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Smith's Swan Song
State College, Pa. — Since his unceremonious firing Nov. 1, John L. Smith has been understandably guarded about his personal feelings.
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Season-ending loss
State College, Pa. — This one had all the makings of a blowout. Penn State was trying to play itself into the best bowl game possible, while MSU was limping to the end of its season without a chance at a bowl game and a coach on his way out. But the Spartans played with pride.
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Stanton questionable for Saturday's final game
In the last home game of his career, senior quarterback Drew Stanton was forced to watch most of the action from the sideline after a hit he took in the first quarter led to dizziness. Because of the injury, Stanton might be forced to the sideline again for his final game as a Spartan on Saturday at Penn State. "We'll prepare (sophomore Brian) Hoyer at this point as the starter and see what transpires as the week goes by," head coach John L.
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Offense tripped up again
The MSU offense had no trouble moving the ball between the 20s on Saturday, racking up 344 yards of total offense.
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Bowled Over
It's safe to say Saturday's game against Minnesota didn't play out the way Drew Stanton would have hoped.
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Reader mail Next MSU coach should only be paid for wins
Has anyone considered changing the football coaches' salaries paradigm? Instead of paying these coaches large guaranteed contracts and for a guaranteed number of years, why do we not offer them a set salary and then for each game they win, they get a guaranteed payment? This would force coaches to actually coach and tie their paycheck to their success, instead of the current system in which these coaches get paid if they win or lose and then the universities have to buy out the large contracts for coaches who failed to produce. For instance, a football coach could have a base salary of $500,000 and then get $100,000 for each game won.
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Izzo: I let Smith down
After MSU football head coach John L. Smith was fired Wednesday, his basketball counterpart, Tom Izzo, said he wanted to be involved in the hiring of Smith's replacement. On Monday, Izzo reiterated those statements and took some personal blame for the way Smith's tenure at MSU played out. "I think I let (Smith) down because I didn't know him as well, I didn't jump in there with the help I could give him," Izzo said.
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A step behind
Something unusual happened Saturday at Spartan Stadium. The MSU defense came to play. It forced a turnover and brought pressure on the quarterback.
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Wiley: Smith's ouster 'unprofessional'
The Spartans had enough trouble winning games without any extra distractions looming overhead. On Saturday, they played their first game after being hit with a midweek knockout punch — they learned they would finish the season under the direction of a coach whose days were numbered. Athletics Director Ron Mason announced the firing of John L.
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Word from the podium
"I've learned from him, not just as a football player, but as a man." senior center Kyle Cook "There was no real tipping point." Athletics Director Ron Mason "You can't simply win on X's and O's.
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Smith's midseason dismissal could be blessing in disguise
John L. Smith didn't need to say a word in the press conference that followed MSU's 46-21 loss to Indiana on Saturday.
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Word on the street
"I hope we get a winning program from a new coach since we had so much talent on the team as it was.
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Penalties continue to haunt MSU
After scoring on an 80-yard drive to start Saturday's game against Indiana, MSU's offense got the ball back with a chance to jump out to an early 14-3 lead.
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No comeback this time
Bloomington, Ind. — First, it was Illinois' Juice Williams. Then, Ohio State's Troy Smith. On Saturday, the MSU football team made another opposing quarterback look like a transcendent talent, allowing Indiana's Kellen Lewis to pass for five touchdowns and run for a sixth in a 46-21 defeat at Memorial Field. "He's a great athlete — running and passing," said junior defensive end Ervin Baldwin.
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Spartans Stalled
Bloomington, Ind. — The question all week was whether the momentum from MSU's 35-point comeback last week would carry over to Saturday's game at Indiana. It looked like the Spartans had delivered a decisive answer on the game's opening possession.
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No inspirational halftime speech needed here
Saturday's game had all the necessary ingredients to be made into a Hollywood film. One team struggled and faced an almost insurmountable deficit.
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Beyond Belief
Evanston, Ill. — When MSU was down 38-3 against Northwestern midway through the third quarter, things looked hopeless. It looked like it could be John L.
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For once, breaks go Spartans' way
Evanston, Ill. — It takes a lot to overcome a 35-point deficit in less than 22 minutes.
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Fall from grace
Drew Stanton entered this season with a career completion rate of 65.7 percent — the highest all-time for an MSU quarterback.
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Spartans secure Ohio offensive line recruit
The MSU football team has received another verbal commitment from the class of 2007, this one from Mark Wetterer, an offensive lineman from Anderson High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. Prior to the season, Wetterer had offers from 12 Division-1 schools, including West Virginia and Maryland, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer. He is ranked 28th in the state of Ohio by recruiting service Rivals.com. The Web site also ranks him as a three-star recruit out of five.