dantonio said he thought O’Connor would be cleared to practice on Tuesday, but said he hadn’t been cleared at the time of the press conference.
3. Rutgers scouting report
Offensively, Rutgers is likely to go with quarterback Giovanni Rescigno, who threw for a career-best 258 yards last week in Rutgers' 33-27 loss to Indiana. Rescigno can run as well, as he had one passing and one rushing score that game. He also scored a 42-yard run.
“A lot of misdirection, a lot of tempo, a lot of motions and things of that nature,” Dantonio said. “Have a go-to receiver in (Andre) Patton. But when you look at their football team right now you see a lot of what Ohio State does defensively, really quite honestly what a lot of (current Houston head coach, former Ohio State offensive coordinator) Tom Herman did offensively. So there's some carryover in that regard.”
Rutgers is led defensively by linebacker Trevor Morris, who leads the team with 73 tackles, 59 of them against the run. He ranks No. 9 in the Big Ten with 8.1 tackles per game.
4. Dantonio still thankful for fans and support
Despite the troubling record, Dantonio said he is happy with the fans who show up and stay to support his team. Regardless, he hopes everyone recognizes that his team is playing hard.
“I hope that everybody understands that we haven't given up,” Dantonio said. “Our players come out and play very hard. We're a young football team. ... These things are growing pains that we go through sometimes. I wish these growing pains maybe would have occurred earlier.”
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Dantonio understands the skeptics of the team are pointing fingers at him and his coaching staff, and he takes responsibility for that.
“I've tried to do things right here and I'll always try to do things right,” Dantonio said. “At the end of the day, it all falls on me. That's all right.”
