ES Preview: Spartans at Hoosiers

Really?  Hoosier pride in the kitchen!

#24 Michigan State Spartans
(1-1, 0-0) at
Indiana Hoosiers (3-0, 0-0)
Sept. 22, 2018.  7:30 pm.
TV:  Big Ten Network.
Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, IN.

Weather:  64, cloudy, no wind.  Good passing weather.

Sagarin Ratings:  MSU #22, Indiana #55.

Line out of Vegas:  MSU by 5.

How did we get here?

Well, whaddya know.  Here are our Spartans in the middle of September, having played just one game at home and looking like crap in both games.  This underwhelming team's biggest deficiency has reared its ugly head, that being the Offensive Line... which is more like the Maginot Line.  In two games, and specifically in the loss to Arizona State, the left side of that offensive line had no push, and no protection for Brian Lewerke.   We certainly miss Cole Chewins on the left side of that line.   LJ Scott hasn't been much of a help, either.  If the Maginot Line has been poor, then Scott's protection for Lewerke has been poorerer.  Oh yeah, he's a running back.  Well, his running has been just as poor - in the first two games, he's dancing like Justin Timberlake instead of running like Jim Brown: just 103 yards and averaging 3.4 yards per carry against powerhouses Utah State and Arizona State.  And on the other side of the ball?  Let's be honest, the defense was LUCKY against Arizona State, as their QB overthrew pass after pass after pass after pass... and finally  connected on the last drive when MSU DBs had to make a stop.  Bend bend bend break!  Just too many mental mistakes, too many opportunities lost (e.g. Lewerke INT in the endzone) - mistakes do not make a mark of a good team.

So, now Indiana?

The Hoosier nation is in constant desire of football mediocrity.  Indiana is 3-0, again.  So, expect another 5-7 season out of the Hoosiers... unless they find a way to trip up our Spartans.

Make note of the Little Pink House on the Indiana Campus.   Yes, it's pink. 

Stat chat

Well... other than MSU's run defense... well.... offense averaging 114 yards on the ground per game???  Screw that, who are we?

MSU has won 16 of the last 20 against Indiana... and 7 of the last 10 played at Indiana.  Doesn't matter much, unless you are considering this against expectations.

Pix:

Kat:  MSU 30-17
Smig:  MSU 32-26
Carter:  MSU 24-10
CHock:  MSU 24-23
Keith:   MSU 35-32. "trap game."
Dr. Tom:  MSU 24-7. "This has become infinitely harder after ASU game… Honestly they could rebound and drop a bomb on Indiana or continue to look like a bag of hot dicks. And their o-line looks like such a piece of shit I don’t even know. I think we win 24-13 because Lewerke takes over the game. Wait. 24-7. Dantonio is pissed."
GR Gregger:  MSU 38-20
Big Joe and Phantom 309: MSU 24-22
RGM3: MSU 31-10.

ES sez:  MSU 21,  John Cougar Mellencamp 17.  

Enlightened Spartan Preview 2016

The ES has been outta commission for much of the year... but we're back!  Here is the season preview by our master prognosticators, dating back to 2001...

MSU is listed in Stassen's Top 25 of all the preview magazines, at #12 - anywhere from at #4 (College FB Poll) to #24 (Sports Cruncher).  The ES is looking for a great year out of the Big Green... let's see what the prognosticators chime:

ES

• What will MSU's overall record be for 2016: 10-2
• Playoffs or bowl game (which one) for the Spartans?  Rose Bowl
• How far will MSU advance in the Big Ten?  10-2, tied with scUM for 2nd in East
• Will MSU beat sUM, OSU, and Wisky at home? Yes, No, and Yes - 2-1 out of the three
• MVP for the Big Green this year?  Riley Bullough

Furman, W; @ ND, W; Wisconsin, W; @ Indy, W; BYU, W; NW, L; @ MD, W; scUM, W; @ Illinois, W; Rutgers, W; OSU, L; Penn St, W.

GO GREEN! A step down these years is a step up in our history!  Let's see what Coach D can pull off!

CHock

• What will MSU's overall record be for 2016: 9-4
• Playoffs or bowl game (which one) for the Spartans?  Citrus Bowl, lose to Ole Miss 31-28
• How far will MSU advance in the Big Ten?  9-3, tied for 2nd with UM in B1G East
• Will MSU beat sUM, OSU, and Wisky at home?  No, No, Yes
• MVP for the Big Green this year?  Riley Bullough

My take: we dominated the last couple of years because we had absolutely ROCK STAR lines. We basically lost 5 guys off the line (3 on O, 2 on D) to the NFL and while the O line does have some depth, the D line has been completely wiped out. Aside from McDowell, the last time most of the rest of our D line will have been on the field was when they were playing High School ball. Great LBs and an improved secondary will insure we’re not dropping to MAC level, but those very close ones where we need to win in the trenches won’t go our way like they have in the last couple of years.

Furman, W, 38-6; @ ND, 17-24; Wisconsin, W 24-23; @ Indy, W 38-31; BYU, W 28-24; NW, W 28-26; @ MD, W 24-13; scUM, L, 20-24; @ Illinois, W 28-21; Rutgers, W 27-23; OSU, L 28-35; Penn St, W 27-21.

BigBob

• What will MSU's overall record be for 2016? 10-3
• Playoffs or bowl game (which one) for the Spartans? MSU will win its bowl game against some SEC chump 
• How far will MSU advance in the Big Ten (record/final standing/B1G Title)? 7-2, second place in division, no title this year 
• Will MSU beat Michigan, Ohio State, and Wisconsin at home? MSU will lose to Ohio State but beat both Wisconsin and UM at home. Jim Harbaugh will suffer a stroke and die in Spartan Stadium after shitting himself when his team is once again defeated by the Spartans on the last play of the game. Who will be the MVP for the Big Green this year? Malik McDowell

Sloth

• What will MSU's overall record be for 2016: 8-4 
• Playoffs or bowl game (which one) for the Spartans? Who cares, the Big Ten Champeenship is what matters 
• How far will MSU advance in the Big Ten? 2nd in conference 
• Will MSU beat sUM, OSU, and Wisky at home? Yes, No and No 
• MVP for the Big Green this year? My liver 

SpartyMSU

• What will MSU's overall record be for 2016: 12-1. I know originally.. I predicted 2 losses.. but the Green cool-aid is flowing..
• Playoffs or bowl game (which one) for the Spartans? Rematch against Stanford.. it’s the 2014 Rose Bowl all over again., and just like 2 years ago – The Spartans beat Stanford. I am making my plans now… Last trip to Pasadena was awesome
• How far will MSU advance in the Big Ten? Win the East and beat to Iowa OSU stumbles.. 1 more loss than the Spartans. scUM proves they are over rated, get beat early (Shades of App State)..
• Will MSU beat sUM, OSU, and Wisky at home? MSU 27 – scUM 21 (scUM loses early, prove they were over rated – but still advance to Outback Bowl); MSU 23 – TOSU 21 (Buckeyes advance to Cotton Bowl); MSU 31 – Badgers 27 (Badgers head to TaxSlayer Bowl)
• MVP for the Big Green this year? O - Tyler O’Connor; D- Malik McDowell, Riley Bulgur

The cupboard is not bare on the D-Line. True many are young, but, Demetrius Cooper and Malik are forces andill provide leadership. Grad transfer Kevin Williams will be stout, so will Bowers. Spartans will be using RS-Freshman, although they have been around a stellar program and have learned. In order for the MSU Defensive line to remain one of the best in the nation, they must step up and preform. I believe they will. Offensive will be fine.. No concerns. Bottom line, this is a very good team, underrated, and will hit the “Back2Back” goal for 2016. Sparty On !!

Furman, W; @ ND, L; Wisconsin, W; @ Indy, W; BYU, W; NW, W; @ MD, W; scUM, W; @ Illinois, W; Rutgers, W; OSU, L; Penn St, W

ChiSpartan:

• What will MSU's overall record be for 2016? 11-2 
• Playoffs or bowl game (which one) for the Spartans? Rose Bowl 
• How far will MSU advance in the Big Ten (record/final standing/B1G Title)? 8-1 
• Will MSU beat Michigan, Ohio State, and Wisconsin at home? Lose to OSU 
• Who will be the MVP for the Big Green this year? Riley Bullough 

 9/2 FURMAN W; 9/17 at ND L; 9/24 WISKY W; 10/1 at Indy W; 10/8 BYU W; 10/15 NW W; 10/22 at Maryland W; 10/29 scUM W; 11/5 at Illini W; 11/12 RUTGERS W; 11/19 OHIO ST L; 11/26 at Penn St W

Smigdiggler:

The WestCoast Spartan Reporter is the pigskin prognosticating expert who is here to tell you how the season is going to unfold for Big Green.

• What will MSU's overall record be for 2016? 12-1 
•  Playoffs or bowl game (which one) for the Spartans? Playoffs - That is what they play for now! anything else is what Harbaugh would wish for!! 
• How far will MSU advance in the Big Ten (record/final standing/B1G Title)? 9-0 Big Ten Title is only a pitstop on the Green Kool-Aid train ride. 
•  Will MSU beat Michigan, Ohio State, and Wisconsin at home? That shit Cra! I bet you a harbaugh titty twister that they sweep at home this year. 
•  Who will be the MVP for the Big Green this year? LJ Scott Loc of the century!

Enlightened Spartan Preview: #6 Mich State vs Nebraska

Sagarin Ratings:  MSU #20, The Corn #54

MSU: 8-0/4-0. The Corn:  3-6/1-4

Saturday, November 7, 2015. 7 pm ET.

Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Neb.

Weather: 37 degrees, clear skies.  C-c-c-cold.  

Line:  MSU favored by 5

TV:  ESPN

The ES is with April Jones at the Peanut Barrel, talking about the bye week, the fourth quarter explosion by the Spartans over Indiana, and our coming stint against the Corn.   Video footage of the walkup from the MSU-Indiana game with Big Bob, Sloth, and the boys... as well as guest predictions!  Enjoy...

Big Ten officials blow chunks in MSU 52-26 win over Indiana

I don't pretend to understand Big Ten officiating.  OK, so Michigan State blew out Indiana late in its 52-26 victory on Saturday.  But there were several blown calls which defy logic.  You could see Coach D jawing at the officials, trying to figure out what was going through their thick skulls.

Who was the head referee? Todd Geerlings (with white hat). That was a nearly criminal performance by Geerlings and his crew. They sucked.

#1  - At the beginning of the second quarter, two phantom personal foul calls... back to back... against the Spartans.  Whaaaa?  Talk about a quick whistle.  What the hell is going on?

#2 - The unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for excessive celebration after MSU went up 38-24.  Complete BS.

#3 - And, this is the big one.  How MSU did not get the football on the fumble by Indiana receiver in the third quarter? The dude spun around in a tackle, and falling forward clearly fumbled the ball.  The officials called it "lack of forward progress."  That's just bullshit.  It's a bad call.  The problem being, the week before, Michigan was at the 1/2 yard line and it took 11 seconds before the refs even blew the whistle.  It doesn't take 11 seconds to run the ball 1/2 yard up the middle.  That's called "lack of forward progress."  You can't have it both ways, swallow the whistle or blow it - it is a lack of consistency.

The boos were deafening in Spartan Stadium after #3.

Jim Delaney and the Big Ten's Director of Officials, Bill Carollo, need to figure out what is going on. After last week's garbage, it's confirmed this is the worst officiating in Big Ten history.

It's crap.

Valenti radio & Hill video digging into Michigan. AWESOME

Two things:  1) Mike Valenti and 2) Jemele Hill.  Oh, the joy.  Piling on?  Who cares.

1) You gotta listen to this.  Dear God, the greatest radio broadcast in the history of radio. Mike Valenti of CBS Radio Detroit just lays into the Michigan fan base.  "Burn, baby, burn"... indeed.  "All of this Jesus Harbaugh crap"... "Go blame your messiah." Listen and WEEP IN TEARS OF LAUGHTER AND JOY.   Better yet, watch it here.



2) Jamele Hill's video broadcast on ESPN is also so precious.  Sweet Jesus, the greatest 2 minutes in cinematic history.

Five things we learned from Michigan State vs Purdue

Five things we learned about the Spartans' in its 24-21 yawner over Purdon't:

1.  The Spartans dropped in the polls, to #4, lost all the first place votes... and justifiably so.  This was a team that made mistakes on offense, on defense, on special teams, and poor coaching... against a Purdue team many feel is the worst in the Big Ten.  

2. Michigan State really struggled to complete drives in the second half.  Its possessions included:

7 plays, 14 yards, 4:27, punter drops long snap.

9 plays, 57 yards, 5:02, missed chip shot FG.

8 plays, 65 yards. 4:11, FG.

6 plays, 19 yards, 3:41, punt. 

Not good.  This team needed to finish plays.  Blame the coaches for some of this.  The weather turned NASTY to 40-degrees sleet and coach D started punting from midfield (why?) and setting up field goals on 4th and short.  EVERYONE WHO WAS LEFT in the stadium was yelling NO!!!!!  because we could feel our own soaked shorts freeze.  Just run the ball in bad weather.  The FG miss by Geiger was as much a victim of bad weather than bad kicking.  Punter Jake Hartbarger having the snap sail through his hands was stupid in the sleet and wind. Blown opportunities. 

3.  Andy Provenzano and The Weather Channel were way off their predictions of when the bad weather was to arrive.  The weather gods decided to piss ice on Spartan Stadium 5 hours earlier than Andy and his boys predicted.  It spoiled an OK-weather day for Homecoming.  About the worst weather in the 25 years the ES has spent in Spartan Stadium.  And, yes, the ES left in the middle of the 4th quarter because he was unprepared and soaked to the bone in frozen wetness.  

4.  LJ Scott is the real deal.  If there was a player of the game for MSU, it was LJ Scott at RB.  He amassed 146 yards on 18 carries (8.1 ypc) and had an incredible 30-yd TD run through busted tacks and keeping his balance.  

5.  Injuries continue to mount.  In the sleet and hail, sophomore Dennis Finley at LT broke his leg in two places.  There was certainly concern from us in the stands, we were shivering in the stands but really worried about the dude's injury as he was carted off the field. As stated via msuspartans.com: "MSU made arrangements to shore up its depleted line by moving All-America center Jack Allen to left tackle, switching his younger brother, Brian, from left guard to center and putting red-shirt freshman David Beedle in at left guard. Brandon Clemons and Miguel Machado also filled in."  We need to heal Jack Conklin and Kodi Keiler... BAD.

#4 MSU gets first place votes, -27 vs Air Force

You know what is so fantastically kick ass?  Michigan State, for the first time in the lifetime of the ES, received a pair of first place votes in the AP Poll.  MSU moved up to #4 after kicking some Duck tail.

MSU is favored by 27 against Air Force on Saturday.  Kickoff is at noon, and ABC is so in love with the Spartoonies they figured to pick them for their national broadcast.   ES needs to come down from the clouds!

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	POINTS	LAST WEEK
1	Ohio State (59)	2-0	1523	1
2	Alabama	2-0	1423	2
3	TCU	2-0	1366	3
4	Michigan State (2)	2-0	1354	5
5	Baylor	2-0	1240	4
6	USC	2-0	1146	8
7	Georgia	2-0	1031	10
8	Notre Dame	2-0	1012	9
9	Florida State	2-0	973	11
10	UCLA	2-0	928	13
11	Clemson	2-0	926	12
12	Oregon	1-1	833	7
13	LSU	1-0	787	14
14	Georgia Tech	2-0	716	15
15	Mississippi	2-0	713	17
16	Oklahoma	2-0	705	19
17	Texas A&M	2-0	703	16
18	Auburn	2-0	519	6
19	BYU	2-0	349	NR
20	Arizona	2-0	342	22
21	Utah	2-0	290	24
22	Missouri	2-0	264	21
23	Northwestern	2-0	170	NR
24	Wisconsin	1-1	158	NR
25	Oklahoma State	2-0	48	NR

Others Receiving Votes:

Temple 38, West Virginia 37, Mississippi State 32, Tennessee 30, Toledo 29, Kansas State 26, Arizona State 20, Houston 16, Boise State 16, N.C. State 14, Florida 12, Minnesota 9, Arkansas 6, California 5, Iowa 5, Miami (FL) 3, Stanford 3, Western Kentucky 2, Virginia Tech 2, Duke 1

Five thoughts on MSU win over Oregon

Top 5 things the ES learned about the Spartans from Michigan State's 31-28 win vs Oregon:

1.   The Spartan offensive line is for real.  Big Green out gained the Ducks 197-123 on the ground... and maybe more importantly, averaged 5.3 yards per carry.  The Duck defense didn't lay a hand on our QB, Connor Cook, for nearly the entire game, and Cook wasn't sacked.   Cook looked like he had all day to throw the ball... which means...
2.  Cook has to play better.  He was 20-32, but missed some wide open targets.  He threw a bad INT in the second quarter when the Spartans were marching down the field.  Now, Cook came back and had a HUGE throw late in the 3rd quarter to Aaron Burbridge on a 4th-and-6 which was a laser beam.  But, Cook needs to make connection on third down late in the game (he missed passes to RJ Shelton and to Burbridge that allowed the Ducks to score a late TD and force the defense to make a 4th down stop, which they did, which underscores....
3.  The Spartan defense is for real.  The DL put pressure on Duck QB Vernon Adams all game long, had 4 sacks, and for the most part bottled up the vaunted Oregon running attack (only 2.9 ypc).  Until the last drive, Oregon had only 350 total yards... The Oregon offense only found the end zone 3 times.  This is a team that typically scores 50+ and gains over 550 yards.  The goal line stand was huge.  Big plays by the defense throughout the game. Impressive.  Our three LBs (Bullough, Harris, Reschke) combined for 37 tackles.  Wow.
4.  The return coverage needs work.  Two straight games, MSU has given up long kick/punt returns for scores.  It makes the game look closer than it was.  Our punter, Jake Hartbarger, actually was impressive in flipping the field when necessary, averaging 51.4 yards per punt on five punts... but one he out kicked his coverage on a line drive that led to the return TD by the Ducks.  This needs work.
5.  Our RBs and WR are very good.  LJ Scott (11-76, 6.9 ypc, 2 TDs) is a stud - he runs the ball with authority, has good footwork and can flat out haul it.  Aaron Burbridge is our go-to guy at wideout, had a fantastic game w 8 catches for 101 yards and a score.  Macgarrett "Book 'Em Danno" Kings had six catches for 48 yards.  All around, a good day for our skill players.

Here's the stats:

                                    ORE      MSU

FIRST DOWNS...................       26       21
NET YARDS RUSHING.............      123      197
  Rushing Attempts............       43       37
  Average Per Rush............      2.9      5.3
NET YARDS PASSING.............      309      192
  Completions-Attempts-Int....  22-39-2  20-32-1
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS...........      432      389
  Total offense plays.........       82       69
  Average Gain Per Play.......      5.3      5.6
Fumbles: Number-Lost..........      2-0      0-0
Penalties: Number-Yards.......     9-56     2-15
Average Yards Per Punt......       30.7     51.4
Third-Down Conversions........  4 of 13  3 of 12
Fourth-Down Conversions.......   2 of 6   2 of 2
Sacks By: Number-Yards........      0-0     4-18

ES Video Preview from the Peanut Barrel: MSU vs Oregon

#5 Michigan State vs. #7 Oregon

Sagarin Ratings:  MSU #19, Oregon #9

Saturday, September 12, 2015.  8 pm ET.

Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, MI

Weather: 56 degrees, cloudy, wind 5 mph

Line:  MSU favored by 3

TV:  ABC

The ES is with April Jones at the Peanut Barrel to discuss the ins and outs of Michigan State tailgating and the Xs and Os for the big game against the Oregon Ducks. It's a big time match up! The pair also discuss the yawner from the Spartans vs the Broncos... watch the MSU vs UO predictions from the locals and from Papa Joe!

ES thoughts on #5 MSU win at Western

Initial thoughts about the Big Green's 37-24 victory over WMU in Kalamazoo.  Before I look at the stats:

1.  Coach D brought vanilla, and it showed.  No wrinkles on offense (no trick plays, no reverses, etc), no wrinkles on defense (did we blitz?  ES couldn't tell).  He's keeping his cards close to his vest for the Oregon game.  So, what you saw basically was a high school scheme - line up, and play straight up.  The better talent won.  Nothing more.  Yawn.  ES should have stayed home and saved $150. 

2.  DB concern.  Re #1 above, WMU figured it out at half and adjusted.  The Broncos couldn't run the ball worth a crap (see #4 below), so they figured they had to pass to compete.  It worked.  Two wideouts one side, another on the other, and always someone in motion to isolate one-on-one coverage on a Spartan DB.  Zach Terrell, the WMU QB, (33-50, 365, 2-2) started to hurl the ball on isolation the entire second half.  MSU had no pass rush, so the DBs were on an island and... quite honestly... did not fare well.  This needs work

3.  MSU OL played great.  Noone laid a hand on Connor Cook, and we ran for 196 yards on 40 carries (4.9 ypc); as the ES said before the season, my dead grandma could run behind that line and make 5 yards a carry.  

4.  MSU DL awesome against the run (WMU: 23 carries for 18 yards) but the Big Green seemed to lack any emphasis (or interest?) as the game wore on with the Bronco's focus on the pass.  Spartans had 7 sacks, but the sacks were early and the Broncos were able to change their game plan (per #2 above) to make it work to close the gap vs Big Green (but not close it enough). 

5.  We have a RB.  LJ Scott ran very, very well when inserted later in the game.  While London (13-59) and Holmes (9-54) were serviceable and helped to move the chains... it was Scott (13-77) that really showed promise with some shiftiness and running over Broncos - the Spartan way.  You had to be there to see his impact; the dude is a big brick.  Scott = Pound Green Pound.  This is the other Delton Williams.  Scott is a Big Boy, with wheels, and he is a train wreck.  Love him, start him.  Period. 

Stat Crew!  Here are the basic stats from the game: 

                                    MSU      WMU
FIRST DOWNS...................       26       22
  Rushing.....................       11        2
  Passing.....................       13       18
  Penalty.....................        2        2
NET YARDS RUSHING.............      196       18
  Rushing Attempts............       40       23
  Average Per Rush............      4.9      0.8
NET YARDS PASSING.............      256      365
  Completions-Attempts-Int....  15-31-0  33-50-2
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS...........      452      383
  Total offense plays.........       71       73
  Average Gain Per Play.......      6.4      5.2

The ES will embed some video from his experiences in this week's video episode... but, here are a few shots below:

Stadium thoughts?  Waldo Stadium is boring.  Rarely any PA to fire up the fans, the signage is terrible (same letters/numbers for rows as columns & seats...  what????), etc.  They shut off any wireless and cell phone service, which is anti-2015.  That's basically very, very stupid.   ES guesses Western wants nobody to learn or participate in their football experience?  It is very backward.  Unfortunate, because Waldo is just a beautiful stadium that is being minimized.  That's another conversation for another day.  At the end, it was an OK experience, not sure if it was worth my money either for the game experience or the town experience.  Ho hum.  

Spartan season tickets are here!

Woop woop!  MSU 2015-16 National Championship football team season tickets have arrived!  Less than two weeks 'til the season's opening tilt at Western....

ES Game Day: Spartans to whip Buckeyes

#6/7/8 Michigan State Spartans vs. #11/13/14 Ohio State Buckeyes

November 8, 2014.  8 pm ET.
Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, MI
ABC-TV

Line:  Spartans by 3-1/2

Weather:  34 and c-c-c-cold.

Sagarin Ratings: MSU #11, Ohio St #15

Predictions & Previews: 

Land-Grant Holy Land (a very good read):  MSU 31-29

Eleven Warriors: MSU 27-25

ESPN: Bennett, MSU 31-28; Ward, OSU 24-23

CBSSports.com:  MSU 

CFN/Scout: MSU 27-23

Freep/Rexrode:  MSU 34-24

Freep:  Sharp, MSU 24-20; Seidel, MSU 31-28

Det News/Wojo:  MSU 27-22

Columbus Dispatch: MSU 31-24 (breakdown here)

Tom Izzo:  MSU 27-20

Cleveland Plain Dealer:  Landis, OSU 24-21; Wasserman, MSU 26-21; Livingston, OSU 31-27

MLive: no score, but NICE breakdown

The Old Raggedy Man Lou Holtz: OSU

Al.com (Alabama): MSU 38-27

Sports Illustrated:  MSU (unanimous)

ES sez:

Just like last year's Big Ten title game - MSU will score early and often... will falter a bit and allow the Buckeyes to come back.  But far too much firepower from the Spartans this year.  Bottom line: Ohio State has had a very weak schedule to date, both teams have great interior lines... but the Spartans have been more consistent and better along the line and among the playmakers. Ohio State QB JT Barrett ain't seen nothing yet - the Spartan defense will eat him alive tomorrow.  It will be fun!

MSU 34, Ohio State 24.  

ES Game Day, Championship version: Spartan defense will lay the hammer

ES Game Day:

B1G Ten Conference Championship
#9 Michigan State Spartans (11-1/8-0) vs #2 Ohio State Buckeyes (12-0/8-0)

Where:  Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
When:  8 pm, December 7, 2013
TV:  Fox
Line:  Ohio State by 5-1/2

SPARTANS: WHAT IS YOUR PROFESSION!!!!

Predictions: 

• BTN.com:  Merriman, MSU 24-21; Bardo, MSU 28-24; Yarina, OSU 27-23; Dienhart, OSU 30-27
• ESPN.com:  Rittenberg, MSU 30-28; Bennett: OSU 27-24
• CFN/Scout:  OSU, 27-17
• CBSSports:  Palm: OSU wins & covers; Feldman: OSU 14-10
• OffTackleEmpire:  OSU 27-23
• BeforeItsNews: MSU 27-17
• Bloguin: Kenney, OSU 20-13; Coppens, OSU 34-21; Torres, OSU 20-14; Singleton, OSU 42-28; Biles, OSU 28-18; Parcell, MSU 24-21; Causey, OSU 31-28; McGuire, OSU 24-20; Perry, OSU 28-12
• movoli:  MSU 27-17
• CollegeFootballPoll:  Computer says OSU by 7.66, but the blogger picks MSU outright
• Channel3000/SportsXChange:  MSU 30-27
• International Business Times:  OSU 41-28
• CappersPicks: OSU 31-20
• NewsOK:  OSU 19-17 
• BuckeyeFansOnly:  probably the most painful website blog on the eye, but it's an aggregate of a ton of different previews out there.  Some predictions, but it just too difficult and bothersome to splice up for the ES site.

Dear Buck-nut fans: 

Those of you who have never set foot on THE OSU campus, who paint yourselves up as ugly looking red and silver Christmas trees, or some reddish porcupine roadkill... those of you who will return on Sunday to your $50,000 two-story, plastic-shuddered houses in Euclid, Mansfield, Zanesville, or your trailers in Springfield... that's right, those of you Buck-nut fans who use your copy of Catcher in the Rye to prop up your garage sale ottoman for your fat ugly legs when watching your Buckeyes on a plasma tv for which you took out a second mortgage... those of you Buck-nut fans who will go to work on Monday to your $15 shifts repairing General Electric microwaves, filling in potholes in 25 degree weather, realigning the plumbing in the shack of another saddended Buck-nut fan whose Little Caeasar pizza didn't agree with him while watching the Buckeyes lose... that's right, you Buck-nuts who think the unethical, cheating, and admitted liar Jim Tressel is a saint and a martyr... those red and white fans who never picked up a book, who never went to college but choose this historically scandalous football program as one deserving your allegiance, this allegiance which is at the pinnacle of arrogance of college football.  Wake up, the ES is speaking to you, you uneducated Buckeye scum. To those fans with NO ties to Ohio State athletics other than the red and white poop-stained underwear in your drawers... the ES sez: why don't you buy a paper, read it with your pink eye, and stick it where the sun don't shine.

To the rest of the Buckeye Nation, the Spartan Nation, and the rest of college football, the ES sez:

Thank the good lord Ohio State is undefeated.  It's hard to like Urban Meyer.  More directly, it's hard not to hate Urban Meyer.  He's a bottom feeder.  The national media is swimming along next to him, sucking up to Meyer and the Buckeyes in the press conference on Wednesday.  Asking MSU defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi about the greatness of the Buckeye offense, Narduzzi quipped, appropriately: “Shoot, maybe we shouldn’t even show up.”  Thankfully, we have the vicious Spartan defense to take its hot poker and stick a big 'ole "L" on his butt cheek.

The ES is looking for payback in this game.  Payback for the cheatin' ways of Tressel, whose players' arrogance for free tattoos and swapping jewelry ended up pushing Michigan State out of what should have deservedly been a Rose Bowl appearance in 2010-2011.  In the record books, Ohio State now has L's next to all the games that season - but what hurt was the collateral damage of the Big Green NOT making it to its Promised Land of wine and roses, instead being sent to Florida for a slaughter at the hands of Alabama.  And, no remorse from the Buckeye faithful.  ES sez: payback is hell.

This is the most significant football game in my 45 years of life.  Why?  This is the best Spartan football team I've ever seen.  It's better than the 2011 team with Kirk Cousins that failed to win the B1G Title game vs Wisconsin.  It's definitely better than the 1988 Rose Bowl team, of which I attended every game: ES watching the title clinching game vs Indiana with mononucleosis, and spending New Years Day basking in the Rose Bowl victory over Southern Cal.

This season, our Michigan State Spartans have defeated every Big Ten team by double digits.  So, when the media says the Big Ten is soft in 2013 - that's fine; the Big Green whooped 'em all.  This is the best Spartans team since we last won the national title in 1966.  That's why we NEED this game:  it's in our blood, THE ROSE BOWL means everything to the Spartan Nation and our proud program.

You can read about the matchups, the stats, all the other hoopla elsewhere. ES sez the player of the game will be Max Bullough, using his storied family Spartan pedigree as inspiration to slow the Buckeye run game and position the defense for game-making plays.  The leader of the best defense in the land that will get it done, and sacrifice himself so his teammates can break Braxton Miller in two. The angry Spartan defense will bully the Buckyes, and by the end of the game will shove a pail of buckeyes right up their arse. The whole nation is rooting for the Spartans because of the near-unanimous hatred of Meyer.  The Spartans will deservedly end this ugly winning streak of that rodent of a coach, Urban Meyer.    

The ES will be at Lucas Oil Stadium, in tears of joy, with Big Bob, Keith, Seth, Sloth and his juniors - handing out red and white roses to Green and White fans who've made the trip.  

ES sez:  MSU 24, Ohio State 20.  See ya in Pasadena!

Spartans ranked #1 USAT hoops, #13 BCS football

Wow.  Lookie here.  Tom Izzo's hoop team is ranked #1 in the land.  Mark Dantonio's gridders are ranked #13 in the BCS and climbing.  Hell, even the Big Green field hockey team defeated Syracuse in the NCAA tournament, ending the 'Cuse's 45 home game win streak (although we lost in the second round).

What a great year to be a Spartan.

USA Today Coaches Poll - M HOOPS
RK	TEAM	RECORD	PTS
1	MICHIGAN STATE (22)	3-0	789
2	Louisville (8)	3-0	761
3	Kansas (2)	2-0	735
4	Arizona	3-0	684
5	Kentucky	3-1	658
6	Duke	2-1	630
7	Syracuse	3-0	601
8	Ohio State	3-0	597
9	Oklahoma State	3-0	541
10	Virginia Commonwealth	3-0	443
11	Memphis	1-0	404
12	Gonzaga	3-0	381
13	Michigan	2-1	362
14	Florida	2-1	359
15	Wisconsin	3-0	332
16	Wichita State	4-0	330
17	Oregon	2-0	275
18	Connecticut	4-0	265
19	North Carolina	2-1	208
20	New Mexico	2-0	180
21	Baylor	3-0	131
22	Indiana	4-0	129
23	Creighton	3-0	111
24	UCLA	2-0	105
25	Iowa	4-0	74

• Others receiving votes: Marquette 71, Iowa State 49, Virginia 42, Boise State 21, Harvard 20, Pittsburgh 19, Georgetown 14, Notre Dame 13, Colorado 10, California 9, Tennessee 9, Saint Mary's 8, Massachusetts 8, Saint Louis 5, Missouri 5, Belmont 5, Arizona State 3, Villanova 2, Brigham Young 1, Utah State 1

• Dropped from rankings: Marquette 17, Notre Dame 22, Virginia 25

BOWL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - FOOTBALL

		BCS		Harris Poll			USA Today			Computer Rankings
RK	TEAM	AVG	PVS	RK	PTS	%	RK	PTS	%	AVG	A&H	RB	CM	KM	JS	PW	%
1	Alabama	.9914	1	1	2620	.9981	1	1544	.9961	1	1	1	2	1	2	2	.980
2	Florida State	.9661	2	2	2517	.9589	2	1487	.9594	1	2	2	1	2	1	1	.980
3	Ohio State	.8869	3	3	2375	.9048	3	1404	.9058	5	4	3	4	6	5	7	.850
4	Baylor	.8856	5	4	2343	.8926	4	1386	.8942	3	3	5	5	4	4	4	.870
5	Oregon	.7917	6	5	2102	.8008	5	1231	.7942	6	6	4	9	5	10	6	.780
6	Auburn	.7860	7	7	1967	.7493	7	1145	.7387	3	5	7	3	3	6	3	.870
7	Clemson	.7681	8	6	2019	.7691	6	1217	.7852	7	9	6	6	8	12	5	.750
8	Missouri	.7231	9	8	1919	.7310	8	1129	.7284	8	7	11	7	9	9	8	.710
9	Stanford	.6238	4	11	1584	.6034	12	865	.5581	8	8	8	8	7	11	9	.710
10	Oklahoma State	.5890	12	9	1660	.6324	9	1030	.6645	14	12	12	15	20	8	18	.470
11	South Carolina	.5883	10	12	1459	.5558	11	882	.5690	10	10	9	11	11	7	10	.640
12	Texas A&M	.5394	11	10	1626	.6194	10	928	.5987	17	16	18	16	13	19	14	.400
13	MSU	.4646	16	13	1269	.4834	13	729	.4703	15	14	16	14	15	16	15	.440
14	UCLA	.4615	13	15	1110	.4229	14	700	.4516	13	13	13	17	12	15	12	.510
15	Fresno State	.4134	14	14	1126	.4290	16	622	.4013	16	18	19	13	25	13	13	.410
16	Northern Illinois	.3729	15	18	864	.3291	21	418	.2697	12	21	10	12	14	3	16	.520
17	Arizona State	.3414	19	22	570	.2171	22	352	.2271	11	11	22	10	10	14	11	.580
18	UCF	.3033	17	20	793	.3021	20	446	.2877	18	20	14	18	22	17	17	.320
19	Wisconsin	.2907	22	19	794	.3025	17	511	.3297	20	19	24	21	18	20	20	.240
20	Oklahoma	.2760	18	21	746	.2842	18	502	.3239	21	15	17	19	23	24	23	.220
21	Louisville	.2664	20	16	1010	.3848	15	627	.4045	26	NR	15	25	NR	NR	NR	.010
22	LSU	.2645	21	17	880	.3352	19	478	.3084	23	NR	21	NR	17	21	21	.150
23	USC	.1070	NR	23	202	.0770	25	115	.0742	22	17	23	20	21	23	24	.170
24	Ole Miss	.1048	NR	NR	110	.0419	NR	35	.0226	19	22	20	24	16	18	19	.250
25	Minnesota	.0604	NR	25	183	.0697	23	173	.1116	28	NR	NR	23	NR	NR	NR	.000