Michigan State out to Prove Last Season was not just Smoke and Mirrors
The Michigan State Spartans had a great run last year, finishing in a three way tie for first place in the Big Ten Conference. The Spartan fan base thought they deserved a BCS bowl game. The computers disagreed, giving the Rose Bowl bid to Wisconsin, and the Sugar Bowl to Ohio State. Michigan State fans were very upset about their bowl selection, The Capital One Bowl, but still many fans made the trip to see Spartans in their season finale. For a team that thought they deserved to be in a BCS bowl, they certainly did not help their cause by getting thrashed by Alabama 49-7. That was an embarrassing way to cap what was otherwise a great season for the Spartans. Michigan State had a miracle run through the Big Ten, finishing with only one loss and pulling out many close and improbable comeback victories. This same kind of run is what the Spartans are hoping to duplicate again this season, under the leadership of senior quarterback Kirk Cousins. This is an important season for Kirk Cousins, as his draft stock is highly at stake. Many people thought that he would leave after last season, and be drafted in the second round. I am sure Cousins would like to be a first round selection and is hoping another great season could help cement him as one. Michigan State had an AP high rank of 5 last year, which marked the programs first top 5 AP ranking since 1967!
Repeating their successes from a season ago is much easier said than done. Not only are Wisconsin, Ohio State, and Penn State looking strong, but the addition of Nebraska can only make things harder. Michigan State was able to play solid football throughout the year last year. They were a team that did not really do anything special, but played every facet of the game well. Their positive turnover margin (.38) was good for 31st in the nation, and that certainly played a major role in their record. Because of that margin they were able to stay in every game they played (other than the blowout losses against Alabama and Iowa) which gave them chances to win at the end, and they took full advantage of those opportunities. Michigan State, to observers outside of their fan base, seemed like a team that was all smoke and mirrors. They were not that great, just solid, and made the plays when they mattered. In fact, of all the major statistical categories they did not rank in the top 10 in a single one. So call it luck, but you have to hand it to them, when it happened at the rate that the Spartans pulled it off, it has to be more than just sheer dumb luck.
This year the Spartans are out to prove that they are more than just smoke and mirrors, and are a very good football program. The coaches seem to believe that Michigan State is a talented team, giving the number 17 ranking in their annual preseason poll. They lost their tackling machine in middle linebacker Greg Jones, but still bring back their stud defensive lineman Jerel Worthy, so their defense should still be solid up the middle. This team had the 37th best rushing defense in the nation last year, and should still have about the same type of success. Of course the Spartans believe they will be better, but we will see. Michigan State had a very strong campaign last year, by stopping the run, not turning over the football, playing exceptional on special teams and taking advantage of opportunities when they were presented with them. This season the Spartans are determined to prove that last year was no fluke, they are not all smoke and mirrors. They want the nation to know that they are here to stay, and will be a Big Ten contender year in and year out. They want to debunk the theory that last year was just a rare lucky season. But maybe we should all give some credit to Head Coach Mark Dantonio for the success. As Louis Pasteur said a long time ago,” Luck favors the prepared mind.” Clearly Mark Dantonio sold this theory to his players, and it worked. They were prepared week in and week out, so maybe next time you hear a college football fan say Michigan State just got lucky, you can rifle back, they were just more prepared.
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