Prior to 2010, the All-Time Career Reception leader was Matt "Stone Hands" Trannon. You might think it's such a strange thing that "Stone Hands" was the nickname in my house for MSU's all time reception leader, but so it is. His freshman year I think he dropped as many passes as he caught and even in his Senior Year when he wasn't throwing touchdown passes he still occasionally had a drop that was all LOL WUT. So not only did it surprise me, but it pleased me greatly to learn that coming into the season that B.J. Cunningham was only 10 catches away from moving old "Stone Hands" down to number two.
When Mark Dantonio arrived in late 2006 the first order of business was to give all of the JLS assistants their walking papers and then call up all of our current commitments and inform them that their scholarship offers were being re-examined. For obvious keepers like Keith Nichol and Mark Dell this was merely a formality, for guys like this was the end of their courtship with Michigan State. For guys like B.J. Cunningham who were being recruited by Mark Dantonio at Cincinnati, this was the beginning of a new courtship with Michigan State.
In December 2006, Cunningham committed to MSU just a few weeks after Dantonio took over as head coach. He was a three-star prospect according to Rivals and Scout. He and Mark Dell came in as the two WR's in the class of 2007, Dell was the heralded four-star talent and Cunningham the important workmanlike possession receiver. Cunningham described his strength as: "I can go up and get the ball and I am good at running after the catch. I also have no problem going across the middle" Here's a clip of him doing and an interview with the man himself doing all that to displace old "Stone Hands".
Cunningham was redshirted in 2007 while Mark Dell saw playing time stretching the field for Devin Thomas. Dantonio went to say "Head coach Mark Dantonio said Cunningham could have made a significant contribution in 2007 from midseason on had he not redshirted." This too, turned out to be oddly prophetic as Cunningham finished in second for team receptions in 2008 with 41 only being beaten out by Blair White.
In 2009, the year of the "Cousins/Nichol when you have two quarterbacks you have none" platooning, Cunningham increased his catches from 41 to 48. Blair White made himself available like 7-11 for Cousins that year catching an astounding 70 passes. Cunningham again showed himself as a reliable person to move the sticks and again finished second in total catches.
In 2010, B.J. Cunningham finished second in receptions for the third year in a row. He tallied 50 catches to Mark Dell's 51. In a move which might help describe the current state of MSU pass-catching, he led the team in touchdown catches with nine, good for 45 percent of Cousins' total touchdown haul.
So we come to 2011 and I felt a bit like Cunningham was under the radar. We knew he was solid, but the MSU All-Time Reception leader? More catches than Andre Rison, Plaxico Burress, Charles Rogers and Kirk Gibson? Well yes, he finished a strong second to each of the leaders in 2008, 2009 and 2010 and within a few catches except for 2009 where Blair White was open every damn play.
So it's fitting that this trip to Ohio State is going to be his homecoming. While he doesn't boast the ridiculous speed of Charles Rogers or the takeover ability of Plaxico Burress, B.J. Cunningham is the personification of Mark Dantonio football. Cunningham catches the ball and move the chains. Does he have a chip on his shoulder that he wasn't offered by Ohio State, I don't pretend to know and I don't think it's relevant. What is relevant is that when B.J. Cunningham goes home to his homecoming on Saturday he has the opportunity to belong definitively in that list of Spartan great receivers.
While it's fair to suggest that having this record alone above all those other guys should mention him in the same breath as those receivers, it isn't. After all, how many people think back to the days of good old Matt "Stone Hands" Trannon and wish we had him back? Hey, did you know he also played basketball? You need to have that Marquee win, like Plax did against Michigan in 1998 or Rison helping beat USC a second time in the Rose Bowl.
B.J. Cunningham can get that win this Saturday. He doesn't need to do anything flashy to do it either. He needs to do what he does best. He needs to play his own Mark Dantonio football, not flashy, not grandiose, not tricky. He just needs to catch passes and move the chains. In short, he just needs to do his job. If everyone else can follow the lead of B.J. Cunningham, I'd just give us a fighting chance.
Showing posts with label football. Show all posts
Showing posts with label football. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Next! The Florida Atlantic Owls
This summer my daughter was invited to be a flower girl at a wedding in Key West. Not having any idea what kind of place Key West was and being an avid admirer of it's fine pies we agreed and set out on our vacation. One of the last Keys before Key West is I believe Big Pine Key. When you drive through Big Pine Key, there are signs everywhere indicating the island is a deer refuge and if you hit a deer you will be executed by the Florida Highway Patrol. Being from Michigan this struck me as particularly odd that you would be concerned about making sure you don't hit deer. Here in Michigan, we cancel school on Opening Day to make sure we get as many as possible.
You want a deer, I can get you a deer by three o'clock today.
So whenWilford Brimley Howard Schnellenberger was participating in the discussions to start the Florida Atlantic football program I find myself wondering why he decided to go with Owls. It would be like picking the FAU Bambi Herd instead of something a little more obviously indigenous to Florida like Spiders(they beat Duke), Gators, Hurricanes, Heat. I guess most of the apt descriptions of Florida were taken, Swamp Folk was left, but they got sued by the makers of the Waterboy before they even got under way.
This weekend marks the third and I believe final scheduled meeting between MSU and FAU. The first meeting was a 17-0 monsoon in 2008 where Javon Ringer slogged through about 7 inches of rain. Last season we beat them 30-17 in a closer than expected contest that reminded me a little too much of the Youngstown State game. It was a home game for them in technicality only, played at Ford Field because the construction of the FAU stadium ran behind schedule. This year they're coming up I believe to conclude our 2 for 1 with them.
This is Schnellenberger's final season with FAU and then he'll be retiring to some warmer, sunnier part of the world? His accomplishments with FAU deserve respect, taking FAU from no football program at all in 2000 to a 1-AA school in 2001-2005 and a Sun Belt Conference member(Florida's equivalent of the MAC) from 2006-present. Since joining the Sun Belt, they've been invited to two bowl games and won both.
All of that said, last year on the Mad Dog show I recall him saying something to the effect of: "Well, we're going to come up there, play our best football, get our paycheck and go home." I'm sure he said it more eloquently than that, but I remember the mention of getting a paycheck coming up. He knows his place and because of that he's been able to drive FAU from nothing to something, and after this year he's going to turn that something over to someone else to become a bigger something. That's very cool.
Obligatory Wilford Brimley/Howard Schnellenburger Photo Drop
The Quick and Skinny
2011 Record: 0-1
2010 Record: 4-8
Base Defense: 3-4
Base Offense: Multiple look(Pro Style)
Storyline: Well FAU went into the Swamp and they were swamped by the Gators. They lost 41-3 while Chris Rainey scored 3 different times in running, receiving and returning a blocked punt for a touchdown. FAU managed 137 yards of offense and managed a field goal after getting the ball on Florida's 38 after an interception.
According to Athlon, you know who's a worse 1-A team than FAU. No one. Athlon has them ranked dead last. Schnellenburger had a hospital trip on the way to the Swamp so maybe the team was just taken out of it's game, but the prognostications preseason + abhorrently poor play against Florida lead me to believe this should pretty much be the game I was thinking for YSU.
Position Breakdowns:
Quarterback
Graham Wilbert: I'd think this name was fake it's so silly. Prior to last week his career stats were 1/5 for 41 yards and a pick. After last week's 14/26 yards showing for 107 yards and no picks.
David Kooi is another FAU quarterback and could see the field should Graham Wilbert struggle too mightily.
Running Back
Alfred Morris is the team's starting running back and rushed 14 times for 16 yards. Again, not exactly Emmitt Smith. Damian Fortner played last Saturday and averaged 1.9 per carry. Without watching the game I'm wondering if Florida keyed to stop the run and make the new kid throw a lot.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Remember the dudes that popped off for 174 of FAU's 215 receiving yards last year. Lester Jean and their TE Housler, they're both gone and pretty much so is everyone else. Honestly they might have Reggie Wayne and Calvin Johnson at Wide Receiver, you still have to have someone to get the ball to them. It does seem like FAU likes to throw to their TEs a lot so hopefully our linebackers will get some practice in pass coverage.
Offensive Line
Their OL averages like 280 lbs and that's less than 3/4ths of our Defensive Line. You cannot play power football against our defense with an offensive line weighing 280 lbs. It just doesn't work. They do have 3 seniors on the line and two juniors, but it seems like the skill position talent isn't there. Even if they have the ability, you can't block for people who can't make the needed moves.
Cause it's getting a bit dry right now
Defensive Line
Well as stated before FAU runs a 3-4. One of their three goes 245 lbs, which is about 50 lbs lighter than you'd like to see a DE in a 3-4. Their nose tackle Jarvis Givens figures to be the strength of this DL. The defense surrendered 197 yards rushing to Florida last week. A three man front should work out nicely for our OL still trying to find it's feet at the Tackle positions.
Linebacker
The LB corps is lead by Yourhighness Morgan. Really. That's his name. Those recruitniks reading might remember he picked FAU over MSU. So despite that amazing name, he has shown himself to choose poorly. Perhaps he is not a fan of winning, in which case he has picked the correct school. Of the four linebackers there are no seniors, two juniors and two sophmores. The decision to go to a 3-4 was so that the linebackers could spend more time in pass coverage, if we're testing the TEs against these guys I'd expect to see us have to work at it a bit. Toney Moore one of their ILBs had a pick last week in garbage time.
Secondary
They're short and light. 5'10 and 170 is the average across the secondary. Nichol and Cunningham outweigh their average secondary player by 50 lbs. If we decide to run the football on these guys it should be a cakewalk. They did get two picks last week against starting QB Brantley though, so we shouldn't write these guys off in the passing game. Still it shouldn't be enough to really make us sweat this one.
Overall Assessment: This team looks like it's built to stop a spread and a Sun Belt Spread at that. While it's a terrific accomplishment to have built this program from scratch, I think it might be better for our Floridian Feathered Friends that Mr. Brimley hand this program off after this year. This team appears to be terrible on offense and keyed on defense to be worst at the thing we do best. Couple that with an improved effort by our team and I expect to see this game be the whuppin' we thought YSU would be. We'll dig into that tomorrow more in 5 Key Things.
Remember to eat your damn oatmeal.
You want a deer, I can get you a deer by three o'clock today.
So when
This weekend marks the third and I believe final scheduled meeting between MSU and FAU. The first meeting was a 17-0 monsoon in 2008 where Javon Ringer slogged through about 7 inches of rain. Last season we beat them 30-17 in a closer than expected contest that reminded me a little too much of the Youngstown State game. It was a home game for them in technicality only, played at Ford Field because the construction of the FAU stadium ran behind schedule. This year they're coming up I believe to conclude our 2 for 1 with them.
This is Schnellenberger's final season with FAU and then he'll be retiring to some warmer, sunnier part of the world? His accomplishments with FAU deserve respect, taking FAU from no football program at all in 2000 to a 1-AA school in 2001-2005 and a Sun Belt Conference member(Florida's equivalent of the MAC) from 2006-present. Since joining the Sun Belt, they've been invited to two bowl games and won both.
All of that said, last year on the Mad Dog show I recall him saying something to the effect of: "Well, we're going to come up there, play our best football, get our paycheck and go home." I'm sure he said it more eloquently than that, but I remember the mention of getting a paycheck coming up. He knows his place and because of that he's been able to drive FAU from nothing to something, and after this year he's going to turn that something over to someone else to become a bigger something. That's very cool.
Obligatory Wilford Brimley/Howard Schnellenburger Photo Drop
The Quick and Skinny
2011 Record: 0-1
2010 Record: 4-8
Base Defense: 3-4
Base Offense: Multiple look(Pro Style)
Storyline: Well FAU went into the Swamp and they were swamped by the Gators. They lost 41-3 while Chris Rainey scored 3 different times in running, receiving and returning a blocked punt for a touchdown. FAU managed 137 yards of offense and managed a field goal after getting the ball on Florida's 38 after an interception.
According to Athlon, you know who's a worse 1-A team than FAU. No one. Athlon has them ranked dead last. Schnellenburger had a hospital trip on the way to the Swamp so maybe the team was just taken out of it's game, but the prognostications preseason + abhorrently poor play against Florida lead me to believe this should pretty much be the game I was thinking for YSU.
Position Breakdowns:
Quarterback
Graham Wilbert: I'd think this name was fake it's so silly. Prior to last week his career stats were 1/5 for 41 yards and a pick. After last week's 14/26 yards showing for 107 yards and no picks.
David Kooi is another FAU quarterback and could see the field should Graham Wilbert struggle too mightily.
Running Back
Alfred Morris is the team's starting running back and rushed 14 times for 16 yards. Again, not exactly Emmitt Smith. Damian Fortner played last Saturday and averaged 1.9 per carry. Without watching the game I'm wondering if Florida keyed to stop the run and make the new kid throw a lot.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Remember the dudes that popped off for 174 of FAU's 215 receiving yards last year. Lester Jean and their TE Housler, they're both gone and pretty much so is everyone else. Honestly they might have Reggie Wayne and Calvin Johnson at Wide Receiver, you still have to have someone to get the ball to them. It does seem like FAU likes to throw to their TEs a lot so hopefully our linebackers will get some practice in pass coverage.
Offensive Line
Their OL averages like 280 lbs and that's less than 3/4ths of our Defensive Line. You cannot play power football against our defense with an offensive line weighing 280 lbs. It just doesn't work. They do have 3 seniors on the line and two juniors, but it seems like the skill position talent isn't there. Even if they have the ability, you can't block for people who can't make the needed moves.
Cause it's getting a bit dry right now
Defensive Line
Well as stated before FAU runs a 3-4. One of their three goes 245 lbs, which is about 50 lbs lighter than you'd like to see a DE in a 3-4. Their nose tackle Jarvis Givens figures to be the strength of this DL. The defense surrendered 197 yards rushing to Florida last week. A three man front should work out nicely for our OL still trying to find it's feet at the Tackle positions.
Linebacker
The LB corps is lead by Yourhighness Morgan. Really. That's his name. Those recruitniks reading might remember he picked FAU over MSU. So despite that amazing name, he has shown himself to choose poorly. Perhaps he is not a fan of winning, in which case he has picked the correct school. Of the four linebackers there are no seniors, two juniors and two sophmores. The decision to go to a 3-4 was so that the linebackers could spend more time in pass coverage, if we're testing the TEs against these guys I'd expect to see us have to work at it a bit. Toney Moore one of their ILBs had a pick last week in garbage time.
Secondary
They're short and light. 5'10 and 170 is the average across the secondary. Nichol and Cunningham outweigh their average secondary player by 50 lbs. If we decide to run the football on these guys it should be a cakewalk. They did get two picks last week against starting QB Brantley though, so we shouldn't write these guys off in the passing game. Still it shouldn't be enough to really make us sweat this one.
Overall Assessment: This team looks like it's built to stop a spread and a Sun Belt Spread at that. While it's a terrific accomplishment to have built this program from scratch, I think it might be better for our Floridian Feathered Friends that Mr. Brimley hand this program off after this year. This team appears to be terrible on offense and keyed on defense to be worst at the thing we do best. Couple that with an improved effort by our team and I expect to see this game be the whuppin' we thought YSU would be. We'll dig into that tomorrow more in 5 Key Things.
Remember to eat your damn oatmeal.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Yes, But Who Watches The Watchmen?
When I started watching football in 1996, I was of the thread that all you needed to be successful in any game was a quarterback. Give me a quarterback that is high and mighty, noble in his reads and I shall deliver you a championship. While this is very occasionally true, more often than not a QB requires some assistance. Apologies to any Northwestern QB reading this, you are sewn of the skin of Satan and never got any help at all. As my knowledge of football changed, I don't want to say progressed, that would imply I know more than I did in 1996 that grew to include WRs, RBs and eventually OL.
Here's why your Left Tackle is one of the most important dudes on the field. Here's why:
As previously discussed in the Assume The Position: Quarterbacks series if that happens to Kirk Cousins, that will spell DOOM for this season.
The Right Tackle position is less important regarding the health of your quarterback, but it is imperative for running the football. Running right is what the big ten does best, isn't it? A good right tackle is like a fullback on steroids. Note: It is not actually a fullback on steroids. A good Right Tackle can John Henry their way down the field felling punier creatures of 230 while swigging a can of red bull.
So finally I come to the point, in the most successful run of MSU football since I started watching, how in the hell are we starting a two-star Redshirt Senior with two starts prior to this year and a Redshirt Freshman at Left and Right Tackle respectively? Did Mark Dantonio forget to recruit guys at this critical position?
Forgot? He didn't forget. Mark Dantonio gets angry about forgetfulness.
Let's take a look at what happened with our OT recruits in the 2007 - 2011 classes.
2007
Jared McGaha - The only OT recruit of the class. Currently starting for the Spartans although we'll see about next week. In pretty much any other situation he'd be a depth chart guy, though due to the thinness of the position right now he's starting. It's hard to get after a guy being asked to play above his ceiling, to say nothing of the fact that he played RG until last year.
2008
John Deyo - A two star kid with offers from CMU, EMU and MSU. He seemed like a kid with boom or bust potential. Obviously things have worked out less than ideally in terms of his development. He has seen the field in a special teams role and occasionally in mop-up duty.
Zach Heuter - A referral from the outgoing UM staff under Carr. Would have been wasted under Rich Rod. A pure Right Tackle if there ever was one. He took a medical DQ earlier this year after spending like 3.5 hours healthy during his three seasons at MSU.
Anthony Woods - NFL body, Special Ed mind. Left MSU after his freshman year due to a combination of grades and disciplinary stuff. Apparently he disappeared into the ether since even the googles cannot determine where or why he left.
2009
David Barrent - Flipped his commitment from Iowa to MSU and seems to be the only logical piece in a mysteriously deep-seated hatred of MSU by Iowa football fans. David Barrent took a medical DQ this spring after dealing with a back thing since he got here. This one hurt. David Barrent was supposed to be our NFL Left Tackle playing where Dan France is this season.
Henry Conway - Rumors have been persistent since Conway came to campus that Adonis chiseled a statue of Henry Conway in his living room. Then he done fractured a vertabrae a couple years back. He saw mop-up time on Friday, but I really doubt he's a starter this year.
2010
Skyler Burkland - Current starter. I'd guess four year starter at RT. He looked the part on Friday, but the part for a Redshirt Freshman is still some fairly frequent mistakes. Look for massive improvement from him this season and beyond.
Michael Dennis - Dennis is/was and may always be a project kid. At 6'7 and 260 he'll either put on the 40-50 lbs needed to be a dominant LT or he won't. If he's gonna see the field much, it'd be next year or the year following.
2011
Fou Fonoti - Was a JC transfer and expected to compete for the starting LT spot. He looked a bit undersized still on Friday night. He's another guy who might enter the conversation as the season progresses, but I wouldn't expect much out of him soon.
So of the 9 offensive tackle recruits of the Dantonio era six were recruited from 2007-2009. One is a starter, three are no longer with the program(two medical DQs), one has a spine that has been cracked open and one despite all that appears to have no shot at seeing the field.
The guys recruited in 2010 and 2011 are Burkland, Dennis and Fonoti. Fonoti could see significant time this year, as I said before Burkland I think will be a four year starter.
Bonus Observation!
The football gods have not been great to the non-OT positions either. From 2007, Arthur Ray struggled with the aftermath of his cancer, Chase Dumphord arrived on campus and was homesick in about 2 days. From the 2008 class Ethan Ruhland has had a difficult time cracking into the two-deeps(he hasn't been able to find a home either, bouncing between center and left guard). Nate Klatt a four star center has been passed by both Blake Treadwell and Travis Jackson. Look at his 2012 future to be at guard. Micajah Reynolds has been bounces between the OL and DL like Carmen Sandiego eludes me yet again.
Bonus Observation Part 2!
Dan France was recruited as a DT but Rivals had indicated his biggest upside might be at OT. This was prior to his arrival at MSU and not something they posted last week. Unfortunately, I don't think this is the situation you wanted that to come to fruition.
Conclusion: MSU's Position Group God of Destruction without question belongs to the OTs specifically for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009. McGaha is in part the starter because he's pretty much the only intact survivor of those three years. Help is on the way with Burkland, France and Fonoti but I don't think it will arrive in time to make a significant positive impact for the 2011 season. The good news is that the recruits of the 2010 class look to be wins across the board and France if he pans out has two more seasons after this one. Even if OT is a train wreck in 2011, it SHOULD improve going forward.
Unless Shiva gets angry again.
Here's why your Left Tackle is one of the most important dudes on the field. Here's why:
As previously discussed in the Assume The Position: Quarterbacks series if that happens to Kirk Cousins, that will spell DOOM for this season.
The Right Tackle position is less important regarding the health of your quarterback, but it is imperative for running the football. Running right is what the big ten does best, isn't it? A good right tackle is like a fullback on steroids. Note: It is not actually a fullback on steroids. A good Right Tackle can John Henry their way down the field felling punier creatures of 230 while swigging a can of red bull.
So finally I come to the point, in the most successful run of MSU football since I started watching, how in the hell are we starting a two-star Redshirt Senior with two starts prior to this year and a Redshirt Freshman at Left and Right Tackle respectively? Did Mark Dantonio forget to recruit guys at this critical position?
Forgot? He didn't forget. Mark Dantonio gets angry about forgetfulness.
Let's take a look at what happened with our OT recruits in the 2007 - 2011 classes.
2007
Jared McGaha - The only OT recruit of the class. Currently starting for the Spartans although we'll see about next week. In pretty much any other situation he'd be a depth chart guy, though due to the thinness of the position right now he's starting. It's hard to get after a guy being asked to play above his ceiling, to say nothing of the fact that he played RG until last year.
2008
John Deyo - A two star kid with offers from CMU, EMU and MSU. He seemed like a kid with boom or bust potential. Obviously things have worked out less than ideally in terms of his development. He has seen the field in a special teams role and occasionally in mop-up duty.
Zach Heuter - A referral from the outgoing UM staff under Carr. Would have been wasted under Rich Rod. A pure Right Tackle if there ever was one. He took a medical DQ earlier this year after spending like 3.5 hours healthy during his three seasons at MSU.
Anthony Woods - NFL body, Special Ed mind. Left MSU after his freshman year due to a combination of grades and disciplinary stuff. Apparently he disappeared into the ether since even the googles cannot determine where or why he left.
2009
David Barrent - Flipped his commitment from Iowa to MSU and seems to be the only logical piece in a mysteriously deep-seated hatred of MSU by Iowa football fans. David Barrent took a medical DQ this spring after dealing with a back thing since he got here. This one hurt. David Barrent was supposed to be our NFL Left Tackle playing where Dan France is this season.
Henry Conway - Rumors have been persistent since Conway came to campus that Adonis chiseled a statue of Henry Conway in his living room. Then he done fractured a vertabrae a couple years back. He saw mop-up time on Friday, but I really doubt he's a starter this year.
2010
Skyler Burkland - Current starter. I'd guess four year starter at RT. He looked the part on Friday, but the part for a Redshirt Freshman is still some fairly frequent mistakes. Look for massive improvement from him this season and beyond.
Michael Dennis - Dennis is/was and may always be a project kid. At 6'7 and 260 he'll either put on the 40-50 lbs needed to be a dominant LT or he won't. If he's gonna see the field much, it'd be next year or the year following.
2011
Fou Fonoti - Was a JC transfer and expected to compete for the starting LT spot. He looked a bit undersized still on Friday night. He's another guy who might enter the conversation as the season progresses, but I wouldn't expect much out of him soon.
So of the 9 offensive tackle recruits of the Dantonio era six were recruited from 2007-2009. One is a starter, three are no longer with the program(two medical DQs), one has a spine that has been cracked open and one despite all that appears to have no shot at seeing the field.
The guys recruited in 2010 and 2011 are Burkland, Dennis and Fonoti. Fonoti could see significant time this year, as I said before Burkland I think will be a four year starter.
Bonus Observation!
The football gods have not been great to the non-OT positions either. From 2007, Arthur Ray struggled with the aftermath of his cancer, Chase Dumphord arrived on campus and was homesick in about 2 days. From the 2008 class Ethan Ruhland has had a difficult time cracking into the two-deeps(he hasn't been able to find a home either, bouncing between center and left guard). Nate Klatt a four star center has been passed by both Blake Treadwell and Travis Jackson. Look at his 2012 future to be at guard. Micajah Reynolds has been bounces between the OL and DL like Carmen Sandiego eludes me yet again.
Bonus Observation Part 2!
Dan France was recruited as a DT but Rivals had indicated his biggest upside might be at OT. This was prior to his arrival at MSU and not something they posted last week. Unfortunately, I don't think this is the situation you wanted that to come to fruition.
Conclusion: MSU's Position Group God of Destruction without question belongs to the OTs specifically for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009. McGaha is in part the starter because he's pretty much the only intact survivor of those three years. Help is on the way with Burkland, France and Fonoti but I don't think it will arrive in time to make a significant positive impact for the 2011 season. The good news is that the recruits of the 2010 class look to be wins across the board and France if he pans out has two more seasons after this one. Even if OT is a train wreck in 2011, it SHOULD improve going forward.
Unless Shiva gets angry again.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Assume the Position: Running Backs
This is part 3b of an ambitiously stated seven part series. This series will focus on introducing MSU fans to their position group players. It is not intended to replace the quality analysis that media types can provide, but we give it our best shot. We'll work backwards from the most stable position groups to the more dynamic ones so we can write about the most volatile groups last.
Our running back situation is probably the best it's been since I started following MSU football during the days of Sedrick Irvin. We're deep at running back and we have varying skill sets at running back. This is a position of strength for MSU in 2011 and probably even moreso in 2012. This group has the ability to make right a bad day at the office.
A video is worth a 1000 words.
Edwin Baker
Baker came to Michigan State after being offered by nearly every school in the country. In 2009 he was still recovering from an ACL tear, and his carries were artificially lowered by that injury. In 2010, Baker emerged as our workhorse back sharing carries primarily with Larry Caper. His 1201 yards were good enough to make him 26th overall in yardage. Not bad for a guy splitting carries three ways. He showed himself as the most complete back of our three, expect that trend to continue this upcoming year.
2011 Prediction
Baker was the lead back in our three man rotation last year after getting picked third in the 2010 Spring game. I think that really served as a wake up call to him and it showed on the field last year. I expect Baker's improvement to continue in this upcoming year. He is an outside Heisman candidate at this point and I'd expect to see him continue playing at that level. Should he assemble a 1500 yard 15+ TDs type season I think you would see him leave for the big leagues. So I say with enthusiasm, Edwin Baker, I hope this is your last season at Michigan State. I think it will be.
Le'Veon Bell
Bell was an early enrollee in the class of 2010. He had offers from MSU and a couple of MAC Schools. His commitment led to a lot of hand-wringing by the Spartan faithful so how did he do in 2010? Well he was on the Freshman All-Big Ten Team. In fact, from here on out under-recruited overly hand-wrought types will be referred to as having the Bell effect. Bell played amazingly the first half of the year, routinely getting 6 or 7 yards on 3rd and 2, towards the end of the season he had a more difficult time picking up the same down and distance.
2011 Prediction
Bell was the surprise of MSU's football team last year, he might have been the surprise of the whole Big 10 last year. This year, I'd expect him to show a more steady effort statistically throughout the year. I'd not be surprised to see the trend be that he actually loses some of the highs as he learns to run smarter protecting himself from injury a bit better but that will make him a lot more effective later in the season. Last year he went for 605 yards and 8 TDs. This year I expect to see 800 yards and 10 TDs.
Larry Caper
Larry Caper was our workhorse back in 2009 as a true freshman. He really carried the load for our team in the first half of the season. As Baker's injury healed up mid-way through 2009 the workload got distributed more evenly. In 2010, the script was flipped, Baker was healthy the whole season while Caper was injured early on and ended up as the third of our three back rotation. In 2010, Caper emerged more as a third down back and receiving threat which is the one thing he definitely did as well as Bell and Baker in 2010.
2011 Prediction
The murmurs out of fall practice are that Caper is back and is ready to play some football and as good as any of our other RBs. I have a hard time seeing us playing a three back rotation where all three backs get 33 percent of the carries and I have this weird feeling that Caper will be the one left out. His prowess as a receiving threat might make him the go-to back on 3rd and more than 3. He also could see a lot of fourth quarter carries as a fresh set of legs this upcoming year. I'm rooting for this kid a lot actually, between him and Bell I think there's a real pair of fan favorites.
Nick Hill
Nick Hill came to Michigan State as a member of the class of 2010. He had a single redeemable offer good at any MAC school, Stanford and MSU. He was redshirted last year and that was pretty much it for him.
2011 Prediction
This year he figures to be a factor on kick returns and maybe see sometime as a change-of-pace back. I think his carries will be limited this year on account of the logjam in front of him. I like Hill a lot, but if Baker doesn't leave after this year, I think Hill is a likely candidate to transfer. He's too talented to be the fourth string guy, but not talented enough to be a huge figure in the three headed tailback monster.
Jeremy Langford
Jeremy Langford came to Michigan State as a member of the class of 2010. He had a single redeemable offer good at any MAC school, Colorado and MSU. He attended the same school as Keshawn Martin and is faster in a straight line according to his AD. Not as good in and out of cuts.
2011 Prediction
This year he figures to be a factor on kick returns. He's really an athlete as much as anything though, so maybe next year he's a DB, this year he's a running back, maybe he's a WR in a couple years following. I think any 2011 contribution will be limited to purely special teams.
Worst Case Scenario: Our depth at running back is superior not just in the Big Ten but nationally. I think you'd need to have three season ending injuries before Nick Hill or whoever the survivor is would be being asked to do too much. Worst Case Scenario - Two of our starters go down early in the season and the offense doesn't recover.
Best Case Scenario: Baker moves from being an outside Heisman candidate to actually a Heisman candidate without the qualifier. Bell continues as our Caulcrick battering ram. Caper emerges as a true third down threat on every play. Nick Hill sees time in the fourth salting leads away and as our home run threat. The running backs group combines for 2500 yards and 30+ TDs. This is not as unlikely as I think we'd all think. Last year they all combined for 2300 yards and 23 TDs and we STILL had trouble on 3rd and short as the season wore on.
Overall Assessment:The running back position is at an unprecedented level of depth since I started following MSU football. This position group will make our offense successful this year as opposed to being successful because of our offense. I honestly expect the "Best Case Scenario" this year. I think this group is that good. Baker will do well enough to play on Sundays in 2012 and Caper, Bell and Hill will shine with their moments in the sun this year. This is going to be fun. In the words of TO "Getcha Popcorn Ready!"
Our running back situation is probably the best it's been since I started following MSU football during the days of Sedrick Irvin. We're deep at running back and we have varying skill sets at running back. This is a position of strength for MSU in 2011 and probably even moreso in 2012. This group has the ability to make right a bad day at the office.
A video is worth a 1000 words.
Edwin Baker
Baker came to Michigan State after being offered by nearly every school in the country. In 2009 he was still recovering from an ACL tear, and his carries were artificially lowered by that injury. In 2010, Baker emerged as our workhorse back sharing carries primarily with Larry Caper. His 1201 yards were good enough to make him 26th overall in yardage. Not bad for a guy splitting carries three ways. He showed himself as the most complete back of our three, expect that trend to continue this upcoming year.
2011 Prediction
Baker was the lead back in our three man rotation last year after getting picked third in the 2010 Spring game. I think that really served as a wake up call to him and it showed on the field last year. I expect Baker's improvement to continue in this upcoming year. He is an outside Heisman candidate at this point and I'd expect to see him continue playing at that level. Should he assemble a 1500 yard 15+ TDs type season I think you would see him leave for the big leagues. So I say with enthusiasm, Edwin Baker, I hope this is your last season at Michigan State. I think it will be.
Le'Veon Bell
Bell was an early enrollee in the class of 2010. He had offers from MSU and a couple of MAC Schools. His commitment led to a lot of hand-wringing by the Spartan faithful so how did he do in 2010? Well he was on the Freshman All-Big Ten Team. In fact, from here on out under-recruited overly hand-wrought types will be referred to as having the Bell effect. Bell played amazingly the first half of the year, routinely getting 6 or 7 yards on 3rd and 2, towards the end of the season he had a more difficult time picking up the same down and distance.
2011 Prediction
Bell was the surprise of MSU's football team last year, he might have been the surprise of the whole Big 10 last year. This year, I'd expect him to show a more steady effort statistically throughout the year. I'd not be surprised to see the trend be that he actually loses some of the highs as he learns to run smarter protecting himself from injury a bit better but that will make him a lot more effective later in the season. Last year he went for 605 yards and 8 TDs. This year I expect to see 800 yards and 10 TDs.
Larry Caper
Larry Caper was our workhorse back in 2009 as a true freshman. He really carried the load for our team in the first half of the season. As Baker's injury healed up mid-way through 2009 the workload got distributed more evenly. In 2010, the script was flipped, Baker was healthy the whole season while Caper was injured early on and ended up as the third of our three back rotation. In 2010, Caper emerged more as a third down back and receiving threat which is the one thing he definitely did as well as Bell and Baker in 2010.
2011 Prediction
The murmurs out of fall practice are that Caper is back and is ready to play some football and as good as any of our other RBs. I have a hard time seeing us playing a three back rotation where all three backs get 33 percent of the carries and I have this weird feeling that Caper will be the one left out. His prowess as a receiving threat might make him the go-to back on 3rd and more than 3. He also could see a lot of fourth quarter carries as a fresh set of legs this upcoming year. I'm rooting for this kid a lot actually, between him and Bell I think there's a real pair of fan favorites.
Nick Hill
Nick Hill came to Michigan State as a member of the class of 2010. He had a single redeemable offer good at any MAC school, Stanford and MSU. He was redshirted last year and that was pretty much it for him.
2011 Prediction
This year he figures to be a factor on kick returns and maybe see sometime as a change-of-pace back. I think his carries will be limited this year on account of the logjam in front of him. I like Hill a lot, but if Baker doesn't leave after this year, I think Hill is a likely candidate to transfer. He's too talented to be the fourth string guy, but not talented enough to be a huge figure in the three headed tailback monster.
Jeremy Langford
Jeremy Langford came to Michigan State as a member of the class of 2010. He had a single redeemable offer good at any MAC school, Colorado and MSU. He attended the same school as Keshawn Martin and is faster in a straight line according to his AD. Not as good in and out of cuts.
2011 Prediction
This year he figures to be a factor on kick returns. He's really an athlete as much as anything though, so maybe next year he's a DB, this year he's a running back, maybe he's a WR in a couple years following. I think any 2011 contribution will be limited to purely special teams.
Worst Case Scenario: Our depth at running back is superior not just in the Big Ten but nationally. I think you'd need to have three season ending injuries before Nick Hill or whoever the survivor is would be being asked to do too much. Worst Case Scenario - Two of our starters go down early in the season and the offense doesn't recover.
Best Case Scenario: Baker moves from being an outside Heisman candidate to actually a Heisman candidate without the qualifier. Bell continues as our Caulcrick battering ram. Caper emerges as a true third down threat on every play. Nick Hill sees time in the fourth salting leads away and as our home run threat. The running backs group combines for 2500 yards and 30+ TDs. This is not as unlikely as I think we'd all think. Last year they all combined for 2300 yards and 23 TDs and we STILL had trouble on 3rd and short as the season wore on.
Overall Assessment:The running back position is at an unprecedented level of depth since I started following MSU football. This position group will make our offense successful this year as opposed to being successful because of our offense. I honestly expect the "Best Case Scenario" this year. I think this group is that good. Baker will do well enough to play on Sundays in 2012 and Caper, Bell and Hill will shine with their moments in the sun this year. This is going to be fun. In the words of TO "Getcha Popcorn Ready!"
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Progress by Stagnation
Michigan State football was the beneficiary of a quirk of college football physics: progress through stagnation. Thanks to Northwestern’s Pyrrhic (Persahic?) victory over Iowa, the Hawkeyes fell out of the Rose Bowl race. By not playing at all, the Spartans emerged unscathed past another week of Big Ten competition—and unless they pratfall at home against Purdue, should do so again this weekend. Further, the one team who has a lead on MSU in the Rose Bowl race will have to leap a much higher hurdle: Iowa, whose defeat of MSU and subsequent loss to Northwestern put us all in this mess to begin with.
I’m usually one of those obnoxious people who parses common sports phrases for their actual meaning—so when talking heads on TV talk about receivers “catching the ball at its highest point,” I chuckle at the mental image of a guy launching himself fifteen feet in the air to nab a skinny post at its apogee. But the other day, I caught The John Kincade Show, and Kincade sussed out one I’d never thought of: “controlling your own destiny.” It’s completely impossible to “control” your destiny! If it is truly Michigan State’s destiny to play in the Rose Bowl, if it is written in the stars, then it IS going to happen; we’re all just along for the ride.
What of it, then? Is it already a fait accompli? If I could get my hands on Biff’s Sports Almanac, would I see Michigan State in Pasadena this year (A: no, it only ever went up to 2000)? Honestly, I think the opportunity will be there. All season long I’ve had a weird itch, an inkling, a hunch that Ohio State would trip up at the end of the season. My hunch was that it would be Michigan doing the tripping; after all the hullaballoo surrounding the Wolverines this year, wouldn’t that just beat all? Better yet, it would cinch immediate Coach-For-Life-Until-We-Get-Really-Sick-of-Scoring-Fifty-Points-a-Game-and-Winning-Eight-Games status for Rich Rodriguez. However, if it’s to be Iowa—who’s been in the business of making and unmaking seasons of destiny this year—then that’s fine with me, too.
The question: even if the path is clear, can the Spartans walk down it? Even if the enemy is waylaid for them, can they claim their prize? Even if all they have to do is walk into Happy Valley and walk out victors, can they pull it off? Ah, that’s a question for next week. This week, the task is simple: win by not-losing, for the third week in a row—and let the stars choose whom they will.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
The Bowl Picture
Who has two thumbs and wants to go to a bowl game? This guy.
Here's the Big 10 Bowl Schedule for this year:
| Pick | Name | Location | Opposing Conference | Opposing Pick |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rose Bowl | Pasadena, California | Pac-10 or BCS | - |
| 2 | Capital One Bowl | Orlando, Florida | SEC | 2 |
| 3 | Outback Bowl | Tampa, Florida | SEC | 3/4 |
| 4/5 | Gator Bowl | Jacksonville, Florida | SEC | 6 |
| 4/5 | Insight Bowl | Tempe, Arizona | Big 12 | 4 |
| 6 | Texas Bowl | Houston, Texas | Big 12 | 6 |
| 7 | TicketCity Bowl[24] | Dallas, Texas | C-USA or Big 12 | - or 8 |
| 8 | Little Caesars Pizza Bowl | Detroit, Michigan | MAC | 1 |
Oh yeah, #6 Big 10 vs #6 Big 12. I'm not sure whether we're the Big 12 or the Big 10 in this scenario, cause see we're the Big 10 with 12 teams and they're the Big 12 with 10... Oh my god, I've gone cross-eyed.
With Wisconsin sitting at #7, Ohio State sitting at #9, MSU at #11 and Iowa at #13. The odds of two big ten teams getting into a BCS bowl seem high. So for the purposes of this conjectur-y sort of thing, we'll assume the Big 10 sends two teams.
If MSU, Wisconsin and OSU win out
- Wisconsin - Rose
- OSU - At-Large
- MSU - Citrus
This would pretty much suck. By pretty much suck, I mean completely suck. As an aside, there's a great chance we play one of Alabama, LSU or Auburn. Luckily Les Miles forgets what he's doing sometimes and is the most likely to be that guy. Also, he is the most hated coach of a top 10 team ever.
If MSU, Wisconsin win out and OSU loses
- MSU - Rose
- Wisconsin - At-Large
- Iowa - Citrus
Well obviously, this would be the damn WIN scenario, wouldn't it?
If MSU, OSU win out and Wisconsin loses
- OSU - Rose
- MSU - At-Large
- Iowa - Citrus
If MSU loses again once
- MSU - Outback Bowl
It's weird to type that and think, eh. But after how well the year has gone it's kind of strange to see that and not be impressed. But I would not be impressed.
Remember, we're Iowa fans next weekend. We need an Iowa win to make this all possible.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
My Introduction to MSU Football
Hello everyone, my name is Jim and I am addicted to Spartan Sports.
It all started back in Fall of 1998 in my first semester at MSU. I had moved onto campus a few weeks earlier and was going through the slog of the freshmen required courses. I remember the day my addiction began, it was September 12th, 1998. We played the Fightin' Irish and it was the first weekend I was staying on campus.
Now the thing you should know about Bailey Hall in 1998 is that it was full of geeks. The hall had a science and engineering focus to it at the time, the collective knowledge of Star Wars Trivia far outweighed what existed in the fictional Star Wars Universe. I had hardly watched football at all prior to this, and so I turned on the game because I could hear the stadium off in the distance.
This was the day we beat Notre Dame, and we didn't just beat them, we crushed them. The halftime score was 42-3. But even more importantly yet, I started out watching the game in my room and gravitated down the hall to meet my fellow floormates for what eventually turned into a college career of good times with friends featuring oat sodas.
My enjoyment of MSU sports is tied deeply to many experiences that highlight my time in college and a few that are highlights in my life. In 1999, my friends and I camped outside of Spartan Stadium for the front few rows of the U of M game. In 2000, I was pulled over for 48 in a 25 and not issued a ticket because we had just won this game. In 2004, we pummeled Wisconsin in a game we had no business winning. In 2005, I propsed to my wife at the MSU-Hawaii rematch. In 2008, my two week old daughter was present for the stop against Shonn Greene and the Hawkeyes. In a week from tomorrow my second daughter will be present for what should be a snoozer against Illinois.
As Ty said, this is my first blog. Bear with me and I will try to make my contributions part of what you enjoy about Spartan Sports.
It all started back in Fall of 1998 in my first semester at MSU. I had moved onto campus a few weeks earlier and was going through the slog of the freshmen required courses. I remember the day my addiction began, it was September 12th, 1998. We played the Fightin' Irish and it was the first weekend I was staying on campus.
Now the thing you should know about Bailey Hall in 1998 is that it was full of geeks. The hall had a science and engineering focus to it at the time, the collective knowledge of Star Wars Trivia far outweighed what existed in the fictional Star Wars Universe. I had hardly watched football at all prior to this, and so I turned on the game because I could hear the stadium off in the distance.
This was the day we beat Notre Dame, and we didn't just beat them, we crushed them. The halftime score was 42-3. But even more importantly yet, I started out watching the game in my room and gravitated down the hall to meet my fellow floormates for what eventually turned into a college career of good times with friends featuring oat sodas.
My enjoyment of MSU sports is tied deeply to many experiences that highlight my time in college and a few that are highlights in my life. In 1999, my friends and I camped outside of Spartan Stadium for the front few rows of the U of M game. In 2000, I was pulled over for 48 in a 25 and not issued a ticket because we had just won this game. In 2004, we pummeled Wisconsin in a game we had no business winning. In 2005, I propsed to my wife at the MSU-Hawaii rematch. In 2008, my two week old daughter was present for the stop against Shonn Greene and the Hawkeyes. In a week from tomorrow my second daughter will be present for what should be a snoozer against Illinois.
As Ty said, this is my first blog. Bear with me and I will try to make my contributions part of what you enjoy about Spartan Sports.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)