Jim Bollman faced a bit of a quandary early this year. After spending the 2012 season as Boston College’s offensive line coach, Bollman was named to the same position at Purdue under first-year head coach Darrell Hazell, his former colleague, on Jan. 18. Hazell and Bollman worked together for seven years at Ohio State, where Bollman served as offensive coordinator from 2001-11.
Thirteen seconds. That’s how long it took sophomore midfielder Jay Chapman to give the MSU men’s soccer team (8-1-2) a 1-0 on in-state rival Oakland (5-3-5) on a rainy Wednesday evening.
My, how the tables have turned. During an overall disastrous 2012 season, the MSU football team didn’t clinch bowl eligibility until the final regular season game, going winless against Big Ten teams at home while nursing a stagnant offensive attack.
Rookies, newcomers, young ones — if this was basketball, ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale might even call them “diaper dandies, baby!” But to most, they’re just freshmen. They haven’t been on campus for more than a couple months, but a group of freshmen already have been contributing to the MSU women’s soccer team (7-5-2 overall, 1-5-0 Big Ten).
The men’s soccer team may have a difficult week ahead of them, but they’re looking forward to the challenge. The No. 18 Spartans (7-1-2 Overall, 1-0-1 Big Ten) will face a tricky midweek tilt against in-state rival Oakland (5-2-5, 3-0-1 Horizon) at 4 p.m. Wednesday at DeMartin Stadium.
A season that once held so much promise for the MSU women’s soccer team now is in need of saving. With just five games remaining on the Big Ten slate, the Spartans (7-5-2 overall, 1-5-0 Big Ten) sit tied for last place in the Big Ten with Northwestern (3-9-2, 1-5-0) and are five points behind the final spot in the Big Ten Tournament.
Thomas Ebbing and Mackenzie MacEachern have been friends for years. Both hail from Troy, Mich., and played hockey at Brother Rice High School in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. as well as the?Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League.
Last weekend, a different MSU field hockey team showed up to play at Ralph Young Field. Instead of the usual team that failed to hold onto early leads and oft-suffered from defensive lapses, a team that found its offense early, closed out a close game and twice displayed mental toughness for 70 minutes showed up.
MSU junior running back Jeremy Langford has been named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week, MSU’s athletic department announced on Monday.
Sometimes, a tie can feel like a loss. That was certainly the case for the MSU men’s soccer team (7-1-2 overall, 1-0-1 Big Ten) after a 1-1 draw against Ohio State (2-6-4 overall, 0-2-1 Big Ten) Sunday afternoon at DeMartin Stadium.
After improving to 3-0 in Big Ten play in a 3-2 double-overtime thriller over No. 18 Michigan on Friday, head coach Helen Knull said she feared the field hockey team would not be able to maintain the momentum against Ball State on Sunday.
A Big Ten Tournament berth still isn’t out of the question, but after Saturday’s 3-1 loss to Ohio State, the MSU women’s soccer team has serious work to do in the final five games of the season.
From the word “go,” it was immediately apparent why No. 7 Michigan State and No. 9 Nebraska were the last undefeated teams remaining in Big Ten play.
MSU’s offense has made positive strides in every game this season. Those steps have varied in distance, and some even went backward, but Saturday’s 42-28 Homecoming win against Indiana felt like a giant leap forward.
During his 11 seasons as head coach at MSU, George Perles was best known for a specific, run-heavy type offense. Run left, run center, run right.
At halftime, the Spartans (4-1 overall, 1-0 Big Ten) lead Indiana (3-2, 1-0), 21-14, with two of the team’s three offensive touchdowns coming in the red zone. Sophomore quarterback Connor Cook led the way with 152 yards and two touchdowns on 16-of-23 passing from the field.
With pink accompanying the usual green and white uniforms, MSU topped Iowa for their fourteenth straight win. During “Dig Pink Night,” a game dedicated to breast cancer awareness, the No. 7 Spartans (16-1 overall, 5-0 Big Ten) remained undefeated in Big Ten play as they beat Iowa (9-8, 0-5) in straight sets (25-14, 25-13, 25-21).
It took junior back Jenni Smith 13 games to register her first goals. Luckily for MSU, she saved them for their biggest game of the season.
The 2013 edition of MSU’s defense might be the best yet under head coach Mark Dantonio, and no one wants to talk about it.
To remain undefeated in Big Ten play, the MSU field hockey team (5-7 overall, 2-0 Big Ten) will have to overcome a familiar rival on Friday — No. 18 Michigan. Michigan (7-5 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) represents the toughest conference matchup thus far.