NEWS
MSU running back coach Ben Sirmans will face an all-too-familiar opponent against Kent State, where he spent the last five seasons as running back coach before joining MSU last February.
"It will be somewhat odd just knowing the coaches there, knowing all the players there," Sirmans said.
"But once it's time to kick off and all those things, they're my adversary."
Although Sirmans insists he hung onto a Golden Flashes playbook, he said he can't be counted on too much for strategic planning because of schematic transformations that have been underway at Kent State over the past few years.
But Kent State head coach Doug Martin gives a slight edge to the Spartans and Sirmans' knowledge of the system.
"We hated to lose Ben here but it was a tremendous opportunity for him to coach in the Big Ten at Michigan State," Martin said.
Sirmans said that although he owes a lot to Kent State, the opportunity to make the jump to a Big Ten school was one he could not pass up.
"When you first initially start coaching, you always want to better yourself and coach at the highest level possible and that's one of the first things that attracted me to the job just knowing the history of Michigan State," he said.
Sirmans said he is proud of the way sophomore back Jehuu Caulcrick and senior back Jason Teague have progressed since spring.
He also said life is different in the Lansing area.
"Everybody that surrounds me are all Michigan State fans.
