Biggest Dissapointment: DBs; Biggest Concern? Running game

The biggest disappointment on Saturday vs. Central Michgian? The play of the Spartan defensive secondary, being smoked left, right, and up the middle (CMU's LeFevour went 34-of-47, a blistering 73% completion rate, for 352 yards). D-coord Pat Narduzzi effectively tied their hands by playing a base defense... The ES kept yelling, "where the hell is the bump-and-run?" and, "where are the blitzes???" If this team has such damn good talent in the defensive backfield, why play scared? Where the hell is the aggressiveness? Tackle, hit, and get after the Goddam Irish on Saturday; the Spartan DBs better not be waiting, or they'll just get run over. Downright embarrassing.

The biggest concern? The Spartan running game. Let's start with the play of the Spartan offensive line. My God, they looked uninspired and couldn't run block as well as my grandma. They looked better in pass blocking, but not by much. John Stipek looked confused half the time replacing Joel Nitchman (sprained knee) at center. You wonder how much of an impact that had on the line - we NEED Nitchman back. At RB, at least Caulton Ray hit the holes going forward and had a few yards. Larry Caper needs to ditch the "I wanna look like Barry Sanders" dance moves and run forward and hit the holes or the Irish will break his ankles and eat him alive. Listen, ND gave up 190 yards rushing to the Yellow Bellies of Ann Arbor, so there IS room to run. But, MSU better find it.

Spartans... Touchdown Jesus is waiting for you. You want some, or you want to just give up? Here is the best opportunity to RUIN the Irish pride. What do you do when a rabid dog is in a corner? You grab it by the neck and stomp on it. Ruin their day, their season, their football tradition. I want it. Do you? Go out and do it. It will be sweet redemption and put the Spartan Nation back on track. 1-2 is unacceptable. Go get it done.

Spartans shakeup DB lineup, choose captains

If you tried the other URL, enlightenedspartan.com, you may have found a bandwidth issue - it is being restored, but if you bookmark this page (the original host), you will always find an ES home.

Of particular note is a shake up in the defensive backfield, where Jeremy Ware, Marcus Hyde, and Danny Fortener have solidified starting spots. The advancement of Ware and Hyde is a particular surprise and demonstrates the depth of our secondary, considering the ES figured on Ross Weaver and highly touted Trenton Robinson as starters. Still, expect lots of plying time out of those two, and add depth with Johnny Adams, Kendall Davis-Clark, and Ashton Henderson. The ES really was impressed at the hard-hitting ability of Hyde when he was inserted into situations last year; he is a solid tackler, and from his safety spot, he can provide great run support when asked.

2009 MSU Spartan Captains are Greg Jones, Blair White, Ross Weaver, and Kirk Cousins. ES wonders if the pick of Cousins will have any impact on the race for starting QB: either helping Cousins, or as a consolation prize for being a backup. It really shouldn't matter.