B1G Football Preview: Michigan State Part 4 Prediction

Team: Michigan State Spartans B1G East Head Coach: Mark Dantonio 8th Year Last Year’s Record: 13-1 Key Assistant: OC Dave Warner Trending: Upward. Again I

Team: Michigan State Spartans B1G East

Head Coach: Mark Dantonio 8th Year

Last Year’s Record: 13-1

Key Assistant: OC Dave Warner

Trending: Upward. Again I should say treading water, but that implies lack of progress. Not the case. MSU has had a meteoric rise under Dantonio and his take no prisoners and cut no corners approach. This is the first legitimate shot at a National Title in East Lansing in decades and this could be a special season.

Prediction: 11-1 1st Place B1G East

Jacksonville State: Win

At Oregon: Loss

Eastern Michigan: Win

Wyoming: Win

Nebraska: Win

At Purdue: Win

At Indiana: Win

Michigan: Win

Ohio State: Win

At Maryland: Win

Rutgers: Win

At Penn State: Win

Final thoughts: Last year a lot of things came together for the Spartan magical campaign. Spartan fans groan in boredom every time Mark Dantonio mentions that, “Football is a game of inches,” but last year proved it.

True freshman K Michael Geiger only missed one FG, Connor Cook was the beneficiary of numerous interceptions that were simply dropped by the defense and the Spartan D was seemingly never in the wrong place. Will they get all of those breaks this year? Will they need them all?

How about Don Treadwell getting fired as the head coach of Miami? He certainly wasn’t a coach at MSU after that, but he was around and offered advice when asked to a struggling Spartan offense. That was another, "Inch," moment.

MSU started slowly in nearly (not all) every game. With a much better offense, they need to take the handcuffs off Cook and come out on the attack. If they do that I expect them to run the table.

That is why I think they lose at Oregon. They have a tendency to play not to lose rather than to win early in games and I think that will cost them in Eugene and be the reason they lose. This is a very good football team.

The defense is not as good as last year, but it may be 50 years until we see another one like that. They will still be very good. The offense is better than the defense is worse and I think this group has the chance to be an improved team. We know what Narduzzi can do, I want to see Dave Warner take command and go on the attack. I think MSU learns a lesson in Eugene and does that afterward. Here is hoping the do it in Eugene come out with the win. They are capable of it.