Keys to victory for MSU vs. Indiana & Michigan vs. Purdue

Michigan and Michigan State hit the road for Big Ten play on Saturday. Here is a look at some key to victory for both teams.

MSU at Indiana, Noon

Avoid the big play on defense – The Michigan State defense has been good, but not as good as many of us expected. Its big flaw is allowing the big play, especially in the passing game. The Hoosiers surprisingly come into Saturday’s game as the top passing offense in the Big Ten. While you can’t expect Indiana to light up the air against the Spartans, the Hoosiers may only need to connect on a few big throws to win the game. The secondary must avoid that and not get beat deep.

Be a quick-strike offense – That doesn’t mean big plays. What I mean by this is get the ball out of Andrew Maxwell’s hands quickly in the passing game. Use bubble screens, swing passes and slant routes to attack the Indiana secondary. With the injuries to the offensive line, you can’t expect there to be a lot of time for pass protection. Getting short, quick passes early will build some confidence in Maxwell and the receivers and open the door for long passes later in the game. Indiana also has a poor rushing defense, so the opportunity for Le’Veon Bell to have a big game will be there. Make things easy on Maxwell and the line by getting the ball outside the tackles in both the running and passing games.

Win the turnover battle – Michigan State’s defense has given up the big play and not been creating them. For having a hyped defense, the Spartans have not been great at getting to the quarterback and intercepting passes. The front four has to pressure the quarterback, get sacks and force fumbles. The secondary needs to make plays when they get the opportunity. The defense can make life a lot easier for the offense by giving them the ball with good field position thanks to a turnover.

Michigan at Purdue, 4 p.m.

Stick with your strength – Obviously the issue in the loss to Notre Dame was turnovers. The offense was able to continually move the ball down field, but turned the ball over before getting points. Purdue comes into Saturday’s game as the top rushing defense in the Big Ten, but the Boilermakers haven’t exactly faced offensive juggernauts this year. Michigan needs to do what works and that is run the football. If Michigan can’t run the ball consistently, it is going to be a problem. I am not saying avoid the passing game, but be smart about it, especially in the red zone. Three points are still better than none.

Avoid mistakes early – This is similar to my first point, but with this being the first Big Ten road game for Michigan, it needs to do what it can to control the atmosphere early on. That makes the opening offensive drives all that more important. Don’t give Purdue, or its fans, any reason to really get into the game by giving up a big play offensively. The Boilermakers have three interception returns for touchdowns already this year. If Robinson forces a bad pass or Michigan decides to be overly aggressive, it could lead to a big play for the Boilermakers and put the Wolverines in an uphill climb all game.

Get off the field on Third Down – The Michigan defense took a step forward against Notre Dame and gave the Wolverine fans some hope moving forward. Purdue appears to have a better overall offense than Notre Dame, as the Boilermakers average 42.5 points and 463.5 yards per game. The big key to Purdue’s offense this season has been third down conversion. The Boilermakers lead the Big Ten in that stat, converting on 58.5% of their attempts. If Michigan wants to win this game, the Wolverines need to get off the field on third down and now allow Purdue to systematically move down the field.

What Indiana, Purdue are saying about MSU, Michigan

As always on Thursday, I turn the focus on the opponents of Michigan and Michigan State. Here is a look at what is going on in Indiana with the Hoosiers and the Boilermakers.

Indiana

We thought Michigan State had issues.

It has been a tough three-week stretch for the Spartans, but that doesn’t compare to the issues in Bloomington.

The Hoosiers are 2-2, having lost to Ball State and Northwestern in their last two games.

Head coach Kevin Wilson is now 3-13 in his career at Indiana, with two wins coming against FCS opponents.

Things are going so well, that this week Henry had to receive a “vote of confidence” from Indiana Athletic Director, Fred Glass.

Terry Hutchens, of the Indiana Star, has more.

“We absolutely have the right guy and absolutely have the right staff," Glass told The Star. “I gave him a seven-year contract and we’re going to stick with him. For a variety of reasons, both voluntarily and involuntarily, we haven’t stuck with a football coach since Bill Mallory.
“Our goal was to find the right guy, give him the resources to be successful and then stick with him so we get the benefit of building something. And I absolutely believe we have the right guy in Kevin Wilson."
Some may see that as the dreaded vote of confidence. Many more coaches seem to lose their jobs than keep them after similar comments from their boss. Wilson has provided reasons for those concerns.

Hutches then lists some of those reasons, which includes cursing in an IU dorm and getting into an argument with the hosts of a nationally syndicated radio program on the air.

Needless to say, the Hoosiers appear to be the right team for Michigan State to be facing this week.

Purdue

The focus in West Lafayette isn’t too surprising.

It is on stopping Denard Robinson and the Michigan offense.

LaMond Pope, of the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, has thoughts from Purdue coach Danny Hope on this week’s challenge.

“They’re a lot to defend, and Denard is a big piece of that equation,” Purdue coach Danny Hope said during his weekly teleconference Tuesday. “He’s a great athlete, great player, great competitor, but he’s surrounded by a ton of good players and a fantastic scheme.”

Robinson leads the Big Ten in total offense, averaging 319.5 yards per game. He is third in the league in rushing (110.2 yards per game) and fourth in passing (209.2 yards per game).

“Obviously you have to do some things, you have to be smart with your rush lanes. If you get out of your rush lanes and he sees a big opening, he sees the seas to part, then he’s going to take off with the ball and then he’s really hard to catch,” Hope said. “He adds a whole new dimension to the ballgame. You have to do some things to make sure that you can try to minimize his production some, but if everything is geared just to stop him, then you disregard their other great players on their offensive football team, and that can really get you in trouble.”

Purdue currently ranks eighth in the Big Ten defensively, as the Boilermakers are giving up 353.3 yards per game. However, Purdue has given up the fewest rushing yards in the conference, allowing only 105.25 yards per game. Purdue also leads the conference in interceptions with eight.

Little Brother Scale After Week 5

It seems like with each passing week, Michigan State and Michigan are losing their appeal in the national football picture.

The impression of Denard Robinson’s performance against Notre Dame still lingered on in the bye week and Michigan State once again looked flat in a loss to Ohio State.

With both teams now sitting outside the top 25 rankings, the season already feels like a disappointment.

But, due to the struggles of the Big Ten, both the Spartans and the Wolverines have the ability to win the conference title.

It is going to take some work and a lot of improvement, but the possibility is still there.

MSU is making some changes to its offense in hopes to create a spark. The Spartans are currently last in the Big Ten in scoring at just 20 points per game.

The MSU defense does lead the Big Ten in scoring (12.8 ppg) and yards (266.4 ypg), but the Spartans have been susceptible to the big play and it has cost them in both of their losses.

For Michigan, the defense started slow but has been showing improvement. The Wolverines actually have the top passing defense in the Big Ten, but have the second-worst rushing defense in the conference.

Offensively, Michigan has the ability to score and score often. It also has the ability to turn the ball over often. Denard Robinson has been hit-or-miss, as he has eight interceptions this year, which sits third in the nation for most INTs.

This week, both teams have what would be considered “easier” games on their Big Ten schedule.

Michigan State goes to woeful Indiana and Michigan heads to Purdue.

The Spartans should have no difficulty in this game, but stranger things have happened. If this game in any way resembles MSU’s recent performances, it is going to be a very long year in East Lansing.

Michigan has a tougher opponent, as the Boilermakers look like a possible contender. Winning on the road isn’t always easy, but if Michigan expects to contend for the Big Ten title, this one is a must.

The Wolverines have had two weeks to prepare for this game and Denard Robinson said he would be “re-focused” following his performance at Notre Dame. This game is a statement game for Michigan, but it is yet to be seen what that statement will be.

When it comes to the weekly scale, I still feel like Michigan is gaining on the Spartans. Michigan has lost to tougher opponents and lost both games on the road. MSU has been in a three-week funk and their issues keep piling up, as the Spartans lost center Travis Jackson for the season.

I don’t know that MSU can do anything to improve its offensive line going forward. Michigan can correct its issues on offense by limiting turnovers and the defense should keep getting better.

MSU still has the edge in the scale due to their four-year hold on the rivalry, but things are shaping up for a change in power if the Spartans don’t get their act together.

Little Brother Scale: MSU 16 ½, Michigan 15 ½

Big Ten Teleconference Quotes & Notes

Tuesday marked another Big Ten Teleconference. Here is a few select quotes from Michigan coach Brady Hoke and MSU coach Mark Dantonio.

Brady Hoke

On the Bye Week: I thought we got a lot done during the bye week. It was a good time for us to evaluate where we are at, the things we need to improve on, the fundamentals, the techniques, look at the mistakes we made, making sure as a coaching staff we are doing a good job of coaching with clarity and how we want to play and our expectations. I think all those things were good and now we have a work week ahead of us for a tough challenge down in Lafayette against Purdue.

On Purdue’s Defense: I think their front is really a good front. A very active front, strong at the point of attack. I think Kawann Short, obviously, may be the best defensive lineman in the league. I think their other corner, Josh Johnson, is playing well. I think as a team, they are playing as well as anybody.

What kind of poise do you see in Denard Robinson compared to the beginning of last season: I think his poise has improved. I think there are still things that we all are working for and working towards where we can be better as a team and individually. I think us playing on the road is something that we need to have a quicker start and play better.

On Denard becoming to all-time leader in offense at Michigan: I think it is an accomplishment for him and what he’s given and what he’s done for the program. I think the guys that have been with him and playing out there, I think it’s a team accomplishment. Believe me, he’s made a lot of plays with his instinct and his feet and we are looking for him to make more plays.

On Purdue’s offense: I think they’ve got a lot of playmakers on offense. First off, the three guys up front who’ve got a lot of playing experience on the offensive line and I think Caleb TerBush is really playing good football and making good decisions. They have a bunch of guys that are making plays. (Antavian) Edison and (Akeem) Hunt and (Akeem) Shavers. I mean you can go through… (O.J.) Ross is another guy and (Gary) Bush, they are very, very skilled. They can run, they have good team speed and I think they’ve scored 42 points a game. They’re doing that by really…they seem to be in a good rhythm offensively.

On the video tape situation with MSU-Ohio State and what the Big Ten protocol is for sharing tape: You’d probably have to ask the Big Ten that. We get all the films that we need. It goes to a central place and we get the film.

What’s his philosophy on sharing film: We share film and they share film back.

Mark Dantonio

On William Gholston: I saw him yesterday, he looked fine to me. He seemed to be walking through the office with no problems.

On the game film incident with Ohio State: You know, I’m not going to go through that right now. I’m going to set my sights on what’s important to us, and that’ winning our next football game. What happened on the game film on Saturday translated into winning or losing. That’s where I am going to leave that.

On the offensive line injuries and if that will force changes to the offensive philosophy: We’ve lost two very good players but we get one back in Blake Treadwell. Travis Jackson is lost for the season along with Fou Fonoti, who could probably play the last couple games if he chose to, if we chose to. But, he does have a redshirt year. We do have guys with starting experience. Ethan Ruhland has started in the past for us. Blake Treadwell, Jack Allen have started along with Skyler Burkland and Dan France, so we have six players still available that have played well for us and started in the past. We’ve got some guys with some different things that we can work with and we are going to have to make it work.

How important is it to put together a complete game this week: Well obviously if everyone is playing well it is going to be good for everyone, for the entire team. We just need to stay balanced. We have to continue to try and make small success in different things, create small success that will lead to big success for the entire group. We aren’t in a panic mode or anything like that. We have guys that can make plays. I thought Andrew Maxwell played very well. We had zero turnovers on offense this past week. We have to run the ball a little more effectively, or more effectively in general, than we did this past week, which has been there in the past this year. Then, we have to throw it and be consistent in our throwing game, and we’ll be fine.

News and Notes from Dantonio

Dantonio also had his weekly press conference for MSU media on Tuesday prior to the conference call. A few notes from that:

- Aaron Burbridge is getting the start at WR along with Keith Mumphrey and Tony Lippett. Burbridge is replacing Bennie Folwer in the staring lineup.

- In replacing Travis Jackson at center, MSU is looking at Jack Allen (RFr.), Blake Treadwell (Jr.) and Ethan Ruhland (Sr.) to replace him.

- Jackson will need 3 months of rehab for his injury, should be back for spring football.

- MSU is sticking with Dan Conroy as its kicker. Conroy has missed one field goal in each game and is 10 of 15 kicking this year. He is 5 of 10 from 30-49 yards but 3 of 3 from 50 yards.

MSU season on the brink of disaster

It has been a long three weeks for the Michigan State football program.

In that time, the expectations for this season went from being a dark horse to win the national championship to being an outsider in the Big Ten race.

The Spartans suffered their second loss in three weeks, falling 17-16 to Ohio State at home on Saturday.

It was another ugly showing for Michigan State, and another game where the Spartans had an opportunity to win, but failed to make the plays it needed to to get the job done.

Unlike recent seasons, Michigan State has failed to show a lot of composure and come-from-behind ability in the fourth quarter.

The blame for Saturday’s loss goes on the whole team.

The defense gave up too many big plays and couldn’t get the stops it needed to against a one-man offense.

The MSU offense continued to have struggles moving the ball. When the Spartans did put a drive together, it settled for field goals instead of getting touchdowns.

On special teams, another missed field goal from Dan Conroy could have made the difference between a win and a loss.

Ohio State wasn’t overly impressive, but quarterback Braxton Miller did enough to lead the Buckeyes to a win. Ohio State had nearly 400 yards of offense against the Spartan defense, which is losing its credibility as an “elite defense” more and more with each game.

The ultimate disappointment for Spartan fans had to come on the final offensive play for the Buckeyes. Facing a 3^rd and 4, Ohio State was able to run for a first down right up the middle of the Spartan defense. An elite, or even very good defense makes that stop.

When it comes to the offense, the same issues keep coming up. Receivers dropped passes again. Andrew Maxwell missed open receivers again. The offensive line failed to open up running lanes again.

Le’Veon Bell was held to just 49 yards on 17 carries. In past weeks, when Bell has rushed for big yards, it seemed as if he had to do a lot of the work himself. In both losses, he hasn’t been very visible in the game and that is because the line is losing the battle up front. Now add to that another big injury, with center Travis Jackson out for the rest of the year due to multiple leg injuries in Saturday’s game. The MSU line has been struggling when healthy, one can only assume those struggles continue with key pieces missing.

The only saving grace for the Spartans right now is that this was not a Legends Division game. MSU still controls its own destiny to get to the Big Ten Championship Game. However, based on what we have seen, can we really expect that to happen?

The Spartans head to Indiana next week and then return home to host Iowa. Those have to be wins.

Then, a rough three-week stretch awaits that will determine if this season is a complete failure. Those games are at Michigan, at Wisconsin, and then home against Nebraska.

Michigan State needs to find some solutions over these next two weeks, or the Spartans are going to find themselves back in the murky waters of mediocrity.

Prediction for Ohio State vs. Michigan State

The Big Ten season is going to start off really well for one team and really poorly for the other as Michigan State hosts Ohio State at 3:30 p.m. today.

This game could really go a number of ways, as both teams have looked bad in recent weeks.

However, this game looks to be shaping up well for Michigan State in my opinion.

This is not an easy task for Ohio State, as it plays its road opener against one of the top teams in the Big Ten. Regardless of what the Buckeyes have done on offense or defense this season, you don’t truly know about your team until you play on the road.

Look at Nebraska. The Cornhuskers are like night and day when it comes to playing at home or on the road.

Ohio State can win this game if it can manage to make big plays on offense and special teams. I don’t see the Buckeyes being able to sustain drives against the MSU defense, but there will be opportunities for a big play here and there. Braxton Miller will need to be aggressive and accurate when he attacks the MSU secondary. Turnovers are likely to happen, but that can’t discourage him from taking chances later in the game. If the Buckeyes can get a few big touchdown plays, that could be enough to win the game.

Michigan State can win if the defense keeps Miller in check and the offensive resolves some of its issues of recent weeks. Expect the Buckeyes to stack the box on defense and dare Andrew Maxwell and the Michigan State receivers to beat them. If the Spartans can avoid drops and Le’Veon Bell can continue to be a consistent presence on the ground, Michigan State shouldn’t have much trouble putting drives together on this Ohio State defense, which is giving up nearly 400 yards per game.

The potential is there for this to be a 6-3 game. The potential is also there for there to be some scoring. Expect somewhere in between. The Spartans should have gotten a wake-up call from last week’s performance against Eastern Michigan. If MSU can’t get up and play well for this game, then it’s going to be a long season in Spartan country.

Ohio State is still far from a finished product. Urban Meyer will probably do big things with the Buckeyes, but not this year. Look for Michigan State to pick up another win over OSU in a hard-fought, grind-it-out game.

Prediction: MSU 20, Ohio State 10

Keys to victory for MSU against Ohio State

The Big Ten season kicks off in a big way on Saturday with Michigan State hosting Ohio State. Here is a look at the keys to the game for the Spartans.

Defense lives up to the hype – The Michigan State defense has been very good, but not quite as good as many expected. The Spartans are still leading the Big Ten in points allowed (11.8) and yards allowed (237.3) per game. Ohio State has impressive offensive numbers, with a lot of that due to Braxton Miller. Last year, the Spartans held Miller in check in just his second start for the Buckeyes. MSU will see a better Miller, but I don’t think he has the weapons to put up a lot of impressive stats. Ohio State will get the occasional chunk of yards, but the Spartan defense needs to contain Miller. So far, of the four games Ohio State has played, they have went against defenses that rank 93^rd or worse in points allowed in three of those contests. When you combine that with this being the first road game for the Buckeyes, it should shape up well for the MSU defense.

Make the most of the opportunities on offense – I could have just titled this one “CATCH THE BALL.” The Ohio State defense is giving up just 17.3 points per game, but it is allowing close to 400 yards per contest. That means the plays are there for the taking against the Buckeyes, but the Spartan receivers and quarterback Andrew Maxwell will have to step up. MSU can’t afford early drops, because they seem to get in Maxwell’s head and cause him to become inaccurate. The Buckeyes will probably look to stack the box and challenge Maxwell to beat them, as they hope to contain Le’Veon Bell. When the opportunity comes for 1-on-1 coverage down field, Maxwell and his receivers need to make plays.

Win the line of scrimmage – Despite the struggles in giving up yards, Ohio State has been able to get after the quarterback. The Buckeyes have 10 sacks this year, and that could pose a problem for a banged-up MSU offensive line that has underperformed at times this year. While Andrew Maxwell needs to step up, so does the offensive line. The Spartans have to still be able to establish a steady running game with Bell to keep the offense balanced and they have to give Maxwell time to throw. If Maxwell faces a lot of pressure, like he did against Notre Dame, it will be another long day for the offense.