Tuesday, December 23, 2025

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Sports | 1000

FOOTBALL

Barnett and Tressel head into debut season as co-defensive coordinators

Replacing former defensive coordinator and current Pittsburgh head coach Pat Narduzzi will be one of the main storylines of the season. Some believe that there will be a drop off, but head coach Mark Dantonio promoted two men that had been in the system the entire time that Dantonio has been at the helm in co-defensive coordinators Harlon Barnett and Mike Tressel, as they were both hired nine years ago. Senior cornerback Arjen Colquhoun expects things to remain the same despite the change. “They’ll keep the ball rolling, no one is going to drop the ball," Colquhoun said.

BASKETBALL

MSU basketball makes changes to staff

Both MSU basketball teams made changes to their staff on Thursday, according to msuspartans.com. Men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo announced that former MSU basketball player David Thomas has been named as the new men’s Director of Basketball Operations while Merchant announced Alysiah Bond will fill Thomas' void as the Women’s Director of Basketball Operations and Technology. “David Thomas is a great addition to our staff as Director of Basketball Operations.

BASKETBALL

MSU basketball 2015-16 conference schedule released

The upcoming schedule for men’s basketball in the Big Ten has been released. The Spartans will travel to Ann Arbor for a lone matchup with our interstate rival and the highly touted Maryland Terrapins will make a trip to East Lansing in the slate’s only matchup, according to a Spartan Athletics release.

FOOTBALL

Allen, Harris and Calhoun named 2015 MSU football captains

The 2015 captains have been named: senior center Jack Allen, senior defensive end Shilique Calhoun and senior linebacker Darien Harris. The coaches have no say in the naming of the captains, the captains are named through player voting. Head coach Mark Dantonio has chosen to stick with a three captain system while incorporating a fourth rotational captain so all of his leaders get the experience. “I think (the players) did a nice job of picking the three, those guys are all guys that have played a lot of football here and have been in the program for five years," Dantonio said. After a summer of building chemistry within the team with everything from movie nights to texts letting guys know what to work on, Harris was humbled by his selection. “It’s a tremendous honor, I told the team after that I’m very thankful, very humbled and honored for this.

FOOTBALL

Senior linebacker Ed Davis suffers season-ending injury

Fifth-year senior linebacker Ed Davis suffered a season-ending knee injury midway through Wednesday’s first preseason practice in full pads according to a press release. An MRI after practice confirmed that his injury will require surgery, MSU is already exploring options for a medical redshirt for Davis to give him a sixth year of eligibility. “We’re so disappointed for Ed Davis, and his presence in the lineup will be missed,” head coach Mark Dantonio said.

SPORTS

Former, current Spartans score bronze medals in Pan Am Games

Representing MSU at the recent 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto were senior basketball guard Denzel Valentine and recent graduate and sprinter Jellisa Westney. Valentine and the USA basketball team managed to capture a bronze medal at the games and the senior guard was able to produce despite limited opportunity. Valentine averaged just 11.4 minutes a game, good for the second lowest on the team on a team of 12.  Despite the low minute totals, Valentine came in at No.