1. Michigan State continues to get screwed by the referees, and it was crystal clear in the 39-38 loss to the Corn. I am tired of MSU getting the fucking screw job from terrible, terrible officiating. I just don't understand how the refs could not only miss the call of the 30-yard TD to the Nebraska WR, only after being FOUR FEET out of bounds... but then the replay booth confirming a legal catch? The crew on the field and in the booth should see an optometrist and be suspended by the Big Ten, or better yet, be sent to the Canadian leagues. The NCAA created this rule after the Carlisle Indian School beat Harvard in 1907 - and the refs can't get it right?
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| This guy is a blind bonehead |
Commish Jim Delaney, are you watching this crap - what the hell is going on? MSU was jacked in the Michigan game, the refs blew several calls in the Indiana game, and the Nebraska phantom TD was nothing short of a botched, boneheaded mistake. Even the Nebraska coaches and fans couldn't believe it. I'd love to be a fly on the wall to listen to what Delaney hears, although he truly only gives a shit about Ohio State and Michigan. MSU has been playing shorthanded all year, having to beat both its opponents and the refs. So much for a level playing field. It's total bullshit.
2. Connor Cook was simply crazy good in the second half. This guy is going to have a big-time NFL career. Cook was 23-37 for 335, 4 TDs and his usual boneheaded INT. But, Dear God, some of his throws were insane, crazy laser target passes. Cook started off a bit too-jacked up overthrowing receivers, but by the second quarter he looked all-world, The Spartans had several dropped passes, and Cook missed a wide open Kings early - those were missed opportunities. Yet, as the game wore on, Cook was definitely the best player on the field.
3. MSU's defensive secondary is awful. They stink. Demetrious Cox couldn't tackle my dead grandma if he tried - beyond that, he's just plain awful in coverage, if you want to actually call it "coverage." He's a step late and nearly always out of position. He's not alone. I can't remember this many missed arm tackles out of the Spartan secondary. This team is so far from the No Fly Zone it's in a different hemisphere - a better name for our secondary would be the "Sky Miles Program" for frequent travel through the air.
4. Bad coaching, What was Coach D's staff doing, acting like John L. Smith and outsmarting themselves with the TE-around on 3rd down late in the game? That was just stupid. They took a page right out of the Jesus Harbaugh's playbook and got too conservative with the three runs. Get a first down, game over, Connor Cook was playing lights-out; maybe do a play action and throw an easy pass or just roll out and run it instead of the stupid shit. Earlier in the game,
5 . Living on borrowed time. Let's be honest: this ending was bound to happen - the Spartans have been pushed by Purdue, Indiana, Oregon, Rutgers, and Michigan... hell, Big Green were even pushed by the U.S. Air Force Academy. So, it's not exactly a surprise... but losing via bad officiating sucks. But, this isn't a Chicken Little scenario: the sky hasn't fallen. MSU still controls its own destiny. Michigan State needed to beat Ohio State anyway, and the Spartans still need to beat the Buckeyes. That doesn't change. Winning out could lead the Spartans back into the title hunt if other teams above them falter. However, I doubt it - only Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Alabama are ever rewarded despite losing. Bottom line: There is no longer any room for error.
MSU is now #14. They play Maryland next week, and should destroy the Turtles. Initial line looks like a 16-pt favorite.
| RK | TEAM | REC | PTS | TREND | LAST WEEK | NEXT WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Clemson(31) | 9-0 | 1489 | 2 | vs #17 Florida State W 23-13 | 11/14 @ Syracuse |
| 2 |  Ohio State(26) | 9-0 | 1460 | 1 | vs Minnesota W 28-14 | 11/14 @ Illinois |
| 3 |  Alabama(2) | 8-1 | 1376 | 4 | vs #4 LSU W 30-16 | 11/14 @ #20 Mississippi State |
| 4 |  Baylor(2) | 8-0 | 1351 | 2 | @ Kansas State W 31-24 | 11/14 vs #12 Oklahoma |
| 5 |  Oklahoma State | 9-0 | 1256 | 7 | vs #5 TCU W 49-29 | 11/14 @ Iowa State |
| 6 |  Notre Dame | 8-1 | 1219 | 2 | @ Pittsburgh W 42-30 | 11/14 vs Wake Forest |
| 7 |  Stanford | 8-1 | 1144 | 2 | @ Colorado W 42-10 | 11/14 vs Oregon |
| 8 |  Iowa | 9-0 | 1091 | 2 | @ Indiana W 35-27 | 11/14 vs Minnesota |
| 9 |  LSU | 7-1 | 1050 | 5 | @ #7 Alabama L 30-16 | 11/14 vs Arkansas |
| 10 |  Utah | 8-1 | 900 | 3 | @ Washington W 34-23 | 11/14 @ Arizona |
| 11 |  Florida | 8-1 | 887 | — | vs Vanderbilt W 9-7 | 11/14 @ South Carolina |
| 12 |  Oklahoma | 8-1 | 858 | 2 | vs Iowa State W 52-16 | 11/14 @ #4 Baylor |
| 13 |  TCU | 8-1 | 841 | 8 | @ #12 Oklahoma State L 49-29 | 11/14 vs Kansas |
| 14 |  Michigan State | 8-1 | 807 | 8 | @ Nebraska L 39-38 | 11/14 vs Maryland |
| 15 |  Michigan | 7-2 | 684 | 1 | vs Rutgers W 49-16 | 11/14 @ Indiana |
| 16 |  Houston | 9-0 | 561 | 2 | vs Cincinnati W 33-30 | 11/14 vs #25 Memphis |
| 17 |  North Carolina | 8-1 | 506 | 4 | vs Duke W 66-31 | 11/14 vs Miami (FL) |
| 18 |  UCLA | 7-2 | 403 | 4 | @ Oregon State W 41-0 | 11/14 vs Washington State |
| 19 |  Florida State | 7-2 | 379 | 2 | @ #3 Clemson L 23-13 | 11/14 vs NC State |
| 20 |  Mississippi State | 7-2 | 357 | 4 | @ Missouri W 31-13 | 11/14 vs #3 Alabama |
| 21 |  Temple | 8-1 | 310 | 2 | @ SMU W 60-40 | 11/14 @ South Florida |
| 22 |  Navy | 7-1 | 218 | — | @ #15 Memphis W 45-20 | 11/14 vs SMU |
| 23 |  Wisconsin | 8-2 | 183 | — | @ Maryland W 31-24 | — |
| 24 |  Northwestern | 7-2 | 177 | — | vs Penn State W 23-21 | 11/14 vs Purdue |
| 25 |  Memphis | 8-1 | 137 | 10 | vs Navy L 45-20 | 11/14 @ #16 Houston |
Dropped from rankings: Ole Miss 19, Toledo 20, Texas A&M 25
Others receiving votes: USC 104, BYU 35, Ole Miss 22, Texas A&M 6, Boise State 6, Toledo 4, Washington State 2, Western Kentucky 2
You forgot to mentioned the biggest problem, the kicker, who cannot get anywhere near kicking it into the end zone, we also had 2 face mask penalties on kick returns and this would not have happened had we kicked it into the end zone, like every other team we face. I knew we were in trouble after we went up by 12 when the kicker had another crappy kicked and allowed UN near the 50 yard line.
ReplyDeleteGet rid of this guy ASAP
I agree that we were too conservative. I like your point, Scott, that early in the game when we went for it on fourth and one and we run a cold LJ Scott up the gut, which didn't work, showed the fans how the coaches were going to call the offense: close to the vest. If we had done a play-action pass to anyone, like the FB Pendleton, he'd have been wide open. And it would have shown the world how we were playing to win, not merely not to lose. There is a difference.
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