Enlightened Spartan Preview 2017-18

It's the End of the World as we
Know it, and I feel fine!

The ES is in his 18th year publishing Spartan predictions on-line! We are talking the LONGEST COLLEGE FOOTBALL BLOG in history.

The ES is partial on the Big Green this year. Check out this picture from Dantonio’s first radio show at Reno’s. Well, things are just looking up peachy at MSU. What a great year!!!! The ES invites anyone with a beating heart to look at the lovely facilities built for the Athletics Department on South Harrison.

You can’t miss it - Mark Hollis with his binoculars should keep a tight eye on the actions of our coaches, and in most proximity, Mark Dantonio. He should get his henchmen in order, and create a KGB-culture spy ring to figure out what athletes are disrespecting women on our campus - and to punish them! “Education”? Meh. When Coach D mentions “we got education” it is demeaning and empty with respect to what actually needs to be done proactive towards student development. Gimme a break.

Mark Hollis: Welcome to 1855 Spartan Plaza!!!!!
(look across west side of Breslin)

Where the hell did you go???? 

OK, now that the ES got that off his chest - how will this stained-football program fare in 2017-18? I welcome my prognosticators who are more well endowed in football lore than the ES. My queries: 1) Final record W-L; 
2) Big Ten record W-L; 
3) Bowl game??? 
4) Best Win; 
5) Worst Loss; 
6) General commentary on MSU debauchery...
Responses:

• SMIG 1) Final record 8-4; 2) Big Ten record 6-3; 3) Bowl game - Yes 4) Wisky 5) Ohio State 6) Looking forward to watching some football on Saturday. 
• KEITH 1) Ditto w ChicagoBro: 7-5. 6) team will gel but administrative heads will roll...maybe some coaches too. 
• CHICAGO BRO 1) Final record 7-5 2) Big Ten record 4-5 3) Bowl game - Yes 4) Best Win - vs Iowa 5) Worst Loss - at Minnesota 6) General commentary on MSU debauchery... off field troubles are past 
• BIG BOB 1) 6-6. 2) 4-5. 3) MSU will turn down the offer to play in the inaugural Barnyard Bowl played on the High School field in beautiful Elmore, OH. 4) Bowling Green. 5) Western Michigan. 6) Students boycott all games and only talk about upcoming hoops season. 
• JACK 1) 6-7; 2) 3-6; 3) loss @ Ford Field; 4) charges dismissed; 5) Rutgers (because I will be there, and last time I was there Dowdell was QB); 6) can it get worse that last year and the off season? 
• PAUL BEER IN AUSTRALIA 1) 12-0.
• KELLY BUTT 1) 7-6 (best case) How many fake punts ??? 25 Chances of First play...hand off to the the right..?? 100% 
• SLOTH 2) 3-6 3) Lmfao 4) The end of the season comes without any more violent crimes being committed 5) Michigan 6) This season feels like what 2003 would have felt like had BW been allowed to come back. We are the biggest joke at the college level right now, and it is only going to get worse. Coach D will be gone by January 1. 
•  RGM3 7-5. Upset v Penn St or Ohio St. MSU will have a winning record in the Big Ten. Loss to Notre Dame. Biggest win is Penn St at home. BWW Bowl against Texas Tech with a victory. MSU will finish in the Top20 in 2018-19.

Da ES:

• Is this John L Smith all over again?  Or, as the Sloth, pointed out; "what does it take to get a guy fired around here?"  OK, here's my take.   HARUMPH.  I've heard Indians, Pakistanis, Chinese, Japanese, Brazilians, Peruvians, Russians, Egyptians.  They all say the same thing. 6-6 record.  Then again, the Indians and Pakis thought I asked about cricket, and responded 264-6 wickets.  Whatever that means. 
• 1) Final record W-L: 6-6.

• 2) Big Ten record W-L: 3-6
• 3) Bowl game: BWW - I want Asian Zing. 

• 4) Best Win: Notre Dame. 

• 5) Worst Loss: Maryland (again).

• 6) General commentary on MSU debauchery... Coach D wins his job for another year. Barely. Stop the rape!!!!

Tomorrow morning for the first game prediction of the year!

Michigan State favored by 31 1/2 over Jax State

Michigan State opens as a 31-1/2 point favorite over FCS opponent Jacksonville State next Friday (August 29).  Here are the odds across all the Big Ten for the opening week:

8-28, 10 pm,  Rutgers at Washington State (-8)

8-28, 7 pm, Eastern Illinois at Minnesota (-15 1/2)

8-29, 7 pm, Jacksonville St at Michigan State (-31 1/2)

8-30, 8:30 am, Penn State at Central Florida (-1)

8-30, 12 pm, Appalachian State at Michigan (-34)

8-30, 12 pm, Western Michigan at Purdue (-12 1/2)

8-30, 12 pm, Ohio State (-19) at Navy

8-30, 3:30 pm, Cal at Northwestern (-11)

8-30, 3:30 pm, Florida Atlantic at Nebraska (-23 1/2)

8-30, 9 pm, Louisiana State (-4 1/2) at Wisconsin

8-30, 12 pm, Youngstown State at Illinois (-10 1/2)

8-30, 12 pm, Indiana State at Indiana (-23 1/2)

8-30, 12 pm, Northern Iowa at Iowa (-16 1/2)

8:30, 3:30 pm, James Madison at Maryland (-21 1/2)

About Braxton Miller 

OK, so it takes one day for the ES to chime in on the Big Green getting second-fiddle in the Big Ten... and then, Ohio State's star player is determined to be injured and out for the season.  Suddenly, Michigan State becomes the leading contender for the Big Ten title.

MSU would have won the Big Ten title (with the Buckeyes playing in East Lansing) with or without Braxton Miller on the field for OSU.  However, it now becomes a lot easier for the Spartans.  Miller  was the most significant threat against Michigan State the past two years - including the major playmaker in the Big Ten title game (which MSU won by double digits, anyways).  The Buckeyes always reload, but Miller was their silver bullet.  

Expect the odds to the National Title game to shift significantly.  Before the Miller injury, Ohio State was a 10-1 favorite, with Michigan State 35-1.   The ES figures Michigan State will move up to about 25-1, and Ohio State will drop to 30-1 or 40-1.

Enlightened Spartan 2012 Preview for Michigan State Football

OK, so here is the ES season preview below. The ES and The Blue Turf (Boise State) are working on a salvo of banters about our teams and campuses. That should be posted by tomorrow morning (Aug 30). In the meantime, the ES chimes in, along with ChiSpartan, Chock, Big Bob, and Swiss Sloth. Enjoy the predictions; the ES Game Day preview will be up Friday morning.

2012 Enlightened Spartan Season Preview

MSU 12-2 overall, 10-2 regular season. Rose Bowl champions, defeating Oregon.

With all due respect, this is the greatest season ticket package in Michigan State season history: Boise St, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Iowa, Nebraska, Northwestern. Another word: WOW.

BOISE STATE. W. This ain’t Atlanta, this is Spartan Stadium, and a feroucious defense feasts on the Boise backfield. MSU offense scores one TD, the defense scores two en route to a sounding defeat of the Bronco potato-heads.

@ Central Michigan. W. Unlike the Ann Arbor stick-my-nose-in-the-air rodents down the road, the Spartans share the wealth and give CMU a home game to pad its departmental budget. The Chips need the padding, as they are mauled in a big loss at home.

NOTRE DAME. W. The Irish are overrated again, but a very tough s chedule inspires the Catholics to a tough fight for their lives, early on the road in a night game. Doesn’t matter as Sparty’s defense shuts down ND in a low-scoring contest, making it 11 of the last 16 for Michigan State. Another TD for the Spartan D.

EASTERN MICHIGAN. W. The question: against whom will the Spartans score the most points? CMU, EMU, Indiana, or Minnesota.

OHIO STATE. L. Spartans shocked at home, suffer first home defeat since 2009 and giving Urban Meyer the first feather in his cap.

@ Indiana. W. See the intro “@ Indiana”? Enough said.

IOWA. W. ‘Tis interesting the decline of the Hawkeyes and the rise of the Spartans, no? Spartan defense should manhandle the Hawkeye front – a reversal of roles from a decade ago. Rising = Dantonio; Falling = Ferentz.

@ Michigan. W. Denard who? The hype is squashed for the third straight year. Last two years, Spartans viciously ended any Heisman talk, knocking Robinson into another world, with unHeisman-like stats (rush: 39-128 yards-3.3 avg; pass: 26-53-338-4 INTs)…... Defense wins championships, watch Robinson’s cage get rattled again. Spartan defense scores a pair of TDs to shut down Michigan Heisman talk. Again.

@ Wisconsin. L. Michigan State suffers loss number two, on the road, in a tight, heated rivalry that is the 21^st century version of the B1G Ten glory that used to be Woody & Bo. The two squads will meet later…

NEBRASKA. W. Spartans defeat the Huskers for the first time. ES suffers a heart attack upon learning the win actually isn’t a replay of the 55 point shellacking the Spartans suffered to Nebraska in 1996.

NORTHWESTERN. W. Even though the Cats have had a great rivalry in recent years, they’ve been lucky not to schedule Michigan State on its current stretch. Read that: current stretch. This is a Wildcat offense and defense that, on its best day, just isn’t in the same league, even if in the same conference.

@ Minn. W. The days of old Metropolitan Stadium return in a -10 degree blizzard in Minneapolis. Bud Grant would love the weather, but not the result.

B1G CHAMPIONSHIP. W. Michigan State turns the table, avenges its loss to Wisconsin earlier in the season and in last year’s B1G title game with a Rose Bowl-clinching victory. Montee Ball runs for 210 yards for the game; but, on the last play, fumbles into the arms of Johnny Adams, who runs it back 98 yards for the winning score.

ROSE BOWL. W. Michigan State beats Oregon in the fourth meeting of the two teams witnessed by the ES. With a month to prepare, Andrew Maxwell gets his moxy and Spartan receivers have a field day… as do Duck receivers. But, this is the Spartans’ year.

NOT ON SCHEDULE: Purdue, Penn State, Illinois.

EXPERT PREDICTIONS

Swiss Sloth:

1. Total # wins: 8
2. Bowl: Outback bowl v auburn
3. Toughest game: Michigan cuz it’s on the road
4. How much would you bet on MSU to win the Big Ten if in Vegas? 0, but I never bet on anything
5. Score for MSU vs Boise? 24-14 for the good guys!!!
6. Season total TDs vs INTs for Maxwell? 18 td’s, 15 int’s

ChiSpartan:

1. Total # of MSU wins: 11
2. Bowl game for MSU (vs who?): Rose Bowl vs Oregon
3. Toughest game for MSU on schedule: Wisconsin
4. How much would you bet on MSU to win Big Ten in Vegas? 5,000,000 Vietamese Dong
5. Score of MSU vs Boise game 24-10
6. Total # of TDs vs INTs for Maxwell : 20 TDs and 7 Ints

Chock (with welcome commentary!):

1. total # of MSU wins: 8 wins for an 8-4 record not counting the bowl game. I think 9-3 is a good, educated guess and I even think that 10-2 is definitely achievable. But we will lose at least one because of inexperience by our rookie QB. Cousins was really, really good and we’ll miss that.
2. bowl game for MSU (vs who?): Capital One bowl vs. Arkansas and MSU fans relish the return of John L Smith with a second straight bowl victory after Smith’s team crumbles around him at the end of the season
3. toughest game for MSU on schedule: @ Wisconsin
4. How much would you bet on MSU to win Big Ten in Vegas? $100 … although I’m much rather spend my Vegas dollars betting on the opening weekend of the NCAA tournament
5. Score of MSU vs Boise game: MSU 27 – Boise State 24
6. Total # of TDs vs INTs for Maxwell: 24 - 11

BTW, you didn’t ask, but Nebraska wins the Legends and Wiscy wins the Leaders. Nebraska beats Wiscy in the B1G Championship game and goes the Rose Bowl and shits the bed vs. USC. Kill, William, Kill, and Pound, Green, Pound!!! Go State…

Big Bob:

1. total # of MSU wins - 11
2. bowl game for MSU (vs who?) - Rose v Oregon
3. toughest game for MSU on schedule - at Wisconsin
4. How much would you bet on MSU to win Big Ten in Vegas? - $123.45
5. Score of MSU vs Boise game - 20-17. MSU
6. Total # of TDs vs INTs for Maxwell - 24TDs, 13INTs

Smigdiggler (with more commentary!):

MSU WestCoast Correspondent - Smigdiggler Sees positive things from the Spartans this year. with the favorable home schedule with a tough spot right in the middle of the season with UM followed by Wisky on the road, back to back.
1. total # of MSU wins 10
2. bowl game for MSU (vs who?) I want rose bowl, but due to some kind of BCS logic they will be relegated to the Capital One bowl. What's in your wallet?
3. toughest game for MSU on schedule - At Wisky a week after beating the tar out of those scUM bastards in the big sh!t house
4. How much would you bet on MSU to win Big Ten in Vegas? $100.00
5. Score of MSU vs Boise game This will be higher than most people think. MSU-28 BS-21
6. Total # of TDs vs INTs for Maxwell - Going Big - 27/9

Just got 'em!

Tickets to the most celebrated and hallowed ground on God's GREEN Earth. GO GREEN!

MSU first -ever Friday tilt vs #158 Youngstown State

Michigan State is going to open up the 2011 football season hosting Youngstown State on Friday, September 2... at 7:30 pm, to be televised on Big Ten Network... Is this the first ever Friday game for Michigan State football? Methinks so.

Last year, YSU finished 3-8 and #158 according to Jeff Sagarin (MSU finished 11-2 and #31). YSU has a fairly impressive stadium for a Division I-FCS institution... the ES visited it on a trip to Pittsburgh back in 2007. Here's a shot of where the Penguins play on Saturdays:




A quick look at future schedules for Michigan State... we open the 2012 season hosting Boise State on a Friday as well....

2011
Sept. 2 YOUNGSTOWN STATE
Sept. 10 FLORIDA ATLANTIC
Sept. 17 at Notre Dame
Sept. 24 CENTRAL MICHIGAN
Oct. 1 at Ohio State
Oct. 15 MICHIGAN
Oct. 22 WISCONSIN
Oct. 29 at Nebraska
Nov. 5 MINNESOTA
Nov. 12 at Iowa
Nov. 19 INDIANA
Nov. 26 at Northwestern

2012
Aug. 31 BOISE STATE
Sept. 8 at Central Michigan
Sept. 15 NOTRE DAME
Sept. 22 EASTERN MICHIGAN
Sept. 29 OHIO STATE
Oct. 6 at Indiana
Oct. 13 IOWA
Oct. 20 at Michigan
Oct. 27 at Wisconsin
Nov. 3 NEBRASKA
Nov. 17 NORTHWESTERN
Nov. 24 at Minnesota

2013 (BIG TEN ONLY)
Oct. 5 at Iowa
Oct. 12 INDIANA
Oct. 19 PURDUE
Oct. 26 at Illinois
Nov. 2 MICHIGAN
Nov. 16 at Nebraska
Nov. 23 at Northwestern
Nov. 30 MINNESOTA

2014 (BIG TEN ONLY)
Oct. 4 ILLINOIS
Oct. 11 at Michigan
Oct. 25 at Indiana
Nov. 1 NORTHWESTERN
Nov. 8 at Purdue
Nov. 15 NEBRASKA
Nov. 22 IOWA
Nov. 29 at Minnesota