It took MSU three hours and 18 minutes to pummel lowly Youngstown State 55-17 on Saturday, but as the final whistle blew, it signaled the conclusion of a quarterback controversy more than nine months in the making.
Early last week, Connor Cook was handed the keys to the MSU football team.
A span of more than two games. One hundred twenty-nine minutes. Seven thousand seven hundred seventeen seconds.
It was a day of firsts for the MSU football program on Saturday in a 55-17 blowout win against Youngstown State.
It took 10 quarters, but MSU’s offense finally looked something like what fans were hoping for prior to this season as the Spartans built a 35-10 halftime lead against Youngstown State.
As the forefather of MSU’s most well-known football lineage, Henry Bullough rarely mentioned the gridiron as he answered questions Thursday before being formally inducted to MSU’s Athletics Hall of Fame. Today’s generation of Spartans associate the Bullough name more closely with Max, senior and a three-year starter at middle linebacker, or Riley, a redshirt freshman running back.
Co-offensive coordinator Dave Warner has been searching for the answer to the Spartans’ offensive woes. But even after nearly three decades as a college coach, Warner has never seen a situation like the one now at MSU.
Redshirt freshman cornerback Ezra Robinson will be sentenced Monday at East Lansing’s 54-B District Court after being arrested for underage drinking and driving in July, according to a report from MLive.com.
For the segment of football fans that has been calling for quarterback Damion Terry on Twitter, message boards and even mid-game at Spartan Stadium, dreams may soon be reality.
Head football coach Mark Dantonio announced at his press conference today that sophomore Connor Cook will enter practice this week as the starting quarterback, while true freshman Damion Terry will prepare as the backup for MSU’s week three matchup against Youngstown State.
There’s a realm of history wrapped up within the concrete walls of Spartan Stadium. During the course of its 90 years of existence, the venue has played host to exciting plays on the gridiron, melodic tunes out of the mouths of rock stars and the arctic tundra of one of the world’s most famous hockey games. But through all of the moments spread across more than nine decades, the stadium never has been evacuated.
In preparation for South Florida last week, head coach Mark Dantonio informed sophomore quarterback Connor Cook on Monday that he would be starting against the Bulls. Cook then practiced all week as the starter, and redshirt freshman Tyler O’Connor worked as the backup because the coaches wanted to give him his first game experience. The public first learned Cook got the nod hours before kick off Saturday.
Fifty-six yards. That’s the amount of yards it took sophomore defensive end Shilique Calhoun upon picking off a third-quarter pass thrown by South Florida quarterback Bobby Eveld to find his way into the end zone for the second time that day. That’s the play that’s propelled Calhoun into the national discussion, earning him the distinction by defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi as MSU’s “running back on defense.”
Max Bullough was refreshingly honest Saturday evening when asked if his defense could maintain its elite performance and surprising point production throughout the season. “No, I don’t think so,” he said with a laugh.
A week ago, it didn’t seem possible for the MSU defense to play any better after holding Western Michigan to 11 rushing yards and scoring two touchdowns.
When asked about the facemask on his helmet earlier in the week, Shilique Calhoun said it’s part of his on-field persona. To the sophomore defensive end, the persona transforms him into Bane — the physically superior and mentally supreme supervillain of the Batman universe. But speak of the devil and he shall appear.
A week after a standout defensive effort trumped a listless offensive showing in a 26-13 victory over Western Michigan, the storyline remains much the same this week for MSU football team, as they head into halftime leading South Florida, 7-6.
After storms interrupted the opening night of football Spartan Stadium, fans again were asked to evacuate Spartan Stadium on Saturday due to a severe weather warning prior to the noon kickoff against South Florida.
As disappointing as last Friday’s season-opener against Western Michigan was for the Spartans, at least they won.
Despite blocking for one of the nation’s most prolific running backs in Le’Veon Bell a season ago, injuries still badly decimated MSU’s offensive line.