Reports began surfacing during the last 24 hours that Michigan Football player Taylor Lewan may have carried his post-whistle punching habits to a new extreme after losing to Ohio STATE last month. Lewan allegedly beat-up some people in the streets of Ann Arbor sometime after midnight on November 30. The police report about the incident was filed on December 1.
There was definitely an incident, and local police are now confirming that Lewan was identified at the scene as the perpetrator of what the hospital report calls an "assault". The first reports were provided by the Buckeye version of "247sports", and you can read a detailed story about the event right here. This version gives a good sense of how official authorities in Ann Arbor work on a daily basis to cover up problems caused by UM athletes.
Now MLive has picked up the story, as it can no longer be ignored. Here is their report on the situation, absent many of the details provided by 247sports.
The Toledo Blade has also picked up the story, as has BleacherReport.
Lewan reportedly threatened to rape a college student at the University of Michigan if she pressed charges against teammate Brendan Gibbons for raping her in the first place. Some folks in Ann Arbor don't care for that type of behavior, and they have kept the story going at this website, including police reports and quotes from those involved.
Lewan is the same guy who claimed Michigan State "bullied" him in 2011, and vowed it would not happen again in 2013. During the game, he played as dirty as any player in college football history. Then after the game, he apologized for playing dirty and said he was "bullied" again by Sparty.
Taylor Lewan was given dishonorable mention as the "chUMp of the month" runner-up on this web site for November. He is now the leading candidate for top dishonors this month.
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Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Monday, December 23, 2013
MSU HOOPS: Valentine-Dawson Team Up With "Increda-dunk"
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Friday, December 20, 2013
Countdown To Roses - The Rose Bowl by the Numbers
This is an analyses of the Rose Bowl contenders, Stanford versus Michigan State.
Analyses of predictions for the 4 last games won by the Spartans had the following results:
MSU rushing yards: 2 of 4
MSU passing yards: 2 of 4
MSU scoring: 1 of 4
Opponent rushing yards: 1 of 4
Opponent passing yards: 1 of 4
Opponent scoring: 1 of 4
The prediction accuracy is 9 of 24. There were also 8 predictions that came very close to the game results.
The analysis assumes that the statistical performance applies to any future opponent. Although the data available is not "statistically significant," which means there are fewer than 100 data, it has proven in the prior games that this analysis may be relevant having successfully predicted 37.5% of performance metrics with another 33.3% coming very close.
The Winners were correctly predicted in 4 of 4 games. Margin of victory fell within prediction ranges in 3 of 4 games. The analyses and results are posted at:
Now we look at the upcoming Rose Bowl -- the Pac-12 Champion Stanford (11-2) versus the B1G Ten Champion, Michigan St. (12-1).
MSU has faced 13 opponents with a composite record of 77-80 (0.4904). Stanford has faced 13 opponents with a composite record of 91-67 (0.5759). This will be the toughest game of the season for both teams.
There are those who will argue that Stanford's more competitive schedule proves something. It might, but that argument is countered by MSU defeating arguably the toughest team in both schedules, (then No. 2 and undefeated) OSU. Still, MSU's season numbers were versus a weaker slate of opponents. However, the analysis includes that by comparing performance metrics rather than just season data aggregate averages (aka NCAA season statistics).
NCAA Statistics
The simplistic look at the NCAA published statistics leads to the conclusions that teams are on par in all aspects except the Spartan pass defense has the advantage over the Cardinal passing attack. What we can expect is drama both ways in the rushing game, the Spartan passing game moving the ball normally and the Cardinal passing game being somewhat contained.
Key Matchups
One can see from the data that there are some interesting matchups. In the table, "performance" is the ratio of how well the team's O/D unit as a season average did versus the aggregate average of all opponents' season averages. Stanford rushing offense, on average gained 25% more yards than their combined opponents allowed over the season on average. Facing the Cardinal rush is the Spartan defense that held its opponents, on average, to under 50% of their season performances.
The statistical performance analysis used in the prior 4 games goes beyond simple data averages listed above and is used again for the upcoming contest.
"MV" = Mean Value, which is the statistical midpoint of a distribution curve. "SD" = Standard Deviation, which both reflects the spread or width of the distribution as well as the boundary that encloses 68.4% of the data in the distribution (between the MV -1 SD and MV +1 SD). On offense, the "max." is best. On defense, the "min." is best. The "median" is the over/under or 50-50 point. Half of the results are greater than the median and half of the results are less.
Applying the statistical intersection of the distributions as bounded by the first sigma (+/-) gives the following predictions:
Stanford Predictions
Michigan St. Predictions
Scored High/Low Ranges
Of the many other NCAA statistics available for both teams, a few grab one's attention:
MSU 3rd down defense (No. 1) 27.7% verus Stanford 3rd down offense (No. 9) 51.1%.
MSU 1st downs defense (No. 4) 189 allowed versus Stanford 1st downs offense (No. 69) 252 gained.
MSU TO margin (No. 7) +1.1/gm versus Stanford TO margin (No. 67) -0.1/gm.
Based on the results of the 4 prior analyses, we can expect the following results:
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Analyses of predictions for the 4 last games won by the Spartans had the following results:
MSU rushing yards: 2 of 4
MSU passing yards: 2 of 4
MSU scoring: 1 of 4
Opponent rushing yards: 1 of 4
Opponent passing yards: 1 of 4
Opponent scoring: 1 of 4
The prediction accuracy is 9 of 24. There were also 8 predictions that came very close to the game results.
The analysis assumes that the statistical performance applies to any future opponent. Although the data available is not "statistically significant," which means there are fewer than 100 data, it has proven in the prior games that this analysis may be relevant having successfully predicted 37.5% of performance metrics with another 33.3% coming very close.
The Winners were correctly predicted in 4 of 4 games. Margin of victory fell within prediction ranges in 3 of 4 games. The analyses and results are posted at:
MSU has faced 13 opponents with a composite record of 77-80 (0.4904). Stanford has faced 13 opponents with a composite record of 91-67 (0.5759). This will be the toughest game of the season for both teams.
There are those who will argue that Stanford's more competitive schedule proves something. It might, but that argument is countered by MSU defeating arguably the toughest team in both schedules, (then No. 2 and undefeated) OSU. Still, MSU's season numbers were versus a weaker slate of opponents. However, the analysis includes that by comparing performance metrics rather than just season data aggregate averages (aka NCAA season statistics).
| Stanford | Michigan State | ||||
| OFFENSE | Rank | Value | DEFENSE | Rank | Value |
| Total yd/gm | 65 | 413.1 | Total yd/gm | 1 | 248.2 |
| Rush yd/gm | 23 | 210.9 | Rush yd/gm | 1 | 80.8 |
| Pass yd/gm | 90 | 202.2 | Pass yd/gm | 6 | 167.4 |
| Pass Eff. | 17 | 154.3 | Pass Eff. | 2 | 91.5 |
| Scoring pt/gm | 39 | 33.2 | Scoring pt/gm | 4 | 12.7 |
| 3rd Down Conv. % | 33 | 45.0 | 3rd Down Conv. % | 12 | 32.4 |
| 4th Down Conv. % | 19 | 64.3 | 4th Down Conv. % | 62 | 51.6 |
| 1st Downs | 45 | 272 | 1st Downs | 77 | 259 |
| Red Zone % | 78 | 80.4 | Red Zone % | 19 | 74.4 |
| DEFENSE | Rank | Value | OFFENSE | Rank | Value |
| Total yd/gm | 14 | 339.0 | Total yd/gm | 82 | 384.6 |
| Rush yd/gm | 3 | 91.2 | Rush yd/gm | 51 | 182.2 |
| Pass yd/gm | 90 | 247.8 | Pass yd/gm | 89 | 202.5 |
| Pass Eff. | 48 | 122.5 | Pass Eff. | 68 | 128.0 |
| Scoring pt/gm | 10 | 18.6 | Scoring pt/gm | 61 | 29.8 |
| 3rd Down Conv. % | 12 | 32.4 | 3rd Down Conv. % | 33 | 45.0 |
| 4th Down Conv. % | 62 | 51.6 | 4th Down Conv. % | 19 | 64.3 |
| 1st Downs | 77 | 259 | 1st Downs | 45 | 272 |
| Red Zone % | 19 | 74.4 | Red Zone % | 78 | 80.4 |
| MISC. | Rank | Value | MISC. | Rank | Value |
| Punt yd/rtn | T-51 | 8.9 | Punt yd/p | 29 | 38.3 |
| Punt yd/p | 42 | 37.8 | Punt yd/rtn | 41 | 10.1 |
| Kickoff yd/rtn | 1 | 27.8 | Kickoff yd/rtn | 99 | 19.2 |
| TO/gm | 67 | -0.1 | TO/gm | T-7 | 1.1 |
| Penalties/gm | 41 | 5.1 | Penalties/gm | 66 | 5.5 |
| Penalty yd/gm | 50 | 43.5 | Penalty yd/gm | 82 | 51.6 |
| TOP | 23 | 31:59 | TOP | 5 | 33:28 |
The simplistic look at the NCAA published statistics leads to the conclusions that teams are on par in all aspects except the Spartan pass defense has the advantage over the Cardinal passing attack. What we can expect is drama both ways in the rushing game, the Spartan passing game moving the ball normally and the Cardinal passing game being somewhat contained.
| Stanford rush O | 210.9 yd/gm | MSU rush D | 80.8 yd/gm |
| ave opponent D | 168.6 yd/gm | ave opponent O | 168.5 yd/gm |
| O performance | 125.1% | D performance | 48.0% |
| Stanford pass O | 202.2 yd/gm | MSU pass D | 167.4 yd/gm |
| ave opponent D | 237.5 yd/gm | ave opponent O | 220.3 yd/gm |
| O performance | 85.1% | D performance | 76.0% |
| Stanford scoring O | 33.2 pt/gm | MSU scoring D | 12.7 pt/gm |
| ave opponent D | 28.4 pt/gm | ave opponent O | 28.3 pt/gm |
| O performance | 116.9% | D performance | 44.9% |
| MSU rush O | 182.2 yd/gm | Stanford rush D | 91.2 yd/gm |
| ave opponent D | 175.8 yd/gm | ave opponent O | 176.7 yd/gm |
| O performance | 103.6% | D performance | 51.6% |
| MSU pass O | 202.5 yd/gm | Stanford pass D | 247.8 yd/gm |
| ave opponent D | 225.8 yd/gm | ave opponent O | 276.1 yd/gm |
| O performance | 89.7% | D performance | 89.8% |
| MSU scoring O | 29.8 pt/gm | Stanford scoring D | 18.6 pt/gm |
| ave opponent D | 28.2 pt/gm | ave opponent O | 33.4 pt/gm |
| O performance | 105.7% | D performance | 55.7% |
One can see from the data that there are some interesting matchups. In the table, "performance" is the ratio of how well the team's O/D unit as a season average did versus the aggregate average of all opponents' season averages. Stanford rushing offense, on average gained 25% more yards than their combined opponents allowed over the season on average. Facing the Cardinal rush is the Spartan defense that held its opponents, on average, to under 50% of their season performances.
The statistical performance analysis used in the prior 4 games goes beyond simple data averages listed above and is used again for the upcoming contest.
| Stanford | MV | SD | min | median | max |
| Rush O | 128.5% | 29.6% | 93.1% | 112.0% | 169.0% |
| Pass O | 83.2% | 29.0% | 37.4% | 83.6% | 124.9% |
| Score O | 118.4% | 35.1% | 62.3% | 117.9% | 175.7% |
| Rush D | 51.4% | 30.2% | 13.2% | 42.9% | 112.9% |
| Pass D | 90.1% | 25.3% | 60.7% | 84.8% | 132.6% |
| Score D | 57.5% | 19.3% | 27.4% | 57.0% | 92.5% |
| Michigan St. | MV | SD | min | median | max |
| Rush O | 107.3% | 26.0% | 67.9% | 104.2% | 170.0% |
| Pass O | 89.2% | 29.5% | 44.5% | 85.6% | 151.9% |
| Score O | 109% | 47.3% | 36.8% | 109.4% | 219.9% |
| Rush D | 46.1% | 38.3% | -36.7% | 46.4% | 99.3% |
| Pass D | 76.7% | 25.6% | 35.8% | 84.4% | 120.3% |
| Score D | 42.8% | 26.8% | 0.0% | 50.3% | 85.9% |
"MV" = Mean Value, which is the statistical midpoint of a distribution curve. "SD" = Standard Deviation, which both reflects the spread or width of the distribution as well as the boundary that encloses 68.4% of the data in the distribution (between the MV -1 SD and MV +1 SD). On offense, the "max." is best. On defense, the "min." is best. The "median" is the over/under or 50-50 point. Half of the results are greater than the median and half of the results are less.
Applying the statistical intersection of the distributions as bounded by the first sigma (+/-) gives the following predictions:
Stanford Predictions
101 yards rushing (+27/-21 yards)
147 yards passing (+41/-44 yards)
15 points (+4/-4 points)
Michigan St. Predictions
96 yards rushing (+26/-22 yards)
202 yards passing (+32/-54 yards)
19 points (+4/-7 points)
Scored High/Low Ranges
| Standford | 19 | Michigan St. | 12 |
| Standford | 11 | Michigan St. | 23 |
Of the many other NCAA statistics available for both teams, a few grab one's attention:
MSU 3rd down defense (No. 1) 27.7% verus Stanford 3rd down offense (No. 9) 51.1%.
MSU 1st downs defense (No. 4) 189 allowed versus Stanford 1st downs offense (No. 69) 252 gained.
MSU TO margin (No. 7) +1.1/gm versus Stanford TO margin (No. 67) -0.1/gm.
Statistical Bottom-Line Prediction
Stanford 15 vs Michigan St. 19
Stanford
rush: max prediction + 25 yards
pass: as predicted
score: 21-24 points
Michigan St.
rush: max prediction + 25 yards
pass: max prediction + 25 yards
score: 31-35 points
MSUSpartan76's Bold Prediction
Stanford 24 vs Michigan St. 35
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Tuesday, December 17, 2013
MSU FOOTBALL FRONT-BURNER: 2013 REWIND Featuring MSUSpartan76
BIG TEN CHAMPIONS EDITION
Our weekly feature on MSU Football brings diverse responses to
a variety of questions related to the Spartans program.
Our weekly feature on MSU Football brings diverse responses to
a variety of questions related to the Spartans program.
Front-Burner will be published in three parts between the B1G Championship and the Rose Bowl
Part 2. MSU 2013 Season Discussion
2A. ATownAndDown Feature
2B. MSUSpartan76 Feature (This Edition)
Part 3. Rose Bowl and Beyond Discussion
Panelists:
ATownAndDown (Follow A-Town on M-Live)
MSUSpartan76 (Follow '76 on M-Live)
Part 2 Discussion Questions (Readers COMMENT below the post.)
1. Looking back at the season, what are your favorite two or three specific moments/visions - not stats or general outcomes/results, but specific events captured on TV, seen in person, read about or heard on the radio?
2. What are some of the most impressive observations/aspects of this team, staff, players, program, etc. that you feel may have gone a bit under reported?
3. Mark Dantonio selected a few true-freshmen to play this season, while still red-shirting most of their classmates. How do you feel about the decisions to activate Shelton, Williams, and Geiger?
4. How many of the fans who wanted Damion Terry to "burn the redshirt" still think that would have been the right thing to do? What does that tell us for the future about fan reactions and early-season perceptions?
5. As for the QB competition, Datonio was accused of was "creating a circus". Was Dantonio being indecisive or was he merely being patient while gathering information, adjusting and verifying? A little of both? What was your take on the situation then vs. now?
6. Michigan State has 18 seniors and will suffer significant losses on defense. Although the Spartans do return good players on defense, I think most analysts will assume a significant drop off in defensive production. Whatever that drop off might be, if there is one, discuss your thoughts on how the experienced offense might help out the defense in 2014. Will it? Can it? Will it be needed?
1. Looking back at the season, what are your favorite two or three specific moments/visions - not stats or general outcomes/results, but specific events captured on TV, seen in person, read about or heard on the radio?
2. What are some of the most impressive observations/aspects of this team, staff, players, program, etc. that you feel may have gone a bit under reported?
3. Mark Dantonio selected a few true-freshmen to play this season, while still red-shirting most of their classmates. How do you feel about the decisions to activate Shelton, Williams, and Geiger?
4. How many of the fans who wanted Damion Terry to "burn the redshirt" still think that would have been the right thing to do? What does that tell us for the future about fan reactions and early-season perceptions?
5. As for the QB competition, Datonio was accused of was "creating a circus". Was Dantonio being indecisive or was he merely being patient while gathering information, adjusting and verifying? A little of both? What was your take on the situation then vs. now?
6. Michigan State has 18 seniors and will suffer significant losses on defense. Although the Spartans do return good players on defense, I think most analysts will assume a significant drop off in defensive production. Whatever that drop off might be, if there is one, discuss your thoughts on how the experienced offense might help out the defense in 2014. Will it? Can it? Will it be needed?
Responses from MSUSpartan76
(Follow '76 on M-Live)
1. Looking back at the season, what are your favorite two or three specific moments/visions - not stats or general outcomes/results, but specific events captured on TV, seen in person, read about or heard on the radio?
You just had to ask, didn't you! In a season chock full of highlight reel plays, we have to pick and only 2 or 3? Can't be done. The SHORT LIST:
- WMU: Defensive TD, Jarius Jones interception, as he is tackled, he flips it back to Kurtis Drummond who takes it in for the TD.
- OSU: Cook muscling his way in for the TD on a QB keeper.
- OSU: Langford slicing through the heart of the OSU defense for a TD.
- OSU: Spartan Dawgs stopping OSU on 4th and... and again.
- USF: Tyler Hoover leaping over a defender to get the sack. (If readers know of the play and it wasn't Hoover, please let me know in comments)
- UM: Trevon Pendleton's bail out reception for 49 yards on MSU's 1st offensive play.
- OSU: Josaih Price alone in the end zone TD!
But at the top of my list is:
- OSU: Mumphrey 72 yard pass reception taken in for a TD.
2. What are some of the most impressive observations/aspects of this team, staff, players, program, etc. that you feel may have gone a bit under reported?
I keep reading about how O'Connor will be gone since he is not looking to get any playing time with Terry and Cook likely to be the 1 & 2. I recall reading how Terry would bolt for some other school because he was being red shirted. It seems no matter which page I turn to, there is some noise about one Spartan player or another who will be selfish and take his ball and goes home.
Then I look at Andrew Maxwell. He took the decision and stepped up and found other ways to contribute. We are hearing how great Terry was on the scout team preparing the Dawgs for their games. One can run down the roster and find story after story of how these kids put their team and their teammates ahead of themselves. We get glimpses from time to time, but it really is a big story.
If one looks over the past 7 years, there have been a few who left but the turnover is particulary light. The program Mark Dantonio has built, the "monster in East Lansing," has values that go beyond the stadium and practice fields. Family. Work ethic. Academics. Team work. Loyaty. Selflessness. Humbleness. Will to win.
This is all about how to do it right and sadly that is not going to get any headlines.
3. Mark Dantonio selected a few true-freshmen to play this season, while still red-shirting most of their classmates. How do you feel about the decisions to activate Shelton, Williams, and Geiger?
My feelings have nothing to do with this. Coach Dantonio made decisions based on his plans and his vision and team needs as they arose. In general, Coach Dantonio likes to give incoming freshmen a year to assimilate and integrate into the program. He is old school and probably still remembers when there were freshmen teams to do that. There were needs and kids earned the starts. I'm ok with that.
4. How many of the fans who wanted Damion Terry to "burn the redshirt" still think that would have been the right thing to do? What does that tell us for the future about fan reactions and early-season perceptions?
Who cares what the fans think about things they have no influence over and no information on? Ask 100 people for an opinion and you know what you get? 113 opinions. Go back and read the answer to question 3. It applies here, too. To the point, which is, what can we expect in the future from the immature and ill-informed, narrow-minded, single issue mentality fans? More of the same noise and louder.
At the beginning of the season we had many Spartan fans calling for one coach or another to be fired because of this or that. They all thought things should have evolved and progressed to their instant gratification timeline and when it didn't, it had to be the assistant or position coach's fault. Later in the season when UolM was faltering, the chUMps were making exactly the same kind of noise about their assistant and position coaches. 'nuff said.
Coach Dantonio does not listen to the fans and does not allow fan noise to sway his decisions. We are in good hands.
5. As for the QB competition, Datonio was accused of was "creating a circus". Was Dantonio being indecisive or was he merely being patient while gathering information, adjusting and verifying? A little of both? What was your take on the situation then vs. now?
Anyone who raises questions about Head Coach Mark Dantonio's ability to make a plan and see it through is someone who is just trying to cast yet another negative spin on the Spartans. He told us what he wanted to do. He told us what he was looking for. It is the general impatience of the fans and media that colored this into something other than an assessment period. Instant gratification was not there, so it was spun as a controversy rather than the competition that it was. Impatience ruled, so any little molehill was turned into a mountain. Of course the media contributed to this by stirring things up. The media needs controversy, real or fabricated, to get hits that generate advertising revenues. That will never change.
Coach Dantonio was patient and methodical and comprehensive in his evaluations and assessments and in the alterations to the offense for 2013 based on the players that would make it happen. He stayed with his plan even when things were not quite going the way he would have preferred. And the end result? 12-1.
How can you argue with a record setting coach who is now preparing his team for the ROSE BOWL?
6. Michigan State has 18 seniors and will suffer significant losses on defense. Although the Spartans do return good players on defense, I think most analysts will assume a significant drop off in defensive production. Whatever that drop off might be, if there is one, discuss your thoughts on how the experienced offense might help out the defense in 2014. Will it? Can it? Will it be needed?
It is just plain silly to propose a Spartan defense drop off. Having watched 13 games this season and having seen 55 players go in the game against OSU I can say with total confidence that the pipelines are bursting with kids with the desire, the talent, the ability, the drive, and the will to play and win in all 3 phases of the game. Just like we can't get Swenson back or Edinger or Conry or even Muma back, there is always someone who will step up. Sadler was great and he replaced Bates who replace Fields. All three of those were great punters. We look forward now to whoever wins the spot for 2014.
There might be uplevellings by the opponents and certainly the games will be different, but there will not be a Spartan defense drop off. What's more, it is almost certain that the 2014 offense will be "worthy" of sharing the same field with the defense. The offense certainly earned their keep this season.
Why this question? I mean the preface about the defense dropping off and specifically the accurate assessment that media and analysts will spew forth more of this nonsense. When posed versus almost every other team it is answered with, "No probllem. They will just reload." These kinds of media questions and speculations only serve to malign MSU, to reinforce a conjurred mentality of not being able to stand with the best. This is just more of the M4 at their best.
Once again we have to remember the facts. We lost Ringer and Caulcrick; we lost Baker and Bell and Sims and Caper; we lost Jones and Worthy and a whole long list of excellent players and every year we are faced with the same derogatory comments that the Spartan team will just plummet back into mediocrity. 2012 was an anomaly, a transition year that was not well planned in 2011. That will not happen again under Coach Dantonio.
And anyone who does not think 2014 will be as good or better is just a chUMp.
Monday, December 16, 2013
MSU FOOTBALL FRONT-BURNER: 2013 REWIND Featuring ATownAndDown
BIG TEN CHAMPIONS EDITION
Our weekly feature on MSU Football brings diverse responses to
a variety of questions related to the Spartans program.
Our weekly feature on MSU Football brings diverse responses to
a variety of questions related to the Spartans program.
Front-Burner will be published in three parts between the B1G Championship and the Rose Bowl
Part 2. MSU 2013 Season Discussion
2A. ATownAndDown Feature (This Edition)
2B. MSUSpartan76 Feature
Part 3. Rose Bowl and Beyond Discussion
Panelists:
ATownAndDown (Follow A-Town on M-Live)
MSUSpartan76 (Follow '76 on M-Live)
Part 2 Discussion Questions (Readers COMMENT below the post.)
1. Looking back at the season, what are your favorite two or three specific moments/visions - not stats or general outcomes/results, but specific events captured on TV, seen in person, read about or heard on the radio?
2. What are some of the most impressive observations/aspects of this team, staff, players, program, etc. that you feel may have gone a bit under reported?
3. Mark Dantonio selected a few true-freshmen to play this season, while still red-shirting most of their classmates. How do you feel about the decisions to activate Shelton, Williams, and Geiger?
4. How many of the fans who wanted Damion Terry to "burn the redshirt" still think that would have been the right thing to do? What does that tell us for the future about fan reactions and early-season perceptions?
5. As for the QB competition, Datonio was accused of was "creating a circus". Was Dantonio being indecisive or was he merely being patient while gathering information, adjusting and verifying? A little of both? What was your take on the situation then vs. now?
6. Michigan State has 18 seniors and will suffer significant losses on defense, including punter Mike Sadler [Well - it only seems like Sadler is a senior as he is working on his PhD as a reader pointed out in comments.] Although the Spartans do return good players on defense, I think most analysts will assume a significant drop off in defensive production. Whatever that drop off might be, if there is one, discuss your thoughts on how the experienced offense might help out the defense in 2014. Will it? Can it? Will it be needed?
1. Looking back at the season, what are your favorite two or three specific moments/visions - not stats or general outcomes/results, but specific events captured on TV, seen in person, read about or heard on the radio?
2. What are some of the most impressive observations/aspects of this team, staff, players, program, etc. that you feel may have gone a bit under reported?
3. Mark Dantonio selected a few true-freshmen to play this season, while still red-shirting most of their classmates. How do you feel about the decisions to activate Shelton, Williams, and Geiger?
4. How many of the fans who wanted Damion Terry to "burn the redshirt" still think that would have been the right thing to do? What does that tell us for the future about fan reactions and early-season perceptions?
5. As for the QB competition, Datonio was accused of was "creating a circus". Was Dantonio being indecisive or was he merely being patient while gathering information, adjusting and verifying? A little of both? What was your take on the situation then vs. now?
6. Michigan State has 18 seniors and will suffer significant losses on defense, including punter Mike Sadler [Well - it only seems like Sadler is a senior as he is working on his PhD as a reader pointed out in comments.] Although the Spartans do return good players on defense, I think most analysts will assume a significant drop off in defensive production. Whatever that drop off might be, if there is one, discuss your thoughts on how the experienced offense might help out the defense in 2014. Will it? Can it? Will it be needed?
Responses from ATownAndDown
1. Looking back at the season, what are your favorite two or three specific moments/visions - not stats or general outcomes/results, but specific events captured on TV, seen in person, read about or heard on the radio?
Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a U of M basher, but Devin Gardner basically being carried off the field on that last drive was awesome. That was a game going into that everyone was asking who MSU had faced and was really questioning if the defense was that good or not. That image said everything that needed to be said: MSU was for real.
The other specific image that still gets me was Langford's last TD in the B1G Championship Game. And not so much the TD run but the smiles. Langford pulls his mouth piece at the end to reveal a huge grin. Also they showed Coach D's reaction as the play progressed and even he flashed a rare appearance of his pearly whites. This program has grown a lot and come so far since Coach D arrived. Those smiles showed the joy of achieving the goal he set day one on the job.
2. What are some of the most impressive observations/aspects of this team, staff, players, program, etc. that you feel may have gone a bit under reported?
I would say the resiliency of this group is something that gets lost in all the hoopla. Some point to it and say what a great turnaround story but its not a turnaround story. Everyone has stuck to the plan and saw it through to this point. After 2011, we lost Cousins, Cunningham, Martin, Baker, Linthicum, Celek, and Foreman. In 2012, the offense was a mess and the defense, despite being one of the best in the nation, could do very little to get wins because of that. To make things worse, Sims and Bell left early. It would have been so easy for defensive guys to get selfish. It could have been easy for offensive guys to check out. Coaches could have easily lost the locker room. Even after the rough start it could have been issues because guys started to say "Here we go again." But that didn't happen. The team not only stayed close like a tight knit family but they remained vigilant to Coach D's plan. In the end, it was that resiliency that brought this team here.
3. Mark Dantonio selected a few true-freshmen to play this season, while still red-shirting most of their classmates. How do you feel about the decisions to activate Shelton, Williams, and Geiger?
Coach D made the right decisions with the personnel. The team is past those early stages of trying to build some depth and is to the point that you have to win. The true freshman that played really filled holes that this team had. Shelton has great speed and big play ability. Geiger's kicking lead the B1G in FG% (much better than Muma who was 4 for 6 when Geiger took over). And Williams was a guy that balanced out the running attack (especially before Langford really got his legs underneath him). I would have liked to have seen Williams' and Shelton's roles expanded as the season progressed. There was a bye week after U of M so that might have been an opportunity to get them in some planned sets but I am sure there was a reason for that. In the end, those guys filled needs on the team and the team had everything it needed.
4. How many of the fans who wanted Damion Terry to "burn the redshirt" still think that would have been the right thing to do? What does that tell us for the future about fan reactions and early-season perceptions?
To start with, who knows if the decision to pull the redshirt or not would have been the right one or wrong one. Remember that was supposed to happen going into the YSU game. If Terry was able to do things that Cook couldn't do, could that have meant a win against ND that following week? We have seen back-to-back years where redshirt freshman quarterbacks have been the best players in college football. Its hard to believe they wouldn't have been better than average with some fantastic sprinkled in as true freshmen. Was Terry there or not? Only time will tell. In the end, things worked out very well for the program so the decision appears to be a good one. I don't think you will ever break fans habits of overreacting. Its what we do. In fact there are expressions like "The backup QB is the most popular guy on the team" because of fans quick reactions. There is a reason why coaches coach and fans don't. But then again, there are a lot of coaches that make some knuckleheaded decisions too.
5. As for the QB competition, Dantonio was accused of was "creating a circus". Was Dantonio being indecisive or was he merely being patient while gathering information, adjusting and verifying? A little of both? What was your take on the situation then vs. now?
I think Coach D was a little of both. He knew the potential for an awesome season based on the parts he knew he had and the schedule we had in front of us. So he had to make the right decision so he wanted to gather as much information as he could before making that decision. I think he was a little indecisive because he ended up going with Cook despite the fact that everything we heard coming out of camp and saw from the games would suggest that Cook was the wrong choice. Clearly there was something else that Coach D was getting that no one else was so I don't know why it took so long to just pull that trigger. Maybe he needed to see something like he did in the YSU game before pushing all his chips in.
As far as moving forward, I think Cook had better keep his nose to the grindstone with improving his game. Its one thing to win a QB competition when your toughest competition is Maxwell and you are leading a team that has the make up like this one does. But next year you are going to have Terry much more up to speed on the game and the system. That is going to translate to more consistency which seems to be the biggest thing in Coach D not pulling the redshirt this fall. I think the job is Cook's but that doesn't guarantee him anything. If Terry moves into that #2 area on the depth chart going into Spring and has a strong Spring and Fall camp, you will likely see him getting some game reps next year (inline with Coach D's desire to get reps to his #2). But if Cook rests on his laurels and thinks he is good enough, Terry might open the door to create a real competition. The other thing to think about for next year, the defense likely won't be creating as many favorable situations for the offense. Meaning, who ever is QB is going to have to make more plays than we made this year. I don't know if Cook can play at this same level and make those plays. That added pressure for the offense to advance its game might mean pressure on Cook. Can he step up to that plate without raising his own bar?
6. Michigan State has 18 seniors and will suffer significant losses on defense, including punter Mike Sadler [Well - it only seems like Sadler is a senior as he is working on his PhD as a reader pointed out in comments.]. Although the Spartans do return good players on defense, I think most analysts will assume a significant drop off in defensive production. Whatever that drop off might be, if there is one, discuss your thoughts on how the experienced offense might help out the defense in 2014. Will it? Can it? Will it be needed?
The defense will regress however slightly. I think a few will overreact and assume the bottom is dropping out but that is far from the case. MSU's defense will still be a really solid unit but to expect some of the video game like numbers from this year is a stretch. You still return Calhoun and Rush. In addition, Knox and Scarpinato stepped up and hopefully LT and Kittredge can get back healthy and have the impacts we know they can. Taiwan Jones returns and Davis has quietly turned into Denicos Allen 2.0 (but bigger). Harris is a solid player and Riley Bullough should go back to that side of the ball (I have heard rumors that he is already working over there anyway). And don't sleep on the young LB's too. Finally the secondary might not be the No Fly Zone but Waynes, Drummond, Williamson and Cox are all playmakers back there (and don't be surprised to see one of the latter two find their way to that cover OLB spot). Also, Darien Hicks was a true freshman that played in every game this season and Robinson and Edmondson have been CBs that the coaches have been high on too. There is more than enough depth and talent on that defense to be very competitive. I know you can't replace guys like Bullough and Dennard but the guys coming in are not half bad.
I also think the offense should take a step forward. QB should improve. WR's finally appear to be getting it. You have a 1400 yard 17 TD rusher returning and he will only add more depth behind him. The Oline is strong and TE looks to be coming together too. Its tough to say how much better the offense will be. In the end the big numbers will will likely be similar (yards per game, points per game, etc.) but the way they do it will be different and the more overlooked efficiency stats will likely be better. Also, it will be against a tougher schedule too with Oregon, Nebraska, U of M, OSU, and PSU. I am hoping we can see some steps forward before the bowl game too.
~ATownAndDown (Follow A-Town on M-Live)
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Friday, December 13, 2013
HERE'S A RUNDOWN OF CRAZY BEHAVIOR BY STUDENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
There they go again. The media wants everybody in Spartan Nation to feel ashamed of their students (and themselves) because a few future-former-students lit several bonfires on the Saturday night before Finals Week. The latest Cedar Village shindig was just another unregistered block party (the credentials for which would have included a burning permit). But it had no connection with MSU sports, as this event has been taking place sporadically for the past 30 years.
The media wants you to think that students at the University of Michigan are better than students at Michigan State University because "they wouldn't do a thing like that". That is patently absurd. We have numerous examples of UM students going a lot farther off the edge than the Michigan Mainstream Media Machine (M4) would have you believe.
Let's start with the riots of June 1969, known as the "Battle of Ann Arbor". The students actually had sexual relations in broad daylight on Main Street at that event, even amidst the tear gas. Four days long with hundreds of police officers in action and more than 70 arrests.
Back in 1989, when "Cedarfest" was in its infancy, the University of Michigan community offered a blueprint for how to party down after a major sports event. The overtime game against Seton Hall, the phantom foul with two seconds left to send Remedial Robinson to the line, and then the real games began around Ann Arbor town. Flipped cars, broken windows, and arrests capped off a weekend of rioting. Those crazy UM students even attacked an ambulance during the party. Here are some newspaper articles from the Ann Arbor Police Department, with lots of fun pictures.
The did it again in 1992, during the Final Four that was erased from their record books. When Ed Martin's team fell short of the national championship, all hell broke loose on the Michigan campus. Tear gas, mounted police, thousands of students in the streets throwing rocks at the cops. Sounds like it was a riot. (More police records here.)
Have you heard of these happenings? Many of you probably have not heard all about these incidents. That's because you-know-who (the M4) don't want you to think about them, so they don't dwell on them. We wrote about some of this a few days ago, including details on the recent student invasion into the football stadium, resulting in more than a dozen arrests. Any reasonable preview of the 2013 Final Four would have included warnings to business-owners and residents around the UM campus based on what happened in the past.
But the UM students don't need a Final Four to destroy public property in a drunken frenzy, not even a Final Four that was taken away by the NCAA. They're happy to use Saint Patrick's Day as an excuse to get rowdy over their defeat the night before at the hands of the OHIO Bobcats. That's what happened just last year, in 2012.
And last season, those same library-rats lit the town up after the national semi-final against Syracuse. When you read this story, notice how the couches were burned in the street. When it says "in the street", that means a residential neighborhood, unlike Cedar Village (which includes zero full-time resident homeowners).
When you review all of the historical facts, it's hard to overlook one question about students at the University of Michigan: What's wrong with these kids? Why do they do all of these things? What motivates their behavior? And remember, it's not just post-game brawls that get these young people excited.
Enough sanctimony about students at the University of Michigan. They are, ironically, even wilder and crazier than they claim MSU to be. Their strange behaviors and unusual traditions - - - even destructive - - - are glossed over by the M4 on a regular basis. When it comes to social disorder and student misbehavior, they are most definitely the "leaders and the best".
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The media wants you to think that students at the University of Michigan are better than students at Michigan State University because "they wouldn't do a thing like that". That is patently absurd. We have numerous examples of UM students going a lot farther off the edge than the Michigan Mainstream Media Machine (M4) would have you believe.
Let's start with the riots of June 1969, known as the "Battle of Ann Arbor". The students actually had sexual relations in broad daylight on Main Street at that event, even amidst the tear gas. Four days long with hundreds of police officers in action and more than 70 arrests.
Back in 1989, when "Cedarfest" was in its infancy, the University of Michigan community offered a blueprint for how to party down after a major sports event. The overtime game against Seton Hall, the phantom foul with two seconds left to send Remedial Robinson to the line, and then the real games began around Ann Arbor town. Flipped cars, broken windows, and arrests capped off a weekend of rioting. Those crazy UM students even attacked an ambulance during the party. Here are some newspaper articles from the Ann Arbor Police Department, with lots of fun pictures.
The did it again in 1992, during the Final Four that was erased from their record books. When Ed Martin's team fell short of the national championship, all hell broke loose on the Michigan campus. Tear gas, mounted police, thousands of students in the streets throwing rocks at the cops. Sounds like it was a riot. (More police records here.)
Have you heard of these happenings? Many of you probably have not heard all about these incidents. That's because you-know-who (the M4) don't want you to think about them, so they don't dwell on them. We wrote about some of this a few days ago, including details on the recent student invasion into the football stadium, resulting in more than a dozen arrests. Any reasonable preview of the 2013 Final Four would have included warnings to business-owners and residents around the UM campus based on what happened in the past.
But the UM students don't need a Final Four to destroy public property in a drunken frenzy, not even a Final Four that was taken away by the NCAA. They're happy to use Saint Patrick's Day as an excuse to get rowdy over their defeat the night before at the hands of the OHIO Bobcats. That's what happened just last year, in 2012.
And last season, those same library-rats lit the town up after the national semi-final against Syracuse. When you read this story, notice how the couches were burned in the street. When it says "in the street", that means a residential neighborhood, unlike Cedar Village (which includes zero full-time resident homeowners).
That brings us to the last game of the 2013 college basketball season, when students at the University of Michigan attempted to burn the town up after Louisville won the game. At least two of those students were on athletic scholarship, varsity wrestlers Justin Dozier and Rosario Bruno. Both were arrested, charged, prosecuted, and processed through the criminal justice system. Bruno remains on the UM wrestling team.
Those two were hardly the ringleaders, as the general student body at Michigan did plenty of damage on their own. The rioting was significant enough that the mass media might have referenced it when Cedarfest caught their attention last weekend, but they somehow all missed that "related story" reference in their coverage. Almost like the UM stuff never happened. But it most certainly did.
Those two were hardly the ringleaders, as the general student body at Michigan did plenty of damage on their own. The rioting was significant enough that the mass media might have referenced it when Cedarfest caught their attention last weekend, but they somehow all missed that "related story" reference in their coverage. Almost like the UM stuff never happened. But it most certainly did.
When you review all of the historical facts, it's hard to overlook one question about students at the University of Michigan: What's wrong with these kids? Why do they do all of these things? What motivates their behavior? And remember, it's not just post-game brawls that get these young people excited.
Don't forget about the annual assaults against the Sparty statue by Michigan students intending to vandalize public property. The most notorious incident was in 1998, when an obviously organized squad of UM students was repelled by members of the MSU Marching Band. Police arrested 14 students from the University of Michigan, and all were prosecuted and convicted.
And what about the "Naked Mile", an annual rite-of-spring during which hundreds of UM students, both male and female, strip off all of their clothes and run right through downtown Ann Arbor in front of cheering crowds? How would this event be reported if it was happening in East Lansing on Grand River Avenue?
And let's recall the annual "Hash Bash", a University of Michigan student tradition since just after the arrival of Bo Shembechler as coach. Thousands congregate on the sacred UM Diag to light up and be happy, all day long, in broad daylight. What would happen if this event was held at Beaumont Tower each year?
Enough sanctimony about students at the University of Michigan. They are, ironically, even wilder and crazier than they claim MSU to be. Their strange behaviors and unusual traditions - - - even destructive - - - are glossed over by the M4 on a regular basis. When it comes to social disorder and student misbehavior, they are most definitely the "leaders and the best".
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Thursday, December 12, 2013
FIRST-PERSON REPORT FROM C-Mann1979 AT THE B1G CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
(Were you at the game? Please write your comment below.)
We have just received our first eye-witness report from the B1G Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium last weekend. It's our own "C-Mann1979" who made the long drive to make the big scene.
C-Mann tells us that two Michigan players were on hand, Taylor Lewan and Devin Funchess, for some pre-game ceremony. Those two received a cascade of booing from the Spartan/Buckeye crowd.
He also says most Buckeye fans were questioning MSU's chances of actually winning the game:
"Ohio State fans kept asking me before the game what I truly thought State's chances were for the upset. I told them all that I truly thought the wrong team was favored and that they should be very worried. In the end, it looked like the wrong team was favored. Sparty won the game, the Bucks did not lose it. Though those same Buckeye fans see things differently, blaming the loss on their own play-calling. I guess they were planning to give up 34 points. BTW, I told those same fans that I believed the first team to score 29 points would win. And my predicted score was Sparty wins, 34-28. Not too shabby on the prediction parade."One of our editors noticed the confetti falling on the field seemed to be an odd mixture of blue and yellow, and that question appeared in the Front Burner this week. But C-Mann was there, and he didn't see it that way:
"I haven't seen the replay of the post-game festivities but the confetti that fell in my section were all pastels and could in no way be linked to any Big Ten school colors. I brought some home to fill a box with Spartan gear from the weekend for my son's Christmas. I find it hard to believe that only blue and yellow fell near the podium but I'll look for it."We'll wait for the update from C-Mann79 on the american confetti. But he noticed we didn't talk about the #4 ranking for the football team anywhere in our various monologues. He's thinking that the fans of some team MSU plays every year have seen it:
"How about a comment on our fourth place ranking? It just shows what a farce rankings are. It's the luck of the draw as to when you lose your only game of the season. But now that we're there, a Rose Bowl win could possibly allow Sparty to finish #3 in the year-end polls. Boy, would that upset a few chUMps (and the M4) out there."
He makes a good point. A loss could drop MSU out of the Top Ten, but a win will most certainly hold position or move up. But I think those who notice us now at #4 will still notice us in about the same way around #10 (if we lose), so I think they're already starting to get the point.
Were you at the game?
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about your experience.
about your experience.
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