Michigan State
Spartans
Preview 2007
By
Pete Fiutak
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2007 MSU Offense Preview |
2007 MSU Defense Preview
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2007 MSU Depth Chart
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2006 CFN Michigan
State Preview
Is
Michigan State a black hole for talented coaches?
John L. Smith built Louisville into the power that Bobby Petrino ran
with, but he couldn’t stop the inconsistencies and meltdowns in East
Lansing. Nick Saban is being paid the equivalent of the gross national
product of a small African nation to coach Alabama, won a national title
at LSU, and wasn’t as horrible as he was made out to be with the Miami
Dolphins, yet he could only make MSU above-average. Mark Dantonio, a
tremendous coaching prospect who made Cincinnati relevant in the Big
East, will be the next to try his hand.
Head coach: Mark Dantonio
1st year
4th year overall: 19-17
Returning Lettermen: 54
Lettermen Lost: 19 |
Ten
Best MSU Players
1. FS Otis Wiley, Jr.
2. RB Javon Ringer, Jr.
3. LB SirDarean Adams, Sr.
4. LB Kaleb Thornhill, Sr.
5. RB Jehuu Caulcrick, Sr.
6. PK Brett Swenson, Soph.
7. QB Brian Hoyer, Jr.
8. TE Kellen Davis, Sr.
9. OT Mike Gyetvai, Sr.
10. WR Terry Love, Sr. |
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2007 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 4-8 |
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Sept. 1 |
UAB |
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Sept. 8 |
Bowling Green |
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Sept. 15 |
Pitt |
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Sept. 22 |
at
Notre Dame |
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Sept. 29 |
at
Wisconsin |
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Oct.
6 |
Northwestern |
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Oct.
13 |
Indiana |
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Oct.
20 |
at
Ohio State |
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Oct.
27 |
at Iowa |
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Nov.
3 |
Michigan |
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Nov.
10 |
at
Purdue |
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Nov.
17 |
Penn
State |
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2006
Schedule
CFN
Prediction:
8-4
2006 Results:
4-8
Preview
2006 predicted wins |
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9/2 |
Idaho
W 27-17 |
| 9/9 |
Eastern Mich
W 52-20 |
| 9/16 |
at Pitt
W 38-23 |
| 9/23 |
Notre Dame
L 40-37 |
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9/30 |
Illinois
L 23-20 |
| 10/7 |
at Michigan L 31-13 |
| 10/14 |
Ohio State L 38-7 |
| 10/21 |
at Nwestern
W 41-38 |
| 10/28 |
at Indiana L 46-21 |
| 11/4 |
Purdue
L 17-15 |
| 11/11 |
Minnesota
L 31-18 |
| 11/18 |
at Penn State L 17-13 |
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Despite
dreams of grandeur, Michigan State will never be the consistent
powerhouse Michigan is. That doesn’t mean it can’t be very good. Getting
the athletes has never been a problem, and being explosive hasn’t been
an issue. Being consistent and not going into the tank after a
heartbreaking loss has been another story.
The first step for the new coaching staff is to make the players more
accountable. Dantonio’s early goal is to empower the players and make
this their program, and while he says part of the idea is to make sure
everyone is having fun, after the Smith era, playtime is over.
Dantonio is a defensive coach by nature, and he should be able to take
the experience and quickness of the MSU D and mold it into a far better
unit than the one that got ripped apart by any team that decided to show
up. The stronger the defense is right away, the less the likelihood for
self-destruction.
The Spartans aren’t going to contend for the Big Ten title this year,
and will be picked among the bottom five by just about everyone. That’s
not a bad thing. They need a year of no expectations. They need a year
when losing a game here and there really doesn’t matter all that much.
They need a year to rebuild, and Dantonio will be able to do that. In
other words, Michigan State can take a deep breath, play loose, and
understand that the foundation is being built.
What to watch for on offense: Deciding
on a quarterback to replace Drew Stanton might not be as big an issue as
it’ll be made out to be. Dantonio had no problems using two quarterbacks
when needed at Cincinnati last year, and the results weren’t that bad.
Expect balance on offense, with an emphasis on the ground game early in
the season.
What to watch for on defense: Dantonio loves to provide pressure
and force teams out of their game plans. All teams want to do
that, but Dantonio’s can do it. Expect lots of hits on the
quarterback, a big emphasis on forcing turnovers, and everything
possible to force offenses to be what they’re not. Cincinnati was great
at that last year.
The team will be far better if … it doesn’t worry about making
mistakes. The “oh no, it’s happening again” attitude crept in way too
often under Smith, with errors magnified and all confidence vanishing
whenever there was the slightest bit of adversity. This is a rebuilding
year, and there are going to be problems. Getting past them and worrying
about the next play is the key.
The Schedule:
Interesting
early, nasty late. The Spartans must win their five home games against
UAB, Bowling Green, Pitt, Northwestern and Indiana over the first half
of the season, given the three road games (Ohio State, Iowa and Purdue),
along with home dates with Michigan and Penn State, in the final five.
Going on the road to play Notre Dame and Wisconsin in back-to-back weeks
in late September isn’t going to make Dantonio’s first year any easier.
Best Offensive Player: Junior RB Javon Ringer. He is the best option for an
offense that’ll be looking to replace QB Drew Stanton and his top three
receivers while scrapping the spread offense for a more traditional
ground game. Provided a couple of recent knee injuries don’t get in the
way, Ringer is a slicing game-breaker who can hurt a defense in a
multitude of different ways.
Best Defensive Player: Junior S Otis Wiley. In his first season
as a full-timer last fall, Wiley emerged as a stopper for the Spartans,
leading the team in both tackles and passes defended. Blessed with
terrific range and closing speed, he’s a few more pounds of muscle away
from being one of this nation’s top players at free safety.
Key player to a successful season: Junior QB Brian Hoyer.
Appearing to be the leader and standout among the quarterback prospects
to replace Drew Stanton, Hoyer, who threw four touchdown passes and
three picks in limited duty last season, should provide some surprising
consistency from the start. The Spartan offense and the new coaching
staff aren’t starting from scratch.
The season will be a
success if
... the Spartans come up with a winning season. There are just enough
light and breezy games to set a good foundation of wins, but to get six
wins or more for the first time in three years (yes, MSU has had three
straight losing seasons), they need to come up with two road upsets.
Key game:
Oct. 27th at
Purdue. Usually, MSU goes into the tank right after the Michigan game.
This year, the showdown with the Wolverines is late in the season as a
home oasis in a four-game stretch. After going to Ohio State, the
Spartans have to go to Iowa in the sandwich game before Michigan. A win
at Purdue might be a must to avoid an ugly second half of the year.
2006 Fun Stats:
- Second quarter scoring: Michigan State 57; Opponents 133
- Penalties: Michigan State 81 for 872 yards; Opponents 56 for 451 yards
- Rushing touchdowns: Michigan State 15; Opponents 8