It was the start of the 2013 college football season for
Michigan State Friday night, but it looked more like a replay of the 2012
season.
Sure, the Spartans picked up a 26-13 win over Western
Michigan at Spartan Stadium, but Michigan State did little to calm the concerns
many have had about this team.
First off, of the 26 points MSU had on the night, 17 were
from the defense. The Spartans had two defensive touchdowns and the defense
handed MSU three points with an interception inside the red zone that the
Spartan offense failed to punch into the end zone.
Michigan State’s offense really didn’t look any different
than it did a year ago. Jeremy Langford rushed for 94 yards, but still only
averaged 4.7 yards per carry against a Western Michigan defense that probably
isn’t going to set records this season. When it comes to the passing game,
Michigan State didn’t attack downfield, averaging just 3.1 yards per pass. When
MSU did try to make some plays through the air, the Spartan receivers (mainly
Bennie Fowler) dropped passes.
Both Andrew Maxwell and Connor Cook did little to plant
themselves in as the clear starting quarterback of this team. Each struggled
with accuracy. Cook made some plays with his legs but was also lucky to not
have had a few interceptions to his credit. Maxwell continued to throw short of
the sticks on third down and didn’t show much presence in the pocket when the
opportunities were there for him to scramble.
The longest play from scrimmage for MSU was a 26-yard
pass to Fowler that was 23 yards of running after the catch. Michigan State
lacked in explosive plays and if the Spartans can only average 3.9 yards per
play against the Broncos, what are they going to do against good defenses?
On the other hand, MSU proved it once again has an elite
defense. The Spartans will be in every game this season because of their
defense. They can blitz, they can tackle and they can make plays in the
secondary. Pat Narduzzi once again has put a great group together and knows
what buttons to push.
The problem for the defense is it has this offense to
work with. If Michigan State had any ability to consistently score, it could
certainly contend for the Big Ten title.
As good as the defense can be, it will still give up the occasional
big play or score. It’s very difficult to pitch a shutout in college football.
It is just the first game of the season, but it was the
first game against a weak opponent. I don’t think anyone on MSU’s football team
or in the Spartan fan base feels very good about this performance.
