Ann Arbor - When sophomore quarterback Drew Stanton walked down the tunnel at Michigan Stadium to begin the second half with his teammates, he wore a baseball cap instead of a helmet, sneakers instead of football cleats and MSU warm-ups instead of full pads. It was official - Stanton, after dissecting Michigan's defense almost at will in the first half, would not finish the game he started.
You know things aren't going well when, for the first 55 minutes of Saturday's hockey game, the loudest cheer came when Jason Teague took a 3-yard plunge into the end zone for a touchdown. That was the case for Spartans (2-4-0, 1-3-0 CCHA) as they were romped, 5-2, by Nebraska-Omaha (5-1-0, 3-1-0) in front of only 4,946 fans at Munn Ice Arena. "(I'm) confused," MSU head coach Rick Comley said.
The MSU women's soccer team concluded its season Saturday with a 3-0 win against Akron. Junior Erin Konheim and freshman Maureen Pawlak both scored a goal and earned an assist. Helping to give the Spartans an early lead, Konheim scored the first goal of the game from the seven yard line.
It will be a critical weekend for the MSU hockey team as it looks to even its CCHA record with a set of games against Nebraska-Omaha. Game time for both games is 7:05 p.m. "I know they're much improved from the last couple of seasons," junior defenseman Jared Nightingale said.
The MSU men's soccer team will look to improve its seed for the Big Ten Tournament this weekend when Wisconsin comes to East Lansing for both teams' final regular season conference game. The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.
The MSU volleyball team (8-11, 3-8 Big Ten) will have to bring its "A-game" to Jenison Field House at 7 p.m.
Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Matthias Askew and former MSU Spartan spoke with The State News on Thursday about Saturday's big game against Michigan.
Even when the annual Michigan-MSU rivalry has Big Ten title implications, as it does this year, there's always room for verbal jabs. "I don't like none of them over there," senior bandit Tyrell Dortch said.
Big Ten media predicted Wednesday that the MSU men's basketball team will finish second in the Big Ten, with 2003-04 Big Ten champion Illinois reigning as the preseason favorite.
5. Oct. 6, 1956 MSU 9, U-M 0 The Oct. 6, 1956 game between then-No. 2 MSU and then-No. 5 Michigan had a lot of defense and barely any offense. This game marked the first time attendance at Michigan Stadium exceeded 100,000 people.
Brandon Long, of Canton, Ohio, has committed to the MSU football team for the 2005 season. Long plays tight end or linebacker for Glen Oak High School in Canton.
The Big Ten dual meet for the MSU women's swimming and diving team kicks off at 6 p.m. in the Charles McCaffree Pool at the IM Sports-West.
The demons of old are back for the MSU hockey team, as consistency, especially on special teams, has once again become a factor for a team that fell to 1-3-0 with a weekend sweep at the hands of CCHA-foe Northern Michigan.
It's do-or-die tonight as the MSU volleyball team (7-11 overall, 2-8 Big Ten) battles Michigan (15-6 overall, 5-5 Big Ten) at 7 p.m.
Field hockey seniors Annebet Beerman and Veerle Goudswaard were selected to participate in the NDHCA Division I North/South Seniors All-Star Game.
Although this is only his second year as MSU's head coach, John L. Smith knows the rivalry game against Michigan is the most important game of the year. And this season, the game is the best opportunity the Spartans (4-3 overall, 3-1 Big Ten) have to prove themselves. "This is what you look forward to - this is why athletics is so neat and why the game of football is so great, particularly college football," Smith said.
The MSU volleyball team was swept by Wisconsin on Friday before turning around Saturday and defeating Northwestern in three of four games. "We bent, but we didn't break," head coach Chuck Erbe said, referring to the fourth game on Saturday and the final game of the weekend.
Marquette - It was a struggle all weekend for the MSU hockey team as the Spartans limped through a sweep at the hands of Northern Michigan.
The stakes were high for the No. 5 MSU field hockey team for Sunday's outcome against Indiana, when the Spartans claimed a second consecutive Big Ten title. With the 5-2 victory against the Hoosiers (10-7 overall, 0-5 Big Ten), the Spartans (15-2, 5-1) celebrated their way to another conference title.
It's Monday. The big game is nigh. I don't even have to mention the name of our opponent because we all know.