Answering your Michigan State Football Questions and Emails…

Answering your Michigan State Football Questions and Emails…  Hi Hondo, I watched the game on TV and there was about 4 minutes to play and I think MSU was

Answering your Michigan State Football Questions and Emails…

 

Hi Hondo, I watched the game on TV and there was about 4 minutes to play and I think MSU was up by 21 and I see Connor Cook on the field. I am asking myself why is he in the game with a chance of getting hurt and not getting some experience for one of the other QB's. I know you have mentioned the issue previously of the backup QB's getting playing time. Did that come to mind for you or did it make sense to you to keep Cook in the game? Thomas

No, I wanted MSU to get Connor out the moment they were going to a run only game to run out the clock and not run the score up.

 

 

I have a question in regards to play calling/decision making. Watching live, it appeared that on multiple occasions in the second half we lined up w/ only one receiver (Burb) split wide, and AF stacked 10 men in the box w/ no safety help. Every single time we ran the ball from that formation with predictably poor results. Personally, with the connection Cook and Burb seem to have I'd take that 1 on 1 matchup deep and expect a big play 2/3rds of the time. Does the fact that Cook didn't once check out to the fade fall on his failure to recognize the defensive formation or does it fall on inflexible/poor play calling that does not give Cook the freedom to make that check at the line? Max

I think you assume a negative aspect and that isn’t the case. What you saw was correct, but Coach Dantonio didn’t want the score run up on a service academy and DID NOT allow them to audible out of stacked box circumstances. If you didn’t like the play calling that was on Coach D no one else.

 

Hondo, it does not look like we can stop the pass. Please tell me I am wrong. Am I wrong? Scott Lehr

I wouldn’t say they can’t stop the pass. I would say that it is certainly the weak point of their defense and CMU is going to tell us all we need to know this weekend. Air Force had some disturbing success BUT with that rushing attack they were so focused on the run it was understandable.

 

 

Hondo, I wish that the media would stop using the term Heisman contender for Connor Cook. He is a Heisman pretender. He left a lot of yards and plays on the field that a Heisman contender and self-proclaimed leader wouldn't do. I don't know him personally and my comments are not meant to be negative towards him as a person, but as the quarterback of the Spartans. Jim Martin

Connor is a Heisman contender and will remain one as long as the Spartans keep winning. He has left some plays on the field no doubt and certainly isn’t playing at the apex of his talent, but the regular season is only 25% over.

 

The old saying goes 'once is chance, twice is a coincidence, and three times is a trend.'  How concerned are the coaches by the Spartans seeming to relax in the second half when they've built big leads? Or are we reading too much into this?  A Lehmann

I think it is a legitimate concern, but not panic mode yet. The Spartans have built some leads and struggled in recent years. I would like to see more of a killer instinct. That could come back to haunt them at some point. I would take umbrage with the part of your question asking about the players relaxing. Perhaps players sense when the play calling goes from attack to run the clock out and they sense a change from their coaches.

 

 

I'm seriously concerned that once again, this season, we're not getting a QB ready for when Cook is no longer available. And I don't know what (if anything) to make of it. Do we not have faith in EITHER TOC or Terry? Is Lewerke going to pass both? Are we just going to do what we did with both Maxwell and Cook, and throw them in the fire when there is no other option? We spend so much time and planning and reps to build backups and depth up and down the roster. Why not at QB? Jon Reed, Plano TX

I think your concerns are legitimate. Coach Dantonio, after the 2012 season, said that he made a mistake not preparing Andrew Maxwell in 2011 when Kirk Cousins was a senior. I asked him earlier in the year about it and he reiterated that he wanted to do that, but heretofore we have only seen the #3 QB in Damion Terry and Dantonio says that is NOT a reflection of him on the depth chart, but they want his zone read running. I asked a college head coach what to read into it recently and he said, “I can’t speak for Mark (Dantonio) but that tells me he thinks he might have a wide open race next year. They’ve got the red shirt (Brian Lewerke) and the big time kid (Messiah DeWeaver) coming in.” Remember he was not speaking for Dantonio, just an outsider thought.

 

 

Hondo, why don't we see screen passes to our backs?  Sure seems like that would have helped against Air Force since our talented backs got bottled up in the box all day long, unable to fully utilize their skills, and making our offense very predictable. -Mark Perry

I have thought the same a couple of times this year. I think it’s fair to wait and see. They might be keeping that arrow in the quiver for an opponent they need to open the play book more for in order to win.

 

 

Max Bullough is a Spartan legend and always had his hair buzzed. His brother Riley is starting to create his own legacy, and is letting his locks flow. Do you think that this is Riley's way of standing out as his own player rather than constantly being referred to as Max's little brother? If so, what should we expect in a few years from Byron? Eric Cameron

I wouldn’t read anything into that. Riley is an artist and just more of a free spirit. He idolizes Max and I can tell you it doesn’t bother him to have folks bring up Max. Max has no bigger fan than Riley and Riley has no bigger fan than Max. Add to it, they both are monster fans of Byron and when you see differences it is only personality. None are bothered by the others’ success. Although, Holly is THE BEST athlete of the family and I think all of them are jealous of her skills.

 

 

Burbridge fantastic game, what is the reaction that for the last 26 minutes or so MSU did not score a point. I would think this is a concern. Coaches or is MSU over its head for the BIG 10 season. Gary Minarik

Over their head? They refused to run up the score on a service academy. They ran the ball against 9 and even 10 men in the box formations that didn’t allow the QB to audible. There are areas of concern, but this seems like a major overreaction to that game.

 

 

There you go everyone. That is your weekly MSU football questions and answers article. Make sure you send your questions to SpartanNationMail@yahoo.com and put in the subject line Football Q/A. Thank you.