Just finished watching the Indiana/Michigan game and what an exciting finish that was, with the Hoosiers pulling it out by two points. I still wasn't sure how good Michigan was going into this game, and considered this to be a litmus test. The Wolverines hung in there and darned near won this thing. Tim Hardaway, Jr. looked more energized and athletic than I've seen all year. That kid is a good player and has some serious hops--though he still makes youthful mistakes at times, and Michigan passed my litmus test. Much as it pains me to say it, Michigan is good. But give Indiana some credit for finding a way to win. I don't know that the Hoosiers necessarily played their best game, but they got it done. (And thank God for that because sports talk radio tomorrow would have been insufferable had Michigan won).
I don't understand some of the things Michigan does on offense. Why does Beilein insist on having his players launch wild three-point shots early in the shot clock on so many possessions? There were some wasted possessions for Michigan. Am I missing something? Is Beilein an offensive genius and my layman's-eye view of basketball simply doesn't understand this fact?
In a shocking development, Penn State crushed Purdue by 20. I certainly didn't see that coming. Another alleged bottom-feeder, Iowa, has now won two straight road games over Wisconsin and Minnesota. What does this mean? It's an indication that there is NO team in the conference that can be overlooked. It's stacking up to be an interesting Big Ten race.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
The best MSU sports week in recent memory...and it's only Thursday (and how I grew to hate the Wisconsin Badgers)
The week began with MSU's incredible victory over Georgia in the Outback Bowl. The very next day, the Spartan basketball team almost matched the football team's flare for the dramatic by defeating Wisconsin on overtime, 63-60. And yesterday, the MSU women's basketball team beat arch-rival Michigan, 60-55.
Back to the MSU/Wisconsin game. Unless you've been living in a cave, or aren't an MSU sports fan, you know that it appeared Wisconsin had tied the game 63-63 with a last-second desperation three. Watching the end of the game on TV, my immediate (enraged) thought was something along these lines, "Here we go again. Stinkin' Badgers get lucky and pull a game out of their ass that they had no business winning. When the hell are we ever going to beat those guys at their place?" Fortunately, the final shot was close enough to the buzzer that the officiating crew reviewed it--and replays proved that the shot came after time had run out. Final decision: the shot didn't count and the Spartans had indeed won at the Kohl Center for the first time since 2001. Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan went ballistic upon hearing the bad news, and the sight of the "demonic used-car salesman" losing his mind was truly priceless. If anyone needs an occasional dose of humility, it's that guy.
It's difficult to believe that there was once a time when I was, at best, indifferent towards the University of Wisconsin. Back in the '70s, '80s, and '90s, Wisconsin's sports teams were mediocre at best, and often just plain terrible. I even once owned a Wisconsin sweatshirt that I acquired when I traveled with my friend Dave to Milwaukee during Spring break 1987. I recall a bad Badgers football team coming to Spartan Stadium in 1988, and just for the fun of it, I wore my Wisconsin sweatshirt to the game and pretended to be a Wisconsin fan. (Those are kind of silly things one does as a college student). It hardly mattered because Wisconsin was woeful and had no chance against MSU--the Spartans crushed the Badgers, 36-0.
Even when Wisconsin's football team improved in the 1990s under Barry Alvarez, I didn't mind seeing the Badgers succeed, and when Dick Bennett and Wisconsin made their Final Four run in 2000, I heartily rooted for them until they ran into the Spartans. But everything changed with the two-headed monster of Bo Ryan/Bret Bielema. These coaches have been successful, but lack class. They exude arrogance, and much, but certainly not all, of the Wisconsin fan base seem to reflect this pompous attitude.
But it's not just that: I can't stand Wisconsin's style of basketball...if it can even be called a "style". Bo Ryan has set the game of basketball back at least 50 years. It's a slow, walk-it-up-the-floor, jump shoot or drive-and-flop "style" of hoops that resembles something from the peach basket era. I suppose James Naismith might appreciate it, but I despise it.
So, in conclusion, I now hate Wisconsin and they have almost reached Michigan's exulted status as most despised rival.
Back to the MSU/Wisconsin game. Unless you've been living in a cave, or aren't an MSU sports fan, you know that it appeared Wisconsin had tied the game 63-63 with a last-second desperation three. Watching the end of the game on TV, my immediate (enraged) thought was something along these lines, "Here we go again. Stinkin' Badgers get lucky and pull a game out of their ass that they had no business winning. When the hell are we ever going to beat those guys at their place?" Fortunately, the final shot was close enough to the buzzer that the officiating crew reviewed it--and replays proved that the shot came after time had run out. Final decision: the shot didn't count and the Spartans had indeed won at the Kohl Center for the first time since 2001. Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan went ballistic upon hearing the bad news, and the sight of the "demonic used-car salesman" losing his mind was truly priceless. If anyone needs an occasional dose of humility, it's that guy.
It's difficult to believe that there was once a time when I was, at best, indifferent towards the University of Wisconsin. Back in the '70s, '80s, and '90s, Wisconsin's sports teams were mediocre at best, and often just plain terrible. I even once owned a Wisconsin sweatshirt that I acquired when I traveled with my friend Dave to Milwaukee during Spring break 1987. I recall a bad Badgers football team coming to Spartan Stadium in 1988, and just for the fun of it, I wore my Wisconsin sweatshirt to the game and pretended to be a Wisconsin fan. (Those are kind of silly things one does as a college student). It hardly mattered because Wisconsin was woeful and had no chance against MSU--the Spartans crushed the Badgers, 36-0.
Even when Wisconsin's football team improved in the 1990s under Barry Alvarez, I didn't mind seeing the Badgers succeed, and when Dick Bennett and Wisconsin made their Final Four run in 2000, I heartily rooted for them until they ran into the Spartans. But everything changed with the two-headed monster of Bo Ryan/Bret Bielema. These coaches have been successful, but lack class. They exude arrogance, and much, but certainly not all, of the Wisconsin fan base seem to reflect this pompous attitude.
But it's not just that: I can't stand Wisconsin's style of basketball...if it can even be called a "style". Bo Ryan has set the game of basketball back at least 50 years. It's a slow, walk-it-up-the-floor, jump shoot or drive-and-flop "style" of hoops that resembles something from the peach basket era. I suppose James Naismith might appreciate it, but I despise it.
So, in conclusion, I now hate Wisconsin and they have almost reached Michigan's exulted status as most despised rival.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
An incredible start to 2012!: Michigan State 33, Georgia 30
I don't know where to start. I am enveloped in a warm golden glow after Michigan State's thrilling, stunning come-from-behind victory over the Georgia Bulldogs in yesterday's Outback Bowl.
I wanted Michigan State to win this game so badly, so desperately--although probably not nearly as much as the Spartan players and coaches themselves wanted to win. I was awed by the urgency, resilience, grit, and guts that the Spartans displayed in the second half and three overtimes of that game. This was, without a doubt, the most thrilling and exciting MSU bowl game I have ever witnessed.
This Spartan senior class deserved this win, and they went out and got it. After a dreadful first half that saw them fall behind 16-0, and caused the knee-jerk emotional sports fan in me to doubt them and vent on Facebook about how the SEC is so much better than the Big Ten, the Spartans came back with a vengeance and played with a passion that was awe inspiring.
Will we ever see a better quarterback at Michigan State than Kirk Cousins? He was perhaps not at his best yesterday, but he was brilliant when it mattered the most. He displayed incredible composure and leadership in MSU's game-tying drive with only about 2:00 left in regulation and no timeouts left. He will go down as one of the best leaders the MSU football program has ever had, and will be sorely missed.
After the game was over, and I had some time to digest it, it occurred to me that great special teams play is one of the key's to MSU's success under Dantonio. Perhaps that's not an original thought, but it doesn't get nearly the attention it deserves. The Spartans won that bowl game due in part to proper execution of the little things that are often overlooked in football, a perfect example being Brad Sonntag's brilliant placement of the ball on field goal attempts. The Spartans had a backup long snapper, consequently many of the snaps were a little off, but Sonntag's calm under duress allowed kicker Dan Conroy to convert some critical extra points and field goals. It's little things like these that win games, and these small details have vastly improved under Mark Dantonio's leadership.
Now a word about the defenses for both teams: awesome. On a day where little defense was played in any of the other bowl games (the Rose Bowl and Fiesta Bowl in particular resembled basketball games on a gridiron) it was refreshing to see two teams bring it on defense the way MSU and Georgia did. Georgia's defense was as good as advertised and maybe better, and the Spartans made some huge plays. Will Gholston may be the best Spartan defensive end since Bubba Smith, and that's no exaggeration.
"Program win" has become a college sports cliche in recent years, but this bowl win over Georgia is truly a "program win" if there ever was one. The Spartans had gone 10 years without a bowl win, and as everyone knows by know, Mark Dantonio was 0-4 in bowl games at MSU. This win, over a top-flight speedy and talented SEC team, validates Dantonio's program.
Now the question is, how will the Spartan football team do next year. It's true that the Spartans are losing several key contributors in Kirk Cousins, B.J. Cunningham, Keshawn Martin, Joel Foreman, Keith Nichol, Brian Linthicum, Kevin Pickelman, Trenton Robinson, and probably Jerel Worthy. But the foundation of a great football team is defense (despite the glorified track meets that so many football games have become these days), and with such players as Max Bullough, Denicos Allen, Darqueze Dennard, Anthony Rashad White, Johnny Adams and Isaiah Lewis returning next season, the defense should continue to be solid and set the tone for gridiron success in 2012. There may be some drop off next year, but a regular season record of 9-3 is certainly possible.
I'm not worried about next year right now, I am too busy basking in the glory of this big bowl win. 2012 has gotten off to a splendid start for Spartan Nation.
I wanted Michigan State to win this game so badly, so desperately--although probably not nearly as much as the Spartan players and coaches themselves wanted to win. I was awed by the urgency, resilience, grit, and guts that the Spartans displayed in the second half and three overtimes of that game. This was, without a doubt, the most thrilling and exciting MSU bowl game I have ever witnessed.
This Spartan senior class deserved this win, and they went out and got it. After a dreadful first half that saw them fall behind 16-0, and caused the knee-jerk emotional sports fan in me to doubt them and vent on Facebook about how the SEC is so much better than the Big Ten, the Spartans came back with a vengeance and played with a passion that was awe inspiring.
Will we ever see a better quarterback at Michigan State than Kirk Cousins? He was perhaps not at his best yesterday, but he was brilliant when it mattered the most. He displayed incredible composure and leadership in MSU's game-tying drive with only about 2:00 left in regulation and no timeouts left. He will go down as one of the best leaders the MSU football program has ever had, and will be sorely missed.
After the game was over, and I had some time to digest it, it occurred to me that great special teams play is one of the key's to MSU's success under Dantonio. Perhaps that's not an original thought, but it doesn't get nearly the attention it deserves. The Spartans won that bowl game due in part to proper execution of the little things that are often overlooked in football, a perfect example being Brad Sonntag's brilliant placement of the ball on field goal attempts. The Spartans had a backup long snapper, consequently many of the snaps were a little off, but Sonntag's calm under duress allowed kicker Dan Conroy to convert some critical extra points and field goals. It's little things like these that win games, and these small details have vastly improved under Mark Dantonio's leadership.
Now a word about the defenses for both teams: awesome. On a day where little defense was played in any of the other bowl games (the Rose Bowl and Fiesta Bowl in particular resembled basketball games on a gridiron) it was refreshing to see two teams bring it on defense the way MSU and Georgia did. Georgia's defense was as good as advertised and maybe better, and the Spartans made some huge plays. Will Gholston may be the best Spartan defensive end since Bubba Smith, and that's no exaggeration.
"Program win" has become a college sports cliche in recent years, but this bowl win over Georgia is truly a "program win" if there ever was one. The Spartans had gone 10 years without a bowl win, and as everyone knows by know, Mark Dantonio was 0-4 in bowl games at MSU. This win, over a top-flight speedy and talented SEC team, validates Dantonio's program.
Now the question is, how will the Spartan football team do next year. It's true that the Spartans are losing several key contributors in Kirk Cousins, B.J. Cunningham, Keshawn Martin, Joel Foreman, Keith Nichol, Brian Linthicum, Kevin Pickelman, Trenton Robinson, and probably Jerel Worthy. But the foundation of a great football team is defense (despite the glorified track meets that so many football games have become these days), and with such players as Max Bullough, Denicos Allen, Darqueze Dennard, Anthony Rashad White, Johnny Adams and Isaiah Lewis returning next season, the defense should continue to be solid and set the tone for gridiron success in 2012. There may be some drop off next year, but a regular season record of 9-3 is certainly possible.
I'm not worried about next year right now, I am too busy basking in the glory of this big bowl win. 2012 has gotten off to a splendid start for Spartan Nation.
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