2016 B1G Previews: Michigan State Spartans

MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS (East Division)

Location: East Lansing, MI

Stadium: Spartan Stadium (75,005)

Coach: Mark Dantonio (10^th year): 87-33 at MSU/105-50 overall, 52-23 v B1G

2015 Michigan State Spartans (12-2)(8-1)                           2016 Michigan State Spartans

37        at Western Michigan              24                                S2        Furman

31        Oregon                                    28                                S10

35        Air Force                                 21                                S17      at Notre Dame

30        Central Michigan                    10                                S24      Wisconsin

24        Purdue                                     21                                O1       at Indiana

31        at Rutgers                               24                                O8       BYU

27        at Michigan                             23                                O15     Northwestern

52        Indiana                                    26                                O22     at Maryland

38        at Nebraska                             39                                O29     Michigan

24        Maryland                                  7                                N5        at Illinois

17        at Ohio State                           14                                N12      Rutgers

55        Penn State                               16                                N19      Ohio State

16        Iowa                                        13                                N26      at Penn State

            (B1G Championship Game)

  0        Alabama                                  38

            (Cotton Bowl)

            Michigan State is coming off one of the more memorable seasons in school history.  The Spartans won on the last play verses Michigan and Ohio State and in the last minute against Iowa in the B1G Championship game, which gave the Spartans a berth in the College Football Playoff.  Although MSU was brought quickly down to earth by a 38-0 thrashing at the hands of Alabama, don’t expect Coach Mark Dantonio to let that affect his high-flying program.

Michigan State will have to find the right starting quarterback to keep their offense moving in the right direction after the departure of three-year starter Connor Cook.  The competition here appears to be wide open and may not be resolved until the first game against Furman.  Senior Tyler O’Connor and junior Damion Terry split time at QB when Cook was injured last year.  O’Connor had more playing time and responded with 133 yards through the air and two scoring throws (13 of 24 with 1 int).  Terry saw action in 10 games, but mostly in the fourth quarter when the Spartans had a comfortable lead.  He responded by going 2 of 7 for 15 yards during his brief stints behind center.  The Spartans have good news at the RB position as both sophomore LJ Scott and his classmate Madre London return after splitting time last year.  Scott led the way with 699 yards and 11 touchdowns, while London tallied 500 yards and three scores.  Coach Dantonio thinks either could get the starting nod in the season opener.  Senior David Fennell returns as a solid blocking back when the Spartans are in their run formations The Spartans lost their top two receivers from 2015; Aaron Burbridge and Macgarrett Kings have moved on, however, the Spartans are happy to welcome back senior RJ Shelton who turned in 43 receptions for 503 yards and four touchdowns last year.  Senior Josiah Price showed his versatility last year as an excellent blocker while also hauling in 23 receptions for 267 yards and six touchdowns.  The offensive line loses excellent center Jack Allen and right tackle Jack Conklin, however junior Brian Allen and senior Kodi Kieler should fill in nicely.  The rest of the line will be back, led by seniors RG Brandon Clemons and LG Benny McGowan.  Junior Dennis Finley figures to be a solid performer at the LT spot.  

                                                   WR RJ Shelton

Coach Mark Dantonio has always been known to field good defensive teams.  Even though they lost depth on the defensive line, they make up for it on the back seven.  The defensive line should be able to rebuild around the lone returning starter, junior NT Malik McDowell.  Who leads the way on that D-line unit with 41 tackles and a whopping 13 tackles for loss with 4.5 sacks and an interception.  Joining him figure to be junior Demetrius Cooper at DE (22 tackles, 6.5 tfl, 5 sacks) and senior DT Damon Knox (15 tackles, 1.5 tfl).  MSU should continue to have a solid line backing corps, thanks to Ed Davis being granted a sixth year of eligibility after missing last season.  They also welcome back experienced senior Riley Bullough, the team leader with 106 tackles , 7.5 tackles for loss, and four sacks.  Junior Jon Reschke should be able to step in the MLB position as a starter after coming in fifth on the team in tackles (75) a year ago.  Michigan State’s secondary struggled with several injuries last year, but sophomore CB Vayante Copeland is expected back after recovering from a fractured vertebrae in the second game last year.  Senior Darian Hicks will be playing the opposite corner position after chipping in 33 tackles a year ago.  Junior Montae Nicholson and senior Demetrious Cox should start at FS and SS respectively.  Nicholson turned in an outstanding season in 2015 with 83 tackles and three picks while Cox was just behind him, with 79 tackles and also three interceptions.  Opposing offenses will have a tough time throwing deep against these two.

                                            LB Riley Bullough

The reliable Michael Geiger returns for his senior season as the MSU kicker, going 12 for 19, including the game-winner against Ohio State a year ago.  The Spartans also welcome back sophomore punter Jake Hartbarger, who averaged 42.7 yards on his 57 punts, so the Spartans have a good grip on their special teams this year.

Finding consistency at the QB position is essential as early as possible since MSU plays Notre Dame on the road for their second game and then Wisconsin comes in to East Lansing the week after.  The critical games against Ohio State and Michigan are at home this year and they close out the regular season with Penn State on the road.  The Spartans will be tough as always under Coach Dantonio and it wouldn’t be very surprising at all if they win the B1G East again.

PROJECTION: 9-3 (6-2) 3^rd in Eastern Division