2015/16 Football Thread

[Guest]

A good, in depth article on MSU's defense.

Well worth the time to read.

Michigan State's defense is specifically designed to overwhelm college offenses. They've finished in Football Outsiders' top 10 defenses four years in a row, regularly obliterating the Big Ten schools on their schedule.

The press-quarters design -- constant press coverage, aggressive blitzing and big safeties close to the line -- is brilliant. It takes away everything easy, daring teams to throw deep. The press-quarters defense pushed QBs to relieve the pressure by heaving fades that had little chance of doing damage.

The only question in the midst of this dominant run: what would happen if Michigan State faced the nation's better spread offenses? In 2014, that happened, and the Spartan rep didn't survive.

They drew eventual Rose Bowl winner Oregon, giving up 491 yards and 7.2 per play thanks to a huge day from Marcus Mariota. They took on the new challengers for Big Ten supremacy, Ohio State, which destroyed them thanks to 300 passing yards at 11.5 yards per.

These two set up the inevitable breakdown, when the scheme of Mark Dantonio and outgoing defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi met its doom against Art Briles' Baylor in the Cotton Bowl.

Although the Spartans rode amazing offensive efficiency to a narrow victory, the defense was shredded for 603 passing yards, 11.6 per pass. And although Michigan State held Baylor to negative-20 rushing yards, one or two broken tackles could have been enough to give Baylor the win.

With Narduzzi moving on to the head job at Pittsburgh, Dantonio brought in linebackers coach Mark Snyder and tinkered, looking to shore up college football's formerly unbreakable defense.

How the Big 12's best offense made the Big Ten's best defense even better

[Floyd Robertson]

Posted that yesterday in the spring football thread. No big deal one way or the other except, well, goddammit.

[Turtleneck]

Posted that yesterday in the spring football thread. No big deal one way or the other except, well, goddammit.

PM Nigel if you want his participation points adjusted accordingly.

[Floyd Robertson]

Posted that yesterday in the spring football thread. No big deal one way or the other except, well, goddammit.

PM Nigel if you want his participation points adjusted accordingly.

No need for such drastic measures.

[Guest]

Posted that yesterday in the spring football thread. No big deal one way or the other except, well, goddammit.

I'm sorry, I didn't see it.   I've had that happen with some links I've posted, it's hard sometimes to keep up with them all.

[Turtleneck]

Posted that yesterday in the spring football thread. No big deal one way or the other except, well, goddammit.

I'm sorry, I didn't see it.   I've had that happen with some links I've posted, it's hard sometimes to keep up with them all.

I just wait for you to post something, then I steal the link and post it myself. I'm like the Urban Meyer of posting.

[Guest]

I'm sorry, I didn't see it.   I've had that happen with some links I've posted, it's hard sometimes to keep up with them all.

I just wait for you to post something, then I steal the link and post it myself. I'm like the Urban Meyer of posting.

Here ya go....

Next Link

[Turtleneck]

I just wait for you to post something, then I steal the link and post it myself. I'm like the Urban Meyer of posting.

Here ya go....

Next Link

I will never forget what you did to me.

[Floyd Robertson]

Posted that yesterday in the spring football thread. No big deal one way or the other except, well, goddammit.

I'm sorry, I didn't see it.   I've had that happen with some links I've posted, it's hard sometimes to keep up with them all.

Like I said, no biggie. Just bustin' your chops, but in hindsight you did the right thing by giving it its own thread. I shouldn't have buried it in another thread.

[Guest]

EAST LANSING – When Connor Cook speaks, there are still remnants of the sophomore who briefly lost a very public quarterback competition at Michigan State less than two years ago.

"I'm not worried," he said then, trying to convince himself, sitting alone on a bench in late August of 2013 as nearby, a pack of reporters interviewed the man who'd won the job, Andrew Maxwell.

Twenty months later, Cook has hoisted Rose Bowl and Cotton Bowl trophies and is riding 20-1 odds to win this year's Heisman Trophy.

And still, the first goal of every April practice: "I want to be the best quarterback out there." As in, better than backups Tyler O'Connor and Damion Terry. Then, "lead my team to victory and lead my team down and score every single period we have."

Couch: Cook shaped by his MSU beginnings, as he eyes grand finale

[Guest]

I've said it before - Western Michigan worries me. 1st game, at Kalamazoo and a team/crowd that should be in a frenzy to beat us.

Anyway a review of their spring game - check the depth chart out at the end of the article, this is a deep EXPERIENCED team. Fleck has recruited players away from B1G Ten schools so they've got more talent that your average MAC team.

Some things change, some things don't

There is something to be said about having familiar faces in familiar places. It seems the chemistry of the team grew this spring. It felt like Fleck's comfort level with this team also grew this spring. There are still some players from the Bill Cubit era playing and starting for Fleck, but by now those players have become Fleck's. In 2013, no one knew what to expect from the first spring camp under Fleck, including the players. Now, there is a complete buy-in. WMU will need that more than ever this fall as there will be higher expectations accompanying a schedule that is brutal from start to finish. There won't be room for the chinks in the chain if times get tough this fall, when the Broncos play Bowling Green, Northern Illinois and Toledo over the last three weeks. We didn't see any breakout performances this spring, but it's safe to say the entire program took a needed step forward.

5 things to take away from the Western Michigan football spring game

[Guest]

EAST LANSING -- There's a reason AJ Troup jumps so high, runs so fast and exerts as much focus and energy as any receiver on the Michigan State football team on each play.

It's because perhaps no player on the Spartans' football team has jumped through more hoops for the opportunity to touch the football on Saturday afternoons at Spartan Stadium that Troup, a fifth-year walk-on who has torn the ACL in his left knee three times.

"AJ is a warrior to go through three knee surgeries, and to come back, he's fearless,'' Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook said. "To go through all that stuff, and then he runs everywhere he goes. Everything he does requires him to run, chop down, break down, and that's hard on your knees. So for him to go through all that stuff, and persevere and keep battling back, I respect him so much and I think the world of him.''

Michigan State walk-on AJ Troup has risen above adversity to secure place in receiver rotation

[Guest]

Bruce Feldman ‏@BruceFeldmanCFB 4h4 hours ago
How good were B1G RBs in '14? Ezekiel Elliott wins the Sullivan as nation's top amateur athlete & didn't even make honorable mention ALL-B1G

[Guest]

If this is close to true then getting his waiver approved would be big for secondary depth this year.

Sean Vergowven: Last week we broke down the film on Darrell Stewart and this week we look at Drake Martinez, a junior college transfer from Saddleback College. Your initial thoughts on his film?

K'ylon Haugabook: Since he spent time in junior college he looked to be the most ready to impact of the DB's. He was very solid at everything shown on his tape.

Sean: Agreed, and since the secondary is the biggest question mark going into the season, what with the loss of Trae Waynes, it would be invaluable if the Big Ten approved his waiver for immediate eligibility. And I have to say, that this kid is a hitter.

K'ylon: Yes he most certainly is. I think what makes him such a big hitter is how fast he is. It seemed like he would hit the line of scrimmage in no time coming from his safety position.

Sean: Easily. You watch his film and it seems like every other play, someone is getting bowled over by one of his hits. You bring up the next thing I noticed as well, he is fast. I really like what I am seeing from this year's class in terms of the amount of speed they are bringing to the program.

K'ylon: Yes especially on defense in the secondary. This will allow them to be able to better match up with spread offenses that they see. You mentioned blowing up plays and I definitely saw that when teams tried to run screen plays. He would always bowl right over the lead blocker.

isportsweb: Juco recruit Martinez will be hitter for MSU

[Guest]

Underrated isn’t a word that should be associated with Michigan State football. There’s too much success in East Lansing for that now.

Overlooked and underappreciated still apply. The return of Jim Harbaugh spawned borderline-biblical hype in Ann Arbor on April 4. Defending national champion Ohio State put 99,391 fans in the stands for its spring game last week. Michigan State plays its spring game Saturday, an almost fitting third act, and it won't get nearly the same level of national attention.

That’s all Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio needs to feed his front line.

If the Spartans were in the business of self-promotion, these simple facts might do:

— Michigan State and Florida State are the only schools that have finished in the top five in the AP Poll the last two seasons.

— Michigan State is one of five schools with 11 or more wins four of the last five years. Ohio State, Alabama, Stanford and Oregon are the others.

— Michigan State won its last four bowl games against TCU, Georgia, Stanford and Baylor.

Forget the Big Ten. The Spartans might be the most underappreciated program in the FBS. Dantonio brings back another talented roster that starts with projected first-round pick Connor Cook at quarterback, but that success starts with an offensive line that returns tackle Jack Conklin and center Jack Allen.

“My system beliefs is it's always going to start up front,” Dantonio said. “You have to be able to protect and run. That starts with our offensive line.”

If you're looking for style points, look at the defense. The cornerbacks are rolled up, and you know someone's coming. No scheme in college football is more fun to watch. Since 2010, the Spartans have allowed less than 20 points per game and 300 yards per game. Louisville is the only other school in the FBS that can say that.

Overlooked Michigan State can keep pointing to on-field success

[Guest]

EAST LANSING — DeAnthony Arnett is not a failure.

Nor is his football journey over.

And those two dynamics shouldn't be mistakenly tied to one another.

The once-heralded receiver from Saginaw, all but discarded after three years buried on Michigan State's depth chart, is a walking lesson in learned patience and a reminder that football isn't everything.

He might also be on the verge of a relevant senior season with the Spartans.

A few weeks from receiving his bachelor's degree in communication, Arnett led MSU with five catches for 51 yards during Saturday's annual spring game. It was only a spring game, as he pointed out. But it was a step he hadn't taken in any game — spring or fall — since transferring from Tennessee after his freshman season.

"It's been a long road," Arnett said. "Going into this January after the season was over with I finally just said to myself, 'This is it. The time is here. And I've got to push myself to the limit.'"

Couch: Once discarded, DeAnthony Arnett gets his shot

[Guest]

EAST LANSING -- Madre London didn't just get a philosophy from former Michigan State running back Jeremy Langford. He got a catchphrase to go along with it.

"Cookies and cookies and cream," London said when asked what he learned from Langford, the Spartans' leading rusher in 2014.

The cookies, he explained, are the shorter runs, where a running back takes the yards that are there and doesn't get frustrated they're not longer.

The cream is the payoff, that breakthrough run set up by all the shorter ones.

Michigan State's Madre London uses lessons from Jeremy Langford to break through in spring game

[Guest]

East Lansing — Montae Nicholson says there's nothing to worry about.

Michigan State's secondary will be just fine when the Spartans kick off the 2015 season in a few months at Western Michigan.

"The No-Fly Zone will be in effect once more," the rising sophomore said after Michigan State's spring game Saturday.

It's a legitimate concern — as good as Michigan State's defensive backfield has been — since replacing departed players can be difficult. And the Spartans aren't replacing just anyone.

Nicholson: MSU 'No-Fly Zone' will be in full effect

[Guest]

EAST LANSING – Michigan State should be as good as anyone where it matters most next season, but it all matters.

Spring football ended Saturday for the Spartans with the same outlook as when it began. This should be Mark Dantonio's best offensive line (hard to tell in Saturday's 9-3 win for the White over the Green because it was split into two teams and missing an injured starter).

This should be Dantonio's best defensive line (easier to see because both teams had front fours that could play winning football in the Big Ten). And Connor Cook might be the obvious choice for best quarterback in school history by the time his senior season is done.

But we still don't know if MSU will be good enough at cornerback and wide receiver to truly contend for a national championship. And no matter how strong you are in the trenches, you don't win one of those anymore without special playmakers on the outside, on both sides.

So that is what passes for angst in East Lansing these days. Nit-picking over what it will take to win it all, an exercise that would have caused uproarious laughter five years ago.

Could MSU football really win the national title?

[Floyd Robertson]

Could MSU football really win the national title?

Mike Handy
Articles like this, however true, will surely draw the ire, from the ignorant fan base, born in of all places, a discount store.

[Guest]

EAST LANSING – Connor Cook saw himself improve during his last spring at Michigan State, and the work will continue in San Diego and in East Lansing with teammates before his fifth and final season.

"You can never be too good at being accurate, you can never be too good at doing footwork drills, you can never be too good at one thing," Cook said after leading the White to a 9-3 win over the Green on Saturday in MSU's spring game. "So with me, just continue to work on things I've been working on since I've been here in the offseason. And that was footwork and accuracy. I think I made a jump this spring with being more accurate.

Cook is 'Championship-type QB' for Spartans

[Guest]

EAST LANSING – It's for real this time: DeAnthony Arnett can help Michigan State.

The celebrated 2011 recruit from Saginaw who caught 24 passes as a Tennessee freshman that fall, then transferred to MSU and got an NCAA waiver to play right away, has six grabs in three seasons with the Spartans, including redshirting in 2013, when it was apparent that he couldn't crack the rotation.

He will enter fall camp behind Aaron Burbridge, Macgarrett Kings Jr. and R.J. Shelton, but Arnett is in that next group with AJ Troup and Monty Madaris, chasing realistic playing time after a spring of progress.

MSU's Arnett 'will be a great story' in final season

[Guest]

Mark Dantonio has Michigan State on a roll. In fact, he may have the best program in the Big Ten.

Michigan State has won double-digit games in four of the last five seasons, compiling a 53-14 overall record and a 32-8 Big Ten mark since 2010 with league championships in 2010 and 2013. And the Spartans have gone to bowls in each of Dantonio’s eight seasons in East Lansing, winning the last four postseason tilts.

The last two seasons have been high points for MSU, capping the 2013 Big Ten title season with a Rose Bowl win and finishing 2014 with a dramatic Cotton Bowl triumph.

Dantonio, 59, and the Spartans figure to be right in the title mix in 2015. The program capped spring practices on Saturday, tuning up a well-oiled machine that welcomes back lots of talent.

I caught up with Dantonio to get his views on spring drills and beyond.

Mark Dantonio Q&A: 'It took a plan and a lot belief from different people'

[Robert J Sakimano]

great thread.. thanks.

[Guest]

EAST LANSING – Michigan State coaches picked three captains for each team in Saturday's spring game, providing a glimpse of the leadership structure for next season.

Four will be seniors in 2015, including obvious choices Shilique Calhoun – the team's lone returning captain – Connor Cook, Jack Allen and Darien Harris. Two will be juniors, left tackle Jack Conklin and middle linebacker Riley Bullough.

And that ascent, Bullough said, may have been as big as anything for him this spring. He exits as the clear No. 1 middle linebacker and a guy who earned praise from coaches and teammates.

MSU's Riley Bullough steps into leadership role

[Guest]

Before the NFL draft takes over for the weekend, here are some observations from the Big Ten Network telecast of the spring game. The next time the public watches Michigan State play football, it will be the night of Sept. 4 at Western Michigan (the Friday of Labor Day weekend, time TBA).

• MSU senior linebacker Darien Harris has talked about his intent to play faster, and it looked that way in the spring game. Much has been made of Madre London being caught from behind on his 50-yard run after getting a head start of about 5 yards or so, but what about the fact that Harris was one of the guys (along with safeties Montae Nicholson and Mark Meyers) who made up that ground on him?

• Vayante Copeland is in the big, physical family of cornerbacks. He was beaten on the first play from scrimmage by AJ Troup -- featuring Tyler O'Connor's best throw of the day -- but had good coverage on several other plays. He also mugged moonlighting tight end Shilique Calhoun on a corner route late in the game, but no flag. Hey, getting away with pass interference is an important part of playing defense in today's game.

Hey Joe: MSU spring game DVR review, observations

[Guest]

EAST LANSING — Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio will only speculate that his 2016 senior class is the most talented of his tenure.

As Dantonio said last week, he's not ready to "anoint" anyone.

The record books will ultimately tell the story, as far as what the Spartans can accomplish as a team in 2015 and where the players end up in the 2016 NFL draft.

The senior class talent is such that Michigan State is a legitimate national championship contender. The team looks to have more talent than any Spartans' squad dating back to the 1966 national champions.

Michigan State had four players from that glorious team drafted in the top eight of the 1967 draft — No. 1 Bubba Smith, No. 2 Clint Jones, No. 5 George Webster and No. 8 Gene Washington.

The 2015 Spartans won't match that lofty draft selection order, but it's not a stretch to see three players going in the first round of the 2016 draft and maybe even four.

Analysis: Connor Cook, Shilique Calhoun lead most talented class since 1966 team

[SpartanInNH]

I just wait for you to post something, then I steal the link and post it myself. I'm like the Urban Meyer of posting.

Here ya go....

Next Link

You fuckin' bastard.......

[Guest]

Connor Cook could be a top-10 pick, while Shilique Calhoun, Jack Conklin also could be first-rounders next year

With Trae Waynes going No. 11 overall to the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday, Michigan State had first-round picks in consecutive drafts for the first time since 2002-03.

If way-too-early 2016 mock drafts are any indication, though, they should be able to make it three years.

Yes, a few national sports websites are looking a year ahead from now, and all of them foresee at least one Spartan being drafted in the first round.

I've seen JAllen, Thomas, and Davis mentioned elsewhere as possible 1st rounders depending on their SR year production.

MSU has big presence in early 2016 NFL mock drafts

[Guest]

Name any other year when the Rose Bowl would be a disappointment...

College Football Playoff semifinal (Capital One Orange Bowl or Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic): Ohio State

Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual: Michigan State

Big Ten bowl projections: Way-Too-Early edition

[Guest]

EUGENE, Ore.—Oregon coach Mark Helfrich says spring games are often “way overblown” in terms of assessing value, so fans probably shouldn't read too much into an efficient day from quarterback hopeful Jeff Lockie, the two-way brilliance of receiver/cornerback Charles Nelson or the return of wideout Bralon Addison in the Ducks’ spring game Saturday.

But with four agonizing months until the 2015 season kicks off, what fun is that?

Twice in the last five seasons, Oregon has come up bridesmaid instead of bride, falling in national championship games first to Auburn in 2010 and then to Ohio State in January. From the outside it’s easy to sum up these defeats as the Ducks not being able to get over the hump, and crow that until the program brings home a trophy it does not belong among college football’s elite.

Ready to fly again? Oregon reloading this spring after losing the title game

[Guest]

Mitch Sherman: Michigan State

The Spartans, after consecutive top-5 finishes, began spring with fewer questions to answer than any Big Ten team that does not reside in Columbus, Ohio. And even in comparison to the Ohio State, MSU has the comfort of a settled situation at quarterback, thanks to Connor Cook. Coach Mark Dantonio appeared bullish on the Spartans throughout the spring, in part because of the emergence of new playmakers at key positions.

Gerald Holmes and Madre London performed well at running back in the bid to replace Jeremy Langford. DeAnthony Arnett emerged at receiver as the Spartans searched for candidates to replace the production of Tony Lippett. In the secondary, where MSU lost cornerback Trae Waynes and safety Kurtis Drummond, several players -- including Montae Nicholson, Demetrious Cox and Vayante Copeland -- showed the ability to step into important spots. Also on the defensive side, tackle Malik McDowell and linebacker Riley Bullough look ready to handle feature roles. Even without a change at defensive coordinator to elevate coaches Harlon Barnett and Mike Tressel, the Spartans displayed this spring why they'll be a popular choice to again rank among the nation's elite programs.

Post-spring roundtable: Answered questions in the Big Ten

[InTenSity]

Our D is going to be a thing of beauty.

[Other Teams Pursuing That]

We are winning the National Championship. Next question.

[Floyd Robertson]

Schlabach: Way Too Early Rankings -- No Langford, No Chance

8. Michigan State Spartans
Talk about consistency: The Spartans have won 11 games or more in four of the past five seasons. Their only two losses in 2014 came against Oregon and Ohio State, which played for the national championship. With quarterback Connor Cook coming back, MSU might be the second-best team in the Big Ten. Without tailback Jeremy Langford, it's probably not good enough to unseat Ohio State.

Uhhh, I'm not dissing JL, but who was he 24 months ago at this time in the eyes of the media?  Schlabach was probably saying the same thing about replacing Le'Veon Bell back then.

[Other Teams Pursuing That]

I really believe with MSU's system, we can just plug anyone in and they will thrive. (RB)

[Giant Moose]

We should be preseason #3. It's dumb that we aren't.

[InTenSity]

Schlabach: Way Too Early Rankings -- No Langford, No Chance

8. Michigan State Spartans
Talk about consistency: The Spartans have won 11 games or more in four of the past five seasons. Their only two losses in 2014 came against Oregon and Ohio State, which played for the national championship. With quarterback Connor Cook coming back, MSU might be the second-best team in the Big Ten. Without tailback Jeremy Langford, it's probably not good enough to unseat Ohio State.

Uhhh, I'm not dissing JL, but who was he 24 months ago at this time in the eyes of the media?  Schlabach was probably saying the same thing about replacing Le'Veon Bell back then.

I couldn't find anything Schlabach said, looks like he was blogging mostly BE or ACC at the time. I couldn't even find his too early top 25 list. This was the closest from Rittenberg.

3. Man on the run: Riley Bullough's emergence adds a new twist to the running back competition, but nothing is settled entering fall camp. Nick Hill and Jeremy Langford took most of the reps with the first-team offense this spring but didn't separate themselves, and Hill underwent sports hernia surgery last week. The coaches also want to see how incoming freshmen Gerald Holmes, R.J. Shelton and Delton Williams perform when they arrive this summer. Although Michigan State typically has one featured back, it could use more of a committee system this season. But there are definitely questions in the offensive backfield.

[Guest]

The RB situation is going to be a moot point once LJ arrives, he's my MSU version of Peppers.

[InTenSity]

The RB situation is going to be a moot point once LJ arrives, he's my MSU version of Peppers.

I hope he doesn't get injured early on after playing too soon because of hype.

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