It does not take Tom Izzo long to identify his team's shortcomings last season. Oddly enough, they are among the principles Izzo has established as trademarks of MSU basketball as he heads into his 10th season as head coach. "We will defend this year," Izzo said last Wednesday at the team's media day.
For wrestling co-captain Andy Simmons, anything less than taking first at the NCAA Tournament will be a disappointment. Simmons has set the bar high for himself for the 2004-05 season and knows that in order to achieve that mark, it will take work. "I know I'm going to work my butt off," he said. The NCAA rankings for this wrestling season have not been announced yet, but Simmons already is planning his move up.
After a disappointing 3-1 loss Friday to unranked St. Lawrence, the No. 7 MSU hockey team looked to rebound Sunday afternoon against No.
Even though the MSU volleyball team (6-10 overall, 1-7 Big Ten) fell to both No. 8 Ohio State and No.
For the No. 3 MSU field hockey team, Saturday will be a game of consistency and intensity, but for No.
The MSU women's and men's cross country teams will compete at the Pre-NCAA Invitational on Saturday, hosted by Indiana State.
After at three-week layoff, the MSU men's golf team will travel to Durham, N.C., to participate in the Duke Classic.
Fans and foes: Don't give up on the MSU volleyball team just yet. The team has been struggling, pulling in only one victory at home against Indiana in the past four weeks and searching for a solution to the breakdowns in play. But the season isn't over for the Spartans (6-8 overall, 1-5 Big Ten), said MSU spikers as MSU faces No.
For freshman forward Marquise Gray, being a part of the MSU men's basketball team's annual midnight mania event has been what he has always aspired to.
Consistency in its own building will be the goal of the MSU hockey team when the Spartans hit the ice for another season with a pair of games at Munn Ice Arena. "I think it'll be a good weekend of hockey," MSU head coach Rick Comley said.
Senter Court is run by three MSU undergraduate students and was created to provide a firm student support system for the team during the season while establishing an intimidating environment for the team's competitors. The program will also host meet-and-greets, parties and bus trips to away games and other events.
MSU junior center Paul Davis learned to love during the summer. "He told me that he's here to learn how to love the game, instead of liking (it) like most guys do," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said at the men's basketball media day on Wednesday. Izzo added that Davis' new-found love for the game started showing through his summer work ethic and schedule. "I was in the gym at 8 in the morning, working out with a couple of the managers for about an hour and a half," Davis said.
When head coach John L. Smith publicly scolded the Spartans for poor practice habits earlier this season, he probably wasn't talking about junior running back Jason Teague. "He's one of the hardest-working guys involved in the program," running backs coach Reggie Mitchell said. Teague's work ethic is a big reason why he has been MSU's starting running back all season, which is a minor surprise considering the sometimes-brilliant performance of redshirt freshman Jehuu Caulcrick. Caulcrick can be a bruising runner who consistently gains yards when he gets in a groove, as in the fourth quarter of MSU's 38-25 win against Illinois last Saturday.
Something is bound to go wrong. That's about the only consistent thing the MSU volleyball team can count on right now. Players say the system has gone awry and the team's rhythm has been off.
With its season opener quickly approaching, the MSU hockey team will look to regroup after losing junior defenseman Corey Potter to a separated shoulder in its 7-2 win over Toronto on Sunday at Munn Ice Arena. Potter was in the corner in his defensive zone when he was hit hard from behind into the boards by Toronto forward Jesse Rycroft.
The MSU special teams have had its problems this season, and it continued Saturday against Illinois. A blocked punt, a mishandled extra point snap and another missed field goal all led to a long day for Spartans kickers - sophomore punter Brandon Fields and senior place-kicker Dave Rayner. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Fields seemed to take his time catching the ball before trying to punt it.
Former MSU forward Adam Hall signed with KalPa, a Finnish hockey team, for the duration of the hockey lockout. A Kalamazoo native, Hall recorded 126 points from 1998-2002 as a Spartan, where he also served as team captain. He spent last season with Nashville, collecting 13 goals and 14 assists in 79 games for the Predators.
To most people, a stand full of crazy fans yelling at missed opportunities and bad calls by the referees - while bodies collide and clash in front of them - does not immediately bring to mind an MSU women's soccer game.
The past weekend brought yet another loss for the MSU volleyball team (6-8 overall, 1-5 Big Ten) as the Spartans traveled to No.
Junior Ian Clutten, representing South Africa, finished fourth in the fourth heat of the 50-meter breaststroke and finished 22nd overall during the FINA Short Course World Championships in Indianapolis, Ind. The time, however, did not qualify Clutten for the semifinal round.