Reaction to Michigan State's 55-17 win over Youngstown State

I was at Spartan Stadium on Saturday and saw the Michigan State scoring outburst in person.

It was a good showing for Michigan State, and a much-needed breakout performance for its offense.

I wrote a column on the importance of Saturday’s performance for the offense and quarterback Connor Cook.

It’s easy to say Cook was the reason that Michigan State put up 55 points, but the performance was a collective improvement by all parts.

Receivers caught the tough passes and got separation from the defenders. The offensive line provided protection and created running lanes. Ball carries found open space and made tacklers miss. The quarterbacks didn’t turn the ball over. It all came together for the offense.

Now, the real question is, can Michigan State repeat its performance going forward?

If Michigan State is going to do anything this season, it will need Saturday’s offense to show up more often than not. The MSU defense is always going to give the Spartans a chance to win, but the offense will have to score some points from time-to-time.

Michigan State likely won’t play a defense as bad as Youngstown State’s for the rest of the season, but that doesn’t mean we should look past what the Spartans did on Saturday. It was a step in the right direction and it gave the Spartans some clarity about the quarterback position going forward.

Connor Cook is the guy, and the Spartans are going to win or lose with him under center.

Next week’s game at Notre Dame should give a clearer picture if Michigan State really has solved some of its issues on offense.

Predictions for Akron vs. Michigan/Youngstown State vs. MSU

Akron at Michigan, Noon ET

This should be a sizable win for Michigan at home. Coming off the emotional win against Notre Dame, the Wolverines could use a game like this, where it can afford to make some mistakes and still win. I don’t know that Michigan will look real crisp, as they could be looking past Akron, but the Wolverines should still win with ease. The Zips haven’t shown much ability to stop weaker offenses than Michigan, so look for Devin Gardner to put up impressive numbers. Michigan also should be able to work in a lot of running back options and the defense should hold Akron in check.

Michigan 41, Akron 6

Youngstown State at Michigan State, 2PM ET

MSU could spice this game up by having head coach Mark Dantonio spin a wheel prior to each offensive possession to determine which of the four quarterback options will take the field. The crowd would at least be on the edge of its seat for that. Youngstown State isn’t a bad FCS program and the Spartans would be foolish to come into this game overconfident for any reason, given its extreme offensive struggles. The Spartans need to find their offensive identity in this game, because it can’t go into the rest of the schedule not knowing who their quarterback is. I expect the MSU defense to continue to be impressive, but you can’t expect two more touchdowns this week. This one will be on the offense, and the unit better answer the call. If it can’t score against Youngstown State, just who are the Spartans going to score against?

Michigan State 20 (all from the offense), Youngstown State 10