Enlightened Preview: scUMbags eating Korn

Here's your scUM trailer trash, eating maize, while listening to Korn. 
And who's the starting QB for scUM? O'Korn.  Cornrolls, eating corn, listening to Korn, rooting for O'Korn.  Is there a God to help us from this madness?  

Michigan State (3-1, 1-0) vs. #7 scUMbags (4-0, 1-0)

Sagarin Ratings: MSU #27, scUM #13

October 5, 2017.  7:30 ET/Fox

Michigan Stadium
Ann Arbor, MI

Weather: 76, cloudy, 18 mph wind SSW

TV:  Fox

Line: scUM favored by 10-1/2

It's great for the ES to be flat, dead wrong.  ES picked a tank job against Iowa, and was proven wrong... as we needed only one week to prepare, and with a stout defense, win 17-10 against the Ugly Chickens of Iowa, not the two weeks necessary to be drubbed by the Irish.

OK, here I am with Big Bob and Don Middlebrook at Reno's reliving shitty weather games in our lives.  Thinking of the rain and wind this weekend in Khakiville leads to weather remembrance (in no ranking order) before we get to the predictions:

• MSU hosting Florida Atlantic (2008).  Absolute pouring down rain, like the God opened up a firehose on Spartan Stadium.  It lasted ALL GAME LONG.  Bob and I were shivering, and it was 72 degrees outside.  There was no wind, the rain just came straight down, like a 4-hour shower.  QB from FAU tried to throw the ball, and the rain knocked it down.  Javon Ringer for MSU ran for 250+ yards, because there was nothing else to do. Hardest rainstorm I've ever experienced in my life.  
• MSU hosting Northwestern (1989).  The Big Green clobbered Northwestern, 76-14 in EL.  The snow just DID NOT STOP.  Late November. Big Bob recalls the sweepers on the field after every possession to mark each 5 yards.  The ES remembers the student section throwing snowballs at the back of the NW players, and the PA announcer stating "please do not throw snowballs, you are endangering the players" as play was stopped. 
• MSU at Illinois (2005).  Traveling to Illinois with ChiSpartan and Big Bob, when we arrived it was 98 degrees in late September.  And humid.  MSU roared out to a 61-7 lead in the middle of the third quarter, and Big Bob was yelling out "BELIEVE!!!!" (the Illinois phrase at the time) and the ES yelling "Get Zookified" (in reference to coach Ron Zook)!  But thousands of students at Illinois were wearing shirts that said "Ann Arbor is a Whore" and after the game dozens congratulated us, and begged us to beat scUM the next week.  
• MSU losing to ND (2006).  In the remnants of Hurricane Katrina, the ES & Co. watched the beginning of the downfall of John L Smith in the pouring rain.  It's pouring rain and 40+ mph wind... why run for 12 yards a carry when you can throw in a monsoon?!  The ultimate of stupidity.

Let's get to the game:

2017 scUM Homecoming Queen, a 3.95 GPA Nuclear Physics major

What does one think of when one considers Ann Arbor?  non-contiguous streets.  Hippie wanna-bees having pot-smoking festivals between splitting atoms.  Challenged drivers. Great bread, bad teeth, and bad hair.  Watching "Wolf of Wall Street" with grandpa and kids.  $40 parking on someone's lawn... without a refresher?  Bad seating.  Construction on non-contiguous streets.  Almost-greatness always.  Trailer residence in abundance - why attend there, when you can park there?

Furthermore, what does one do when you read the contract of the second wealthiest coach in the nation?  $4,000 khaki allowance. LOL.

'Enough.  MSU better offense vs UM great defense. UM average offense vs MSU good defense.  Seems even-steven to me.  Last to screw up, other team wins.

Predictions:

• Big Bob: MSU wins 19-16, with a safety in hand.
• RGM3: Heart says MSU, Brain said UM... Heart wins out. 21-20 MSU
• Sloth: 23-7, Goodguys.
• Australian Paul: MSU 38 - IOWA 0
• Debbie Does Texas:  MSU 21-17
• Big Joe and Phantom 309: two teams with good defenses and lacking offensive identities means we're in for a low scoring game, 10-9 MSU
• Feather: 27-24 scUM
• Don Middlebrook: A big Spartan fan, but I think it's a 24-20 Spartan loss... but we look good and next year we take 'em.
• Lax Kaatz: Both teams give the ball away, but scum don't capitalize while MSU does. 20-17 good guys.
• Oakland Ronnie: MSU 18-13
• Carter:  scUM 31, MSU 17
• Keith the Midget-man:  MSU 19-17
• Kelly Butt:  MSU 17-10

ES sez:  surprise, surprise, surprise!  Coach D is the comeback king pulling a few gadget plays out of his hat at the right time in a defensive-minded game.  Spartan Nation 18, Homecoming Queen 16.

Greatest ending in the history of sports

Coach Mark Dantonio said it best: "Football is a crazy, crazy game. I can't really explain it."  Dear God, the sheer joy of life and seeing scUM wallow in their misery.   I'm in tears of joy.  All day long.  Read this from Yahoo - Oh My.

We're #4 in the Coaches Poll. 

Yes.  It was a miracle, but Michigan State earned it.  As for the last play, it makes sense: Coach D put all 11 up to try to block the punt. Michigan f*cked it up, and it was a perfect storm.  ES was at the Peanut Barrel and wishes to God he had recorded the experience. Scintillating, pure joy. Wow.

The Big Green pushed Arrogant Arses all around the field all game long.  The ES noted in his preview the Spartan defensive line was the key to the game.  Sho 'nuff - D Line turned out to be key.  The little people only had 230 TOTAL YARDS - 62 on the ground, 168 through the air.  That's nothing.  Nada.

Big Green had two goal line stands, and not blowing the whistle for 11 seconds for lack of forward progress was bullshit.  Absolute terrible officiating.

The targeting penalty on UM's Bolden?  OK, it was a bad call - but it was confirmed in the booth.  The fact he circled the stadium charging up the crowd was uncalled for and should have been an extra 15 yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

The beauty of the game was how WE won. Improbable, live it, love it, and revel in it. It has to hurt, scUM in mourning.  For the AA Nation, this has to feel like getting your balls chopped off.  Welcome to our world - we've been living this for 30 years pre-Dantonio.  The ES LOVES IT.

We dodged a bullet with our kicking game, special teams.  ES is all over, totally agrees that MSU should have gone for each of the 4th downs, we were 0-for-4 but close on each of them.  Praise God scUM had no long kick returns.  The fact that our backup QB (Tyler O'Connor) had 4 punts that averaged longer than our regular punter, Hartbarger, well... sigh.

Love the reporter from Grand Rapids broadcasting the scUM victory.  LOL.

Here are the stats:

                                     MSU     MICH
FIRST DOWNS...................       20       10
NET YARDS RUSHING.............       58       62
  Average Per Rush............      1.8      1.9
NET YARDS PASSING.............      328      168
  Completions-Attempts-Int....  18-39-0  15-25-0
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS...........      386      230
  Total offense plays.........       72       58
  Average Gain Per Play.......      5.4      4.0
Penalties: Number-Yards.......     5-44     8-70
Possession Time...............    30:11    29:49
Third-Down Conversions........  3 of 12  4 of 15
Fourth-Down Conversions.......   0 of 4   0 of 1
Sacks By: Number-Yards........     3-10     3-29

The greatest drive in Michigan State football history

Connor Cook had just pissed away a beautiful 28-3 lead over scUM by dropping the ball instead of handing it to Jeremy Langford.  Thirty seconds later, Michigan scored its first, and only, touchdown vs MSU since 2011.

And, then came the greatest drive in Spartan football history.  I still have tears in my eyes. 

With the Michigan State Spartans at midfield, and up 28-11 with 3 minutes left... well, the Doctor's M.O. is to just kneel down in victory formation and play another day. Right?  Game over?  But not Saturday, not against the little shits from Michigan.  As Coach D nearly stated after the game, time to "Shove it up their ASS!" (he said "We wanted to shove it," but we all know what he meant).  

More diplomatically: we are going to run the ball, and if you don't like it, stop us.  Victory Formation be damned.  The Spartan Stadium crowd, still nearly 70,000 strong, roared in approval.  I mean, IT ROARED.   

AND, the last drive of the game went like this:

H 1-10 M48  33-Langford rush for no gain to the MICH48
H 2-10 M48  33-Langford rush for 8 yards to the MICH40
H 3-2  M40  33-Langford rush for 3 yards to the MICH37
H 1-10 M37  33-Langford rush for 27 yards to the MICH10
H 1-G  M10  33-Langford rush for 2 yards to the MICH8
H 2-G  M08  33-Langford rush for 3 yards to the MICH5
H 3-G  M05  33-Langford rush for 5 yards to the MICH0
TOUCHDOWN, clock 00:28. 4-Geiger, Michael kick attempt good.

After the game, coach D said: "I can only be diplomatic for so long..." in the best, most appropriate, rant from Dantonio of his career.

Let me help you out coach: SHOVE IT DOWN THEIR THROAT.   Too bad Mike Hart wasn't playing on Saturday, because he likely would have left the game broken inside and out, broken like the dribble of a football program he left behind thanks to his "Little Brother" disrespect back in 2006.  

If Michigan State makes it to the national playoff, this likely will be the drive to which the Spartan Nation will point as far as being definitive in our persona.  The bastards from Ann Arbor have shown little respect, far beyond stupidity, for Michigan State football.  In all honesty, this goes way back to MSU's entry to the Big Ten, in 1949 when Michigan was the only school to vote against MSU joining the conference. Yes, Mike Hart was one of the best things to ever happen to Michigan State football. Yes, pride does come before the fall.  Fast forward to today: As smart as they think they are, the Wolverines lack common sense. 

I hate Michigan athletics.  And, I LOVED that last drive.  Brady Hoke, for all the Spartan Nation loves his terrible coaching, has now lost my complete respect - apologizing for his team's lack of integrity is worse than allowing them to behave so poorly in the first place.  It's just pathetic.

Never thought BTN's Gerry DiNardo would have such prophetic words: "Michigan is a drama program."  How sad, how true.

Below you will find the beautiful statistics from the game.  No matter how eye-opening, what you see below still doesn't paint the picture of how bad we kicked Michigan's ass.  Can we play them again tomorrow?  Please?

                                   MICH      MSU
FIRST DOWNS...................       13       22
NET YARDS RUSHING.............       61      219
  Average Per Rush............      2.3      4.8
NET YARDS PASSING.............      125      227
  Completions-Attempts-Int....  15-31-2  12-22-0
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS...........      186      446
  Average Gain Per Play.......      3.3      6.6
Possession Time...............    26:14    33:46

ES Game Day: MSU vs UM? It's like beating a dead horse with candy

Poor horsey looks like a prophecy of Devin Gardner or Shane Morris vs MSU

#5/#8 Michigan State Spartans vs. #70 Michigan Wolverines
October 25, 2014.  3:30 pm ET.
Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, MI
ABC-TV

Weather:  64 and sunny

Sagarin Ratings: MSU #11, scUM #70
Line: MSU favored by 17

Predictions & Previews:  

• TobBet.eu: Writer's Prediction:  "The Spartans Crush the Wolverines."
• Live2Sport:  MSU, 33-15
• CFN/Scout.com:  MSU, 31-13
• iSportsweb: White, MSU 38-13; Catania, Michigan 17-14; Johnson, MSU 32-16; Nazario, MSU 31-14; Lapthorne, MSU 28-24; Hoeppner, MSU 35-10; Squanda, MSU 38-17; Harns, MSU 44-14; Sargent, MSU 28-7; Draper, MSU 31-20; Lyons, MSU 42-14; worldofisaac, MSU 38-17; Coster, MSU 42-17; Moore, MSU 52-9 
• Freep:  Rexrode, MSU 27-17; Snyder, MSU 35-14; Albom, MSU 45-10; Sharp, MSU 31-10; Seidel, MSU 35-14; Windsor, MSU 29-16
• DetNews.com (vs spread): Charboneau, Changelis, Wojnowski, MSU; Niyo, Michigan
• BTN.com: Lesmerises, MSU 40-13; Yarina, MSU 44-13; Dienhart, MSU 44-9
• ESPN.com:  MSU 24-13
• CBSSports.com:  unanimous, MSU

ES sez:

Hell, if MITCH ALBOM is predicting a 5-touchdown win by the Spartans, then the nation must know the vast canyon of superiority that Michigan State has over that has-been program from Ann Arbor.  How embarrassing. Read my previous write-ups:  the Wolverines have NO CHANCE in this game.  The uglies from AA are completely outmatched physically and statistically.   The ES is glad they had two weeks to prepare, it won't matter.  

Shalique Calhoun is and will be a nightmare for Devin Gardner and Michigan.

This rivalry game is #1 most important on the Spartans' list of most hated teams, and we Big Green Machine will come to play on a beautiful October afternoon, with the prerequisite Dantonio trick plays up his sleeve.  The defense will be on fire, and ready to respond to the national pundits who are questioning that we may give up big-plays despite our No-Fly Zone.   We - the Ferocious Spartan Defense - will force that Michigan team into turnovers into which our ground running game will churn into long-drive, dominating TDs - thank you, Mr. Langford.  

ES Bottom line:  this game will be won in the trenches by the Spartans, big time, on both sides of the ball.  And, it will get ugly over time.   Thank God this beating will be on ABC.  The ES invites the world to watch this capital punishment with popcorn, candy, and a few frosty lagers.  

MSU 46, Michigan 9.  

Little Blue UM no match for 17-pt fave Big Green MSU

It is RIVALRY WEEK and as such it's amazing to see Michigan State favored by 17 points against the Ann Arborites.  It's the largest spread for MSU over scUM in my lifetime - and the reason is that Big Green is a Top-10 team, defending Rose Bowl Champions, and the Wolverines are not even in the same league.

The ES actually feels bad for Little Blue.  David Brandon, the scUM AD, is as clueless in marketing college athletics as he was successful as the CEO of Domino's Pizza,  backup QB Shane Morris is caught in a concussion controversy, coach Brady Hoke should be making decisions for Pillsbury crescent rolls instead of a football team, and injuries, injuries: leading rusher Derrick Green is out for the season; DL Jabrill Peppers is questionable; and, OL Sean Magnuson is also questionable... etc, etc.

Remember last year, QB Devin Gardner was planted like a petunia in Spartan Stadium in a 29-6 loss, being sacked eight times en route to -46 yards rushing. Gardner puked on his final play as he headed out of the game, smashed like your grandma's potatoes.

With scUM missing a starting OL and their leading RB gone for the season, and an anemic Michigan offense going against a fairly good Spartan defense... and, to boot, when MSU gets the ball, it is among the nation's leading scorers, giving up the fewest sacks, creating the most turnovers, and also leading the nation in Time of Possession....  Well, on paper this is a complete blow out.  MSU should be able to score at will, on long drives, and pound Michigan into a deep-six holiday that lasts until next season or longer.  Michigan can't move the ball and can't score.  Done deal.  Gardner won't survive.

Here are the basic stats:

Michigan Offense: #110 total yards, #82 sacks allowed, #44 TOP, #105 scoring
Michigan Turnover Margin: #124
Michigan Defense: #10 total yards, #41 team sacks, #29 scoring

MSU Offense:  #12 total yards, #1 in sacks allowed, #1 TOP, #3 scoring
MSU Turnover Margin:  #3
MSU Defense: #9 total yards,  #4 team sacks, #33 scoring

More later... but reads like Sayonara to me.

POLLS - PLAYOFF DUE OUT TUES OCT. 28

Michigan State is shooting up the coaches poll to #5, but is static in the AP media poll at #8.  Doesn't matter much, as the College Football Playoff poll will have its first stanza this upcoming Tuesday at 7:30 pm on ESPN - look for MSU to go up a notch or two with a pounding of hated Michigan.

USA Today Poll
RK	TEAM	RECORD	PTS
1	Mississippi State (36)	6-0	1520
2	Florida State (22)	7-0	1493
3	Ole Miss (4)	7-0	1447
4	Alabama	6-1	1293
5	Michigan State	6-1	1243
6	Auburn	5-1	1210
7	Oregon	6-1	1133
8	Notre Dame	6-1	1117
9	Georgia	6-1	1096
10	TCU	5-1	996
11	Kansas State	5-1	909
12	Ohio State	5-1	856
13	Baylor	6-1	853
14	Arizona State	5-1	654
15	Arizona	5-1	612
16	Nebraska	6-1	588
17	East Carolina	5-1	578
18	Oklahoma	5-2	482
19	Utah	5-1	371
20	Clemson	5-2	320
21	USC	5-2	258
22	Marshall	7-0	247
23	LSU	6-2	155
24	Minnesota	6-1	147
25	West Virginia	5-2	143

• Dropped from rankings: Oklahoma State 15, Stanford 20
• Others receiving votes: Oklahoma State 141, Duke 116, UCLA 107, Missouri 23, Colorado State 18, Wisconsin 17, Washington 5, Stanford 2

Michigan State to erect statue in honor of U-M's Mike Hart

A statue of a rival?  You gotta be kidding me.  Check this press release out - GO GREEN!!!!

---------------
 
(EAST LANSING, MI)---Nearly a week after the Michigan State University (MSU) football team annihilated its rival, the University of Michigan (U-M), 29-6, the institution called a press conference for 4 pm ET on Monday.

"The university has decided to erect a statue in honor of former Michigan running back, Mike Hart," said Joe Smothwick, spokesperson at Michigan State University.  "It is not often that a university builds a statue in honor of a student-athlete from another school, let alone a rival athletic program.  But, the recent context and the history of the two programs made it overly apparent that we had to appropriately recognize his achievements to this rivalry."

The statue will be erected on the south end of Spartan Stadium, directly in front of Gate A, where the student body enters the stadium.  "We want MSU students to see Mr. Hart in perpetuity and make their own judgements about his contributions before they enter the stadium.  The decision is as much an honor as it is an educational exercise."  The university has requested bids from artists on the style, size, and consistency of the statue.  However, a budget was not released. 

"We welcome input from the proud Spartan alumni on the material to be used to construct the statue," added Smothwick.  A survey will be released to ask for public input on several different substances to be used in the construction: maize, straw, timber, or solidified manure.  These materials were considered based on Michigan State University's agricultural history.

The rationale for the decision was stated by Smothwick as he referenced comments from 2007.  At that time, Hart called Michigan State University the "little brother" of the University of Michigan; and the stinging response by MSU coach Mark Dantonio, who was in his first year as MSU head coach: "The pride comes before the fall."  On the day of Hart's comments, MSU lost to U-M in a heated contest, 28-24. Since that point of time, the Spartans have defeated the Wolverines in five of six meetings, including last Saturday - the largest margin of victory for the Spartans over the Wolverines since 1967. 

"President Simon and her cabinet have discussed this periodically in each of the past three years; obviously, those plans were put on hold a year ago" (following U-M's miraculous 12-10 victory without a touchdown in 2012), said Smothwick.  "But, after Saturday... well, there's no doubt we need to honor the man for his contribution to Michigan State football."

Smothwick referred to tensions between the rival football powers, which heated up after current U-M running back Mark Touissaant referred again to MSU as "little brother."  Touissant was a non-factor in the recent contest, gaining just 20 yards on eight carries as the team rushed for -48 yards, the fewest in the history of the storied program. Noted current MSU linebacker Denicos Allen after the obliteration on Saturday: "You can call us what you want, call us little brother, big brother. But when it is on the field we show who is the big brother is and who is the little brother."

The decision was prompted by recent collaborations among the presidents of the two schools, LouAnna Simon at MSU and Mary Sue Coleman at U-M.  For instance, there will be a swap of each president to each other's institution as honorary commencement speakers this fall.  The positive dialogue between the presidents has helped to quell the tensions in athletics... leading to this olive branch from Simon to Coleman, but instead in the shape of a statue. 

"On Monday, President Simon contacted President Coleman, and both agreed it was the right thing to do to honor Mike Hart.  It's unanimous: we Spartans are proud of Mr. Hart's contributions to Michigan State football."

###

The victory formation

The best formation in the history of football.

And, the iconic photo of the final score and brutalizing statistics...

MSU defensive domination over Michigan

Best defensive performance in ES' 45 years of life: Spartans crucify Wolverines

LET'S BE HONEST. WE KNOW WHAT WE SAW. That includes this jerk in our Section 19, who kept yelling "where's that defense?"  What an idiot. 

Spartans were up 16-6, dominating on defense.  MSU just got the ball at midfield, but they had a tough time moving the ball throughout the game.  QB Connor Cook rolled right and lofted a ball - a bad pass - intercepted by Michigan, returned to the MSU 40.

And, then the dance began.

Michigan State beared down in a Herculean effort greater than any effort I have seen in my life.  Three straight plays, three sacks in a row, mauling and overrunning that Wolverine offensive line.  Instead of moving the ball into Spartan territory, the Wolverines retreated 21 yards!!!  Time to punt; and, MSU took that return, made it into a drive that ended all the way in the end zone.  

I have been alive since 1968.  But, I never thought I'd ever see complete devastation by a MSU defense until what I saw today... luckily, the Spartans used their horror to destroy Michigan.

We destroyed them. Humiliation. Annihilation.  Obliteration.  Mauling.  Destruction.  Cremation.  Dilapidation.  Decapitation. Whipping.  Slaughter.  Massacre.

It was a feast of roadkill. That Spartan defense ate Michigan alive.

While humiliation is a good word for what I saw today - it was closer to a burial. As predicted by the ES, Michigan State's defense dug a hole and buried Gardner like a potato.   Time and time again.  Stomped on Gardner as if he were a fly.  Seven sacks?  Is that all? it seemed like 30 sacks.  He was running for his life all game long. 

And, Michigan had two weeks to prepare for this.  You could have given them two months and it would not have mattered.  Michigan State is just a far far better football team than that line of blue.

Michigan had 29 attempts at running, for -48 yards rushing in a 6-29 mauling at the hands of Michigan State. In other words, every time they ran the ball, Michigan lost 1.7 yards. It was the worst outing in the history of Michigan football.  And, it looked worse than that. Seven sacks by the Spartans, and 11 tackles for loss.  Another 7 QB hurries, 3 pass breakups. Wow.  Talk about pressure.  And, complete domination.  Michigan finished the game a meager 2-of-14 (14%) on third downs. Look at the MSU defensive stats, lit up like a Christmas tree.

Love the quote from Brady Hoke on Gardner: "He had taken a lot of shots earlier in the game, and he's a little bit warn out. I wouldn't say he has an injury. I'd say beat up." Or, this from Hoke:  "I think they played awfully well and executed awfully well. I don't think we did."

Better yet was this from Spartan LB Denicos Allen: ""Two years ago wasn't nothing. It was a lot worse today, and I think they felt it."

REPEAT:  I THINK THEY FELT IT. 

At the end of the third quarter, Devin Gardner  had just threw away the 7th of 8 throws against an incredible Michigan State's defensive rush.  Next play, to Jeremy (built up to be a "God for catching 300+receiving yards in a game") Gallon, was caught but he fumbled, losing the yards just gained and leading to a punt ... a play that defined Michigan's destiny as no match against the more talented and physical Michigan State team.  Gallon was a mere afterthought in this game, as was anyone on the Michigan offense.  

Well, I guess Connor Cook is less talented of a QB than Devin Gardner, right?  Ummm.... lookit the stats:

Cook: 18-33, 252 yds,  1 TD, 1 INT.  Rush: 5 carries, -15 yds
Gardner 14-27, 210 yds, 0 TD, 1 INT. Rush: 18 carries, -46 yds

Jesus, Cook outplayed Gardner.  Not as flashy, but certainly more effective within his offensive scheme. 

And, Fitz Toussant with his "little brother" comment?  Gimme a break.  He had 20 yards on 8 carries; a complete non-factor. 

However, today belonged to the Spartan defense, solidifying itself as the best in the land.  The Spartan defense DOMINATED Michigan the entire game, pushing around that offensive line as if the UM O-Line were filled with rag dolls. Embarrassing?  Yes. Beautiful?  Absolutely.

Can't wait 'til Michigan returns next year.  They can come to East Lansing anytime.  

Enjoy the pics below.

Today was the best defensive football game I have ever seen Michigan State University play in my lifetime.  Period. 

MICH	MSU
1st Downs	12	19
3rd down efficiency	2-14	9-18
4th down efficiency	0-1	0-0
Total Yards	168	394
Passing	216	252
Comp-Att	15-30	18-33
Yards per pass	7.2	7.6
Rushing	-48	142
Rushing Attempts	29	39
Yards per rush	-1.7	3.6
Penalties	3-39	5-25
Turnovers	1	1
Fumbles lost	0	0
Interceptions thrown	1	1
Possession	27:39	32:21

++

MSU favored by 3-1/2 vs Michigan; Daily Illini on Spartans: "let all the ugliness out"

Notably, #24 Michigan State is a very early 3-1/2 point favorite over the #23 Wolverines next week in the game of the year in EL.  Indiana is favored by 7 at home over Minnesota. Nebraska is favored by 7 at home over Northwestern. #22 Wisconsin is favored by 7 at Iowa. Penn State is favored by 10 at home over Illinois.  And, #4 Ohio State is favored by, gulp, 31 at Purdue.

As for yesterday... Wow.  The ES heard a bit of the game on the radio, but looking at the statistics from the Spartans' 42-3 punishment of Illinois was impressive.  At a place that claims itself as the originator of the first collegiate homecoming, the Illini faithful likely should have waltzed passed Memorial Stadium, as it was the sight of an embarrassing whipping courtesy of Michigan State.  As written by the Daily Illini, "It was a few plays here and there that slowly peeled the lid off this game and let all the ugliness out."  An ugly homecoming at Illinois.  Beautiful.
 
The Spartans finishing their last six possessions with TDs?  Wow. A goal-line defensive stand turning into a 99-yard TD drive?  Well, golly! Cook 15-of 16 for 208 yards with 3 TDs.  Langford with 104 of Michigan State's Pound-Green-Pound 269-25 rushing yardage advantage.  The vastly-underrated but oft-important statistic of domination -- third down conversion -- was, 14-of-16???  Is that a typo?  And, nearly double the possession time (39 to 21 minutes).  My God.  Wow.  And, the defensive stats are even more impressive.  Giving up just 128 total yards (25 on rushing).  Total of 477-128 total  yards.  Ouch.  This is a defining performance that should finally vault MSU into the top 25 (posting update: MSU is in the AP Poll at #24, see bottom of this post).  Stats are below.

	MSU	ILL
1st Downs	29	8
Total Yards	477	128
Passing	208	103
Rushing	269	25
Penalties	5-34	7-66
3rd Down Conversions	14-16	3-10
4th Down Conversions	0-0	0-1
Turnovers	1	2
Possession	39:06	20:54

Associated Press Top 25 - week of Oct 27, 2013

RK	TEAM	RECORD	PTS
1	Alabama (55)	8-0	1495
2	Oregon (3)	8-0	1432
3	Florida State (2)	7-0	1390
4	Ohio State	8-0	1317
5	Baylor	7-0	1223
6	Stanford	7-1	1189
7	Miami (FL)	7-0	1149
8	Auburn	7-1	1022
9	Clemson	7-1	1007
10	Missouri	7-1	873
11	LSU	7-2	818
12	Texas A&M	6-2	811
13	Oklahoma	7-1	791
14	South Carolina	6-2	701
15	Texas Tech	7-1	579
16	Fresno State	7-0	510
17	UCLA	5-2	489
18	Oklahoma State	6-1	483
19	UCF	6-1	464
20	Louisville	7-1	417
21	Northern Illinois	8-0	290
22	Wisconsin	5-2	262
23	Michigan	6-1	199
24	Michigan State	7-1	166
25	Arizona State	5-2	133

• Dropped from rankings: Virginia Tech 16, Nebraska 25

• Others receiving votes: Notre Dame 132, Georgia 24, Brigham Young 22, Texas 22, Ole Miss 21, Virginia Tech 20, Oregon State 17, Florida 14, Washington 6, Minnesota 4, Ball State 4, Arizona 2, Duke 2

Live CHAT: MSU at Michigan.

Spartans LIVE CHAT vs Michigan tomorrow at 4

Spartans taking on the Wolverines in Ann Arbor, Sunday, 4 pm on CBS. The ES is heading to Las Vegas tomorrow, but leaving Lansing Airport at 7:30 pm. Thusly, he'll entertain a LIVE CHAT tomorrow for the 4 pm game. Come on over and chime in!!! Funny, Michigan is favored by 4 over the Spartans. The Vegas bookies just don't get it, do they? Myron Medcalf at ESPN predicts a 70-67 Spartan win over the little yellow men. ES sez Appling wakes up, and the defense puts up a wall to stifle the Wolvies.

Michigan State WHIPS Michigan by 30+

Welcome to the game. You think you got it -- then BRING IT.  Michigan State DESTROYED, devastated, and absolutely WHIPPED what Michigan thought they had in a men's basketball team.  It was so funny to watch, it was embarrassing, as Brenden Dawson jacked down jams, Keith Appling, Gary Harris drained treys, as Derrick Nix God Bless His Soul leaned in and hooked jumpers, and as the rest of the Spartans played 60-minute clamp-down defense to suffocate and belittle the game of Michigan.

If it wasn't so pathetic, it was hilarious.  Thanks to the good Lord above that this was broadcast on national television just for everyone to understand HOW FAR BEHIND THE SPARTANS that the little yellow men of Venus are. The ES was with Big Bob at the Peanut Barrel, and while rooting on Keith Appling and Gary Harris as they extended their defense beyond the 3-point perimeter for the WHOLE GAME was spectacular.  Loved the support from Payne and Dawson, defending the interior.

The ES just can't gush enough about Nix.  How many reclamation projects will Izzo endure?  Eric Snow, Kelvin Torbert, Tim Bokrakos, Drew Naymick, Goran Suton... now, Derrick Nix??

Unbelievable tonight.  What an ASS-BEATING.

A smack-down to reality.  Can we play scUM tomorrow?  Where, when?  Pretty please???

Michigan State hosts scUM. Stats on Eddie Hightower; pundits give edge to Spartans.

ES won't be dropping $95 for a nosebleed seat to watch this evening's matchup of #8 Spartans and Brenden Dawson beating up on the #5 Little Yellow Men from Venus... rather, I'm a gonna try and make it to either the Peanut Barrel or to the Spartan Hall of Fame Cafe to cover the game with some suds, and maybe Big Bob can make it?  Luckily it is a 9 pm game, which usually spells bed time for my youngest rugrat - so there's potential for a fun ride watching Michigan-Michigan State on the hardwood tonight.

Looks like the little yellow men are 1-1/2 point favorites, which is a complete joke.  The game tips off on ESPN, with Michigan-backer and Ann Arbor resident Mike Tirico unfortunately calling the play-by-play. 

PRAY FOR HIGHTOWER TO HIGHTAIL OUT OF MICHIGAN

I can't find out who the refs are for tonight's important matchup, dammit. Hopefully, Eddie Hightower isn't on the court: other than being BRUTAL and half-blind, according to StatSheet, in 2012-2013, Hightower he has been reffing games in which the ROAD TEAM has been the receipient of 2.3 more foul calls than the home team; but, this year shows an all-time low for him as a ref with number of fouls in a game, down to 35.8 per game (down from his all-time high of calling 43.4 per game in 2000-2001).  I guess there is some solace that he isn't as brutal as he was in the past (like putting perfume on a turd).

However, the Hightower standard deviation of home vs visiting team fouls is also amazing, which means the difference in each game from the average for the season.  A deviation of 4.5 for home teams is the second-highest of his career, and deviation of 3.3 for visiting teams is the lowest of his career... which means, if Eddie Hightower is reffing, he is more likely to vary wildly in his total calls against Michigan State than he is against Michigan.   [ES note: I can't believe someone has the time to calculate these stats, but thanks!]

NCAA Basketball Stats

NCAA Basketball Stats

NCAA Basketball

NCAA Basketball Stats

It looks like BTN's Dienhart is giving the Spartans the edge, as is SportsTracker/Freep. See ya at the pub!  GO BIG GREEN MACHINE!  Wipe the floor with Burke and his Boyz.

Spartan hoops and rankings

First off - ES is really fired up watching the MSU ladies in pink (Breast Cancer Awareness) beating the crap out of Michigan (by 14 points as of 10:00 remaining in the game); As for MSU men's cagers - both the AP Poll and the Coaches' Poll demonstrate the lack of awareness of both the media and coaches with respect to the Spartans' competition this year.

In the AP Poll, MSU is ranked #12, behind a team they beat (Ohio State #10, and two teams to which they lost, #1 Indiana, #8 Miami). How MSU can be ranked behind Ohio State makes no sense. In the USA Today Poll, the coaches ranked MSU #8, ahead of a team they beat (Ohio State #10) and ahead of a team to which they lost (Miami #11), but behind #1 Indiana, to which they lost. How MSU is ranked ahead of Miami is beyond me.

Bottom line:  polls don't matter much, as Tom Izzo has proven over the years with respect to the Spartan hoops' performance in the national tournament.   But here is the USA Today poll below for grins.

USA Today Coaches Poll
RK	TEAM	RECORD	PTS
1	Indiana (25)	20-2	766
2	Florida (6)	18-2	742
3	Michigan	20-2	690
4	Duke	19-2	683
5	Kansas	19-2	654
6	Gonzaga	21-2	614
7	Arizona	19-2	601
8	Michigan State	18-4	518
9	Syracuse	18-3	514
10	Ohio State	17-4	502
11	Miami (FL)	17-3	485
12	Louisville	18-4	470
13	Creighton	20-3	369
14	Butler	18-4	325
15	Kansas State	17-4	314
16	New Mexico	19-3	295
17	Cincinnati	18-4	265
18	Minnesota	17-5	194
19	Oregon	18-4	179
20	Missouri	16-5	143
21	Georgetown	16-4	138
22	Wichita State	19-4	83
23	Ole Miss	17-4	69
24	Oklahoma State	15-5	57
25	Pittsburgh	18-5	54
25	San Diego State	16-5	54

• Others receiving votes: Notre Dame 47, Colorado State 38, Marquette 38, Virginia Commonwealth 33, Wisconsin 25, North Carolina State 24, Memphis 19, Saint Mary's 18, Southern Miss 13, UNLV 12, Belmont 7, Louisiana Tech 6, Middle Tennessee 4, Kentucky 4, UCLA 4, Oklahoma 2, Akron 2, Saint Louis 1

• Dropped from rankings: North Carolina State 19, Marquette 25