MSU's Special Teams vs. Indiana Could Decide Jonathan Smith's Future
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Head Coach for the Spartans, Jonathan Smith, is on the hot seat after a humiliating game against the University of California, Los Angeles Bruins, and his future in East Lansing hangs in the balance for the rest of the season.
His timeline is short as is, having six or so games to impress donors and fans alike to keep his job, but if Michigan State gets destroyed against the Indiana Hoosiers on the road, his timeline shortens to only a game or two.
He has to avoid a disaster at all costs, but he might have one saving grace among backups taking over and poor defense in his Special Teams unit, but if they collapse with the team, there will be nothing left to save him.
So what must MSU's special teams accomplish against Indiana, and what must they stop in the Hoosiers' special teams?
The Spartans' Special Teams Jobs Against Indiana
Martin Connington
- First things first, freshman place kicker Martin Connington cannot miss any more kicks after a shaky game against the Bruins.
- He has missed multiple extra point attempts and a field goal in the team's past few weeks, and should the Spartans' show out and shock the world like UCLA did against Penn State, he has to clean up his game.
- Connington has had time in the spotlight, but now he needs to build off the pressure around him and make some big-time kicks to keep his coach with the team for another year.
Ryan Eckley And The Return Squad
- Besides Connington, the Spartans' special teams need to ramp up their intensity in both the return game and punting.
- It has become far too much of a habit for opponents to start within the 40-yard line or better after the offense stalls out, and when it's the Spartans' turn to run the ball off of a punt, it's been fair caught within the 15.
- Better starts for the offense and defense could make tough games close enough for Smith to be given another year to prove the team can play, but if opponents such as Indiana keep on getting as much room as they have gotten, then the future is even more bleak for Smith.
Indiana's Threats To MSU
Nico Radicic
- Nico Radicic, the place kicker for the Hoosiers, might be the most underrated threat to the Spartans' hopes of avoiding a blowout, having been perfect through the season so far.
- He has made 35/35 PAT's and 7/7 field goals, none farther than the 46, and is scarily consistent in contrast to Connington as of recent.
- MSU needs to put more pressure on him than any other kicker they have this season; otherwise, his leg may put the Spartans in a big enough deficit for donors to kick Smith out.
Radicic's Teammates
- The Hoosiers return game is nothing to be underestimated, but they are nothing that the Spartans' haven't had to deal with before.
- Averaging 26.3 yards on a return exemplifies how much the team needs to dial up the punting game in any way possible, but they aren't necessarily dealing with anything special.
A close game at number three ranked Indiana keeps Smith by for a bit longer, and he could potentially salvage the season, but a blowout most likely sends him packing.
So if the special teams keep on giving the offense and defense bad starts, the team will be closer to a blowout than anything else, and Smith will be gone sooner than later. His future very well hangs in the balance of the special teams.
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Nathan Berry is a senior at NCCS and was raised a Michigan State Spartan fan. With a great interest in sports and writing, journalism is a great avenue to pursue both.