The MSU football team (3-1) has had at least one notable mistake on special teams in each of its four nonconference games, and after the disastrous mistakes against Notre Dame last weekend, head coach Mark Dantonio recognized how much of a concern special teams is.
The MSU football team’s defense made it a long Saturday afternoon for Central Michigan quarterback Ryan Radcliff.
MSU head coach Mark Dantonio used Saturday’s game against Central Michigan to make a statement. The Spartans can –and will – run the ball as they please. The MSU football team promised all week they were going to pound the football and as sophomore running back Le’Veon Bell said after the game, his head coach never has been one to break a promise. “If (Dantonio) says we’re going to run the ball the whole game then he means we’re going to run the ball the whole game,” Bell said. On the Spartans first two scoring drives, the team ran the ball 11 times for 84 yards and only passed once.
The MSU football team wasted no time in getting an early lead against Central Michigan before clinching its final nonconference game, 45-7, Saturday at Spartan Stadium.
MSU finished with 478 yards while holding Central Michigan to 112. The Spartans grabbed four interceptions, but they also had four penalties for 20 yards.
After last weekend’s 31-13 loss to Notre Dame, the Spartans said they returned to the drawing board with an especially critical eye to find the costly mistakes and look to eliminate them this time around. Learning as much as possible from the first loss of the season, MSU’s goals are still in tact as it looks to get back on track.
The long history between MSU head coach Mark Dantonio and Central Michigan head coach Dan Enos makes preparing for Saturday’s game that much more difficult.
The Spartans’ star-studded backfield of Baker, sophomore Le’Veon Bell and junior Larry Caper was disappointing last weekend, and none of the players in the trio have truly been able to find a rhythm this season.
In the last week, the Spartans (2-1) have suffered three injuries to the line, but so far, the only season-ending one is redshirt freshman right tackle Skyler Burkland’s — who dislocated and fractured his ankle during MSU’s 31-13 loss to Notre Dame.
Believe it or not, it wasn’t necessarily all bad Saturday for the MSU football team. I know it still is probably hard to digest right now, but the Spartans did some positive things in a 31-13 loss to Notre Dame.
Skyler Burkland underwent successful surgery on his ankle Sunday, but he is out for the season and is expected to return for winter conditioning.
In the MSU football team’s first two games of the season, the Spartans (2-1) played lesser opponents, and the team’s weaker spots weren’t the most obvious.
Two days later and the performance by the now-unranked Spartans’ offense in Notre Dame Stadium is still hard to swallow.
If the Notre Dame game was the first test for the No. 15 MSU football team, then the Spartans flunked in a big way.
Going into its first road game, the No. 15 MSU football team knew Notre Dame wide receiver Michael Floyd was going to be an area on which to focus.
The No. 15 MSU football team flunked its first test of the season as Notre Dame dominated on Saturday through all four quarters.
The No. 15 MSU football team hits the road for the first time this season on Saturday, traveling to Notre Dame where the Fighting Irish’s juggernaut offense will be waiting.
The MSU-Notre Dame rivalry — dating back to the teams’ first matchup in 1897 — stands as one of the most unique rivalries in NCAA football.
Saturday’s game at Notre Dame might be a huge test for the No. 15 MSU football team overall, but it also might be the toughest task the Spartan secondary faces all season.
As a former MSU linebacker, Seth Mitchell likes to hit. Now, he’s turned his collegiate football career into a professional boxing career.