By Brian Heinemann
For The Herald
Don’t be surprised to see the Michigan State Spartans right in the thick of the Big Ten hunt come late November.
With the returning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in linebacker Greg Jones and an explosive passing attack, the Spartans have the potential to shock the conference and contend for a title just a year after finishing 6-7.
“We have a lot of young players,” Coach Mark Dantonio said. “We are poised. I believe we'll have a very, very good football team this year and we look to continue to compete. This will be a very tough conference as always, and the margin of error is not very big.”
It’s for those reasons, though, that the Spartans come in at No. 6 in my preseason Big Ten rankings. Despite their potential, there are too many questions and too many stumbling blocks on the schedule.
The one certain thing about the Spartans is the game-changing ability of Jones, who passed up an opportunity at the NFL to return for his senior year.
“I think not only from a physical standpoint but from a psychological standpoint, it talks about his maturity as a person and talks about our overall program in terms of where we're at as a football program that he would decide to come back,” Dantonio said. “He has a great physical presence on the field. He's a first‑team All‑Big Ten player, first‑team All‑American player, and certainly through the middle of our defense gives us a guy who can make plays throughout our entire defense and all over the field.”
The Spartans are switching to more of a 3-4 defense this year, partly in an effort to free up Jones to make even more plays. Another reason for the switch is poor pass coverage, as the team finished ranked near the bottom of the entire nation last year in that area.
Dantonio said that, even with some lofty expectations around the program, there is no reason for the team to be overconfident about anything.
“From the way our players have worked thus far and winter workouts, spring practice and now summer conditioning, it would not seem that we're overconfident,” he said. “We have some things that we need to prove. I think that's very evident.”
Michigan State Spartans
Last year: 6-7, 4-4 Big Ten (tied for sixth)
Lettermen returning/lost: 40 returning, 28 lost
Starters returning/lost: offense 7/4, defense 6/5, kickers 1/1.
Key returning starters: Kirk Cousins, QB, Jr.; Greg Jones, LB, Sr.; Larry Caper, RB, So.
Others to watch: Jerel Worthy, DT, So. (Freshman All-American); Keith Nichol, WR, Jr. (converted QB); Johnny Adams, CB, So.
By the numbers: 19 - touchdowns thrown by Cousins last year, third best in the Big Ten. 468 - rushing yards by Caper, which led the team last year. 3 - bowl games in the last three years; the team has only reached four straight once.
Schedule: The opener with Western Michigan is followed by a game in Detroit with Florida Atlantic Sept. 11. Notre Dame visits Sept. 18, and the Big Ten opener, at home against Wisconsin, is Oct. 2. Road games at Michigan Oct. 9, Iowa Oct. 30, and Penn State to close the season Nov. 27, are the big tests.
Reason for optimism: Cousins and a defensive switch. Cousins finished last season as the third-best quarterback in the conference, and should only improve with experience after throwing for 19 TDs and only 9 INTs. The defense switches to a 3-4 in an effort to help the pass defense, ranked 112th in the nation, by getting more pressure.
Reason for pessimism: The pass defense and the rush offense. It’s hard to imagine the pass defense can rise up from the dregs of the nation, despite the switch to using more 3-4 on defense. The rush offense could also use some help, as last season’s leading rusher, Caper, only ran for 468 yards.
Bottom line: This team has a shot – a very, very outside shot – at contending for the Big Ten title if everything goes right. More likely, however, they will end up right in the middle of the pack and in their fourth straight bowl game, as the offense should become even more explosive but the defense will likely struggle in a transition year.
Tomorrow – No. 5: Penn State slipping from the upper echelon
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