After last week's painful loss to Michigan, the men's soccer team is ready to bounce back. The Spartans (7-3-2 overall, 1-1-2 Big Ten) will have a chance to redeem their loss Sunday when they take on Penn State (6-5, 1-2) at 2:30 p.m., their last Big Ten conference home game. Overall, MSU has an average of 1.8 goals per game, while its opponents are averaging 1.2 goals.
After six relatively quiet games, he finally got his chance to make a big hit. And when the opportunity arose, Clifford Dukes left an imprint that Illinois quarterback Jon Beutjer won't soon forget, especially when he stands on the sidelines this weekend in Ann Arbor. The junior defensive end fought around the left end and hit Beutjer with enough power to make any spectator cringe. It was his fourth sack of the season, equal to his 2002 total, which led the team.
Alan Anderson, Chris Hill and Kelvin Torbert were getting ready for their respective high school proms when MSU appeared in its last Final Four. The three junior players entered MSU in 2001, two seasons after Mateen Cleaves led the Spartans to the 2000 NCAA National Championship.
Last week was an absolute blowout, with Tennessee's Derrick Mason and the Miami defense assisting Stevie E.
A nonconference schedule as difficult as the MSU men's basketball team's this season is giving head coach Tom Izzo and his team two options - do or die.With an updated urgency surrounding the Spartans to win a championship this season - not just games, as Izzo put it - games against heavyweights Duke, Kentucky and Oklahoma within state lines and road trips to Kansas, UCLA and Syracuse are giving MSU a chance to make an early mark as a national title contender.But is it best to play top teams and risk burning out early, or prepare for the best and learn from tough defeats?
Despite an early falter, this season's MSU football team has the opportunity to make history.With a win against Minnesota, this would be the best start for a Spartan team since they finished second in the polls in 1966.But with senior defensive end Greg Taplin questionable (sprained knee) for the game and junior defensive tackle Brandon McKinney out, the No.
If the old adage "You're only as good as your last game" is true, then the Spartans look like one of the top teams in the Big Ten. The only problem - they're not. In each of the MSU volleyball team's two-match, nonconference weekends, the Spartans went on the road and swept both games.
An online football recruiting database has reported that Garfield Heights (Ohio) High School running back/cornerback Tony Howard has orally committed to MSU.Howard, a 6-foot, 190-pound senior, reportedly told SpartanMag.com that he was committed to joining the Spartans' 2004 recruiting class.
MSU senior defenseman Joe Markusen took a puck in the jaw for this win. If he hadn't, the No.
West Lafayette, Ind. - The No. 16 MSU volleyball team continues its roller-coaster ride through the season. For the third straight week, MSU (11-5 overall, 3-3 Big Ten) split its two matches.
The MSU field hockey team won their fifth straight game on Saturday, upsetting No. 6 Iowa, 3-1, in Iowa City. After falling to a 1-0 disadvantage early on, the Spartans (10-3 overall, 3-0 Big Ten) rallied to knot the score at one just before the half.
By Bob Darrow Special for The State news The MSU men's soccer team has heard coach Joe Baum tell them that in order to win a game, they have to give 110-percent effort for the full 90 minutes. After Sunday's 4-2 loss to rival Michigan, the Spartans are likely wishing that half the amount of time would have been enough. The contest at Old College Field was a tale of two Spartan teams - one that was thoroughly dominated by Michigan in the first half, and the other that stormed out after halftime to score two quick goals and continue to threaten the Wolverines' lead for the duration of the game. For the first 46 minutes, the action belonged almost entirely to U-M.
Please note: This is a work of complete fiction. The scene is two months from now, Atlantic City.
Urbana-Champaign, Ill. - The trip was three-and-a-half years in the making. And when junior running back Tyrell Dortch reached the end zone for his first career touchdown, that wasn't enough.
The MSU women's soccer team's home unbeaten streak will be tested this weekend against two Big Ten foes. The Spartans (7-4-0 overall, 3-3-0 Big Ten) will host No.
After being ranked No. 4 nationally this week, the MSU women's cross country team will travel to the Michigan Intercollegiate in Hudsonville on Friday with the men's team. The women's team is ranked 13 places ahead of Wisconsin to be the highest-ranked Big Ten team. The Intercollegiate will begin at 4 p.m.
MSU baseball will play a Green & Gray World Series beginning this weekend at Kobs Field to wrap up its fall practice and scrimmage run. Game one is at 2 p.m.
This isn't the first time Findlay hockey head coach Pat Ford has been a part of the Ice Breaker Tournament against MSU. Findlay's second-year coach was a part of the inaugural tournament in Madison, Wis., as a Badgers assistant in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Spartans in 1997.
After finishing the nonconference season, the No. 16 MSU volleyball team was hitting on all cylinders and was looking forward to starting the Big Ten season at home.
Both MSU tennis teams continue with fall tournaments this weekend to prepare for the 2004 spring season. The men's team will visit Ann Arbor on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for the Michigan Invitational. The women will host The Spartan Cup beginning at 9 a.m.