With a bye week approaching and almost all of the MSU football team on the road recruiting, the Spartans received a national vote of confidence Monday when they were ranked No.
MSU men's soccer sophomore forward Ryan McMahen was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week on Monday, netting one goal and three assists in MSU's win over Penn State on Sunday. McMahen, who did not play in 2002 because of an injury, brought his season totals to six goals and six assists.
The No. 13 MSU hockey team realizes it needs new actors in this play. Again, Ohio State (4-2-0 overall, 3-1-0 CCHA) notched nine goals against the Spartans (1-3-0, 0-2-0) in a weekend series, winning Friday night, 5-0, and Saturday, 4-1.
Minneapolis - Last season, quarterback Jeff Smoker lost the confidence of everyone in Spartan Nation.
Charles Rogers was in attendance. So were Kirk Gibson and the Scarecrow from "The Wizard of Oz." No, wait - that was MSU men's basketball players Andy Harvey, Rashi Johnson and Drew Naymick dressed up as their respective alter egos as they were introduced to the crowd at Breslin Center as part of "A Magical Journey" to officially kick off the men's and women's basketball seasons.
Minneapolis - If MSU head coach John L. Smith were a real estate agent, his catch phrase would be, "Turnover, turnover, turnover." Smith not only has turned the No.
Oops, they did it again.For the third straight weekend, the No. 18 MSU volleyball team was lost the first night but recovered to win on the second.The Spartans (12-6 overall, 4-4 Big Ten) are being consistent, but it's not the consistency head coach Chuck Erbe has been looking for.
Even though the MSU field hockey team dominated in nearly every statistical category, it could not get past Michigan's defense and goaltending.
The MSU women's soccer team broke its four-game losing streak last weekend with a 3-2 win against Bowling Green on Wednesday.
The MSU field hockey team will face Michigan at 5 p.m. Friday at the MSU Field Hockey Complex. MSU (10-3 overall, 3-0 Big Ten) is the sixth-ranked field hockey team while U-M (11-3, 3-0) is ranked fifth.
The Spartan volleyball team enters the weekend in a do-or-die situation - win two and survive or the alternative.The No.
It's a safe bet that the MSU basketball teams of the 1980s never could have imagined the floor they were playing on would someday be in an MSU fan's bathroom. But that's exactly what has happened. The hardwood floor that is believed to have played home to MSU basketball teams anytime from 1982 to 1989 at Jenison Field House - the home of Spartans hoops before Breslin Center opened - is now on sale to the public at the MSU Surplus Store. The 4-by-8 pieces of hardwood floor are on sale during the store's regular public sale hours, from 7:30 a.m.
MSU hockey head coach Rick Comley has yet to defeat Ohio State during his time in East Lansing. That's not saying much, because the Spartans coach is only entering his second season behind the bench for the green-and-white.
The MSU men's and women's basketball teams officially will open the season tonight at Breslin Center with a "Magical Journey." Fans will watch team introductions, intrasquad scrimmages after midnight, have autograph sessions with coaches and players and watch performances by the MSU cheerleading team, MSU Motion dance team and Sparty. Admission is free and doors open at 10:30 p.m.
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.