Five pros and cons from MSU football’s first game
Alright Spartan Nation, let’s take a collective breath together. Breathe in, 2-3-4 and exhale, 2-3-4. Now that we’ve all taken that breath and the isolated storms and clouds have parted and given us some light, we can talk some final takeaways from the FAU game. We all know as Spartan fans were always hoping for that “beautiful day for football”, but we also know, we don’t always get that. I’m going to give you five suns that can give us some optimism and excitement and five clouds that should have us feeling the gloom after Friday’s kickoff into the Smith Era. I’m a “get the bad out of the way first” guy, so we’re going to start with my five clouds of the game.
CLOUD 1: THE OFFENSIVE LINE
This one is definitely a looming cloud. The line had some moments like Kay’Ron’s 63 yard burst, but take that away and we’re talking about 116 yards rushing. Spartan faithful were hoping for much more from the line and the ability to rush the ball and control the time of possession. This team needs to be able to wear down the opponent and that was not the case with the line in this game. Kay’Ron gave the line all the credit for his run and they did a fantastic job on that sequence. They need to build off that and get this running game going. Chiles was also scrambling for his life far more than I was hoping for. This line needs to beef up the protection as its opponents are just going to get better.
CLOUD 2: NATE CARTER
There are some big expectations on Carter this year as the Spartans are hoping for more output from the junior back. Granted, some of his stalls were offensive line collapses and him being met when he’s barely taken the ball. However, most of his attempts felt a bit uninspired and lacking the big play ability to find a solution to a collapsing line and make something out of nothing. I know this is just one game, but we need him to get back to that 4+ yards per carry if we want to be bowl eligible this season.
CLOUD 3: PLAY CALLING
There were definite moments throughout the game where the play called did not set the Spartans up for success. I know the student section was screaming “go for it” but I couldn’t help but think of Dan Campbell when Smith had the Spartans going for it when they should have kicked the field goal. I’m all for being aggressive and taking a strangle hold of the game but this was an inability to read the room kind of a call. I do appreciate Smith mentioning in the presser post game that in hindsight he should have kicked it. I’m sure many Lions fans took a sigh of relief after hearing that. Let’s hope the play calling sets up the players for more success and has a better understanding of the game flow moving forward.
CLOUD 4: DISCIPLINE
There is nothing that irritates me more than undisciplined play. The penalties, 12 for 140 and a good bunch of those were 15 yards at a pop. Spartans have to play smarter. Smith mentioned this in his post game conference and is clearly aware of the issue. He did mention a mobile QB who is sliding a lot is difficult to defend when you’re teaching the guys to go low. We all know there are much chippier games in the future and against opponents that we don’t typically get the calls against. For that reason alone, you cannot give the zebras the opportunity to want to flag you. Without a doubt, there were some sketchy and questionable calls. The Spartans have to rise above that and be the epitome of a disciplined team in all facets of the game.
CLOUD 5: THIRD DOWN EFFICIENCY
3-13. Yep, 3-13. That my friends is not going to cut it. I’d be happy with just double that and being just under 50%. Some of this efficiency is related to the previous clouds of o-line and play calling, discipline and Carter’s struggles. We need to be better on second down to keep third and shorts. There is definitely a lot of gloom in Spartan Stadium when you feel like you’re all set to emotionally prepare for punting on every third and ten.
SUN 1: SECONDARY
I loved seeing the DB’s up closer to the line, I loved the attack attitude and the intensity. Angelo Grose was a monster. He was everywhere. Forced fumble, interception and led all players with twelve tackles. Obviously there was the blown coverage on the 4th down in the 4th and that will be addressed. Seeing our guys not getting blown away on every pass play like last year is indeed a feeling of optimism.
SUN 2: SPECIAL TEAMS
Special teams looked solid out there. Punts were high and deep and allowed for coverage to get down and tackle and pin FAU deep. Return team showed some promise and the extra points were down the middle. Would have loved to see the field goal attempt to solidify the lead and show confidence in the kicking game. I feel the Spartans were weak in this facet last year and this game showed some optimism.
SUN 3: AIDEN CHILES
We all know by now, “take the over”. Chiles entered that press conference angry, disappointed and depressed. The guy wanted every ounce of accountability to be placed on him. He’s right, to a point. Some of the issues were definitely his fault. Over throwing, under throwing, throwing behind, locking in on guys, all of that is on him. We also can’t have him running for his life constantly. We have to remember he’s very young. There is a lot to be optimistic about and for him to not be happy with this win and disappointed in his Spartan debut tells us he expects more from himself and the program. That is exactly the kind of guy we want leading this team. His teammates mentioned their intentions to lift his head up and have his back. I look forward to the game where he goes off and his confidence builds and his swagger develops. there is a lot to look forward to with Aiden Chiles.
SUN 4: KAY’RON
I know we were expecting to see him, but he felt a bit of a focal point at times. His burst through the line on his 63 yarder showed us all what can happen when everything is working like it is supposed to. He was having fun out there and he showed that in his post game interviews also. He said he knew he was gone when he broke through the line and said that was all because of the o-line. I may be hanging that line out to dry but the rest of the team is behind them. If we can get Carter going and Kay’Ron, then we’ve got a team that can control TOP and open up the play action game and that is a great way to support a young QB.
SUN 5: TEAM
This feels like a team. A group that is supporting each other, trusting each other and willing to gut through it together. It seems to be taking the right direction away from the individual first mentality of the past and creating something bigger. This is a culture shift and makes it even more understanding why guys left and more exciting to support the guys that stayed. I agree with Coach when he said it’s a big over reaction Saturday after the first game. Yes there are improvements to be made, lessons to be learned, but I feel that there are some bright skies ahead with the team culture shift that seems to be in action.
PARTLY CLOUDY: SPARTAN STADIUM MUSIC
Each week I’ll give you one toss up that is a bit different. This week my partly cloudy goes out to the music at Spartan Stadium. It was a definite shift from what we’re used to hearing the past couple of years. I thought a better job was done of not playing over the band. Liked the ode the the past with the player entrance but can we talk about the start of the 4th? We need to find the song. The night game, the lights out, cell flashlights on, its the get amped up part we all love. Don’t Stop Believing, while we all love its mention of South Detroit, is not the song. We have to find our song, the one we all lose it on, the one nobody else is using and let’s get crazy to it! So, whoever is in charge of that, get searching. Spartan fans, what’s your suggestion? Personally, I have a few options that would involve either Tiesto, Ludacris, or M.O.P., but that’s just me.
Game one in the books, let’s keep moving towards the sun!
Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK