Gameday Primer: Indiana Hoosiers vs. Michigan State Spartans
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Written By T.J. Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)
What: Michigan State Spartans at Indiana Hoosiers
When: Saturday, October 1 at 8:00 PM
Where: Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana
How to Watch: The game will be broadcast on BTN and you can listen to the radio broadcast on the IU Radio Network.
What’s at Stake: Both teams are trying to rebound from disappointing defeats last week. The Hoosiers turned the ball over five times and fell to Wake Forest and the Spartans were wiped out by Wisconsin. MSU still has dreams of repeating as Big Ten East champions and fighting for a spot in the College Football Playoff, a second loss would put those dreams to rest. Indiana is attempting to return to a bowl game for the second straight season and an upset victory over the Spartans would go a long way towards achieving that goal. The two squads play for the Old Brass Spittoon, a travelling trophy the Spartans have retained for seven straight seasons and 16 of the past 18 meetings.
A Few Things to Look For
Cutting Out the Costly Mistakes
The Michigan State Spartans have beaten the Hoosiers seven straight times. During that stretch, IU has only held MSU under 42 points on one occasion. When facing an opponent that has “had your number” (to say the least), there is little room for self-inflicted wounds and IU has inflicted far too many wounds on itself through three games. The Hoosiers were penalized nine times for 74 yards in the opener against FIU and turned it over once. They committed eight penalties for 69 yards against Ball State. They cost themselves the game against Wake Forest with five interceptions and nine penalties for 84 yards.
The Michigan State Spartans have been uncharacteristically sloppy as well. They were penalized ten times for 120 yards against Furman and they committed two turnovers. The Spartans cleaned things up against Notre Dame as they were only penalized three times for 45 yards and won the turnover battle by two. The turnovers returned last week though as they threw three interceptions and lost a fumble.
Neither coach can be thrilled about the turnovers or penalties their teams have racked up thus far and the team that cleans things up Saturday will have a huge advantage.
Finding Balance
Without All-American guard Dan Feeney and fifth-year senior tackle Dimitric Camiel, the Indiana offense struggled to find any semblance of balance against a strong Wake Forest defense. The Hoosiers ran the ball 32 times for 115 yards, an average of only 3.6 yards per rush. Quarterback Richard Lagow chucked it 47 times for 496 yards. The five interceptions Lagow threw were not all his fault and the Hoosiers would certainly prefer not to be forced into throwing the ball that many times. It won’t be easy to get the running game going this Saturday as the Spartans will provide a stern test up front and we still don’t know the status of Feeney and Camiel. Furman only averaged 2.6 yards per carry, Notre Dame was held to 2.3 yards per carry and Wisconsin only averaged 3 yards per carry (on 41 attempts). The defensive line duo of Malik McDowell and Demetrius Cooper is extremely disruptive and the Spartans pursue the ball well and finish plays when they have the chance to do so.
Besides getting Dan Feeney back in the lineup, what can the Hoosiers do to generate more balance between the run and the pass? Could we see more of true freshman Cole Gest? He left the Wake Forest game with what is believed to be an ankle injury and his status is unknown but he has looked good in limited action thus far. Maybe they will attempt to get guys like Mike Majette and Devonte Williams to the edge with more outside sweeps or tosses. Or perhaps we’ll see more of the “Big Bacon” package that was unveiled last week. In that package, big back Tyler Natee takes the snap and converted linebacker Clyde Newton is in as a fullback type player along with two tight ends. However they go about it, it’s critical the Hoosiers generate a rushing attack to keep the offense in balance.
Major Test for the Defense
Indiana’s defense appears to be much improved in the first year under new defensive coordinator Tom Allen. The Hoosiers have done a much better job of limiting big plays (the longest play surrendered is 45 yards) and none of their three opponents have reached 375 yards of offense. The question is not: “are they better?” They clearly and undoubtedly are. The question that remains to be answered is: “how much better are they?” Saturday will provide the sternest test yet for Allen’s defense as Michigan State has put up at least 42 points in six of the last seven games against IU. The Spartans had 540 yards of offense last season in this matchup, 662 yards in a 56-17 romp in 2014 and 473 in 2013.
MSU quarterback Tyler O’Connor was only 18-38 with three interceptions last week but he was very sharp against Notre Dame. If he struggles, it’s possible we will see redshirt freshman Brian Lewerke but Mark Dantonio insists that O’Connor is still the guy at QB. He has three primary weapons: wide receivers R.J. Shelton and Donnie Corley and tight end Josiah Price. Corley is a true freshman that was highly regarded coming out of high school and he has not disappointed, proving to be a sure-handed big-play threat. Indiana is defending 7.33 passes per game (second in the conference, behind only Ohio State) but this receiver group is the best they’ve seen this season.
The running game will lean on tailbacks LJ Scott, Madre London and big-back Gerald Holmes. Interestingly, Holmes and London only got one carry a piece last week but Holmes led the team with 100 yards and two touchdowns against Notre Dame. Indiana entered the season with major concerns about their defensive line but they’ve held up well against the run so far thanks to better-than-expected play from Ralph Green, Jacob Robinson, Patrick Dougherty and the rest of the defensive line. Marcus Oliver and Tegray Scales have also chipped in from their spots at linebacker. Florida International ran for 3 yards per carry, Ball State averaged 3.7 yards per carry and Wake Forest was limited to 3.6 yards per carry. The game plan will certainly be to hold MSU’s running attack down, force Tyler O’Connor to throw the ball and then pressure him in obvious passing situations. This is all much easier written than done but if the defense can have another successful outing, it’ll be clear the unit is well on its way to respectability.
Names to Know and Injury Notes:
-The Michigan State Spartans are going to be without starting linebacker Jon Reschke. Reschke was outstanding against Notre Dame but left last week’s game against Wisconsin with an ankle injury. In addition, defensive leader and fellow linebacker Riley Bullough is considered “day-to-day” with an undisclosed injury (believed to be a shoulder injury sustained in the Notre Dame game). Bullough missed the Wisconsin game and his availability this Saturday is unknown. Sophomores Andrew Dowell and Byron Bullough will fill in if needed.
-MSU’s secondary is a fairly strong group with a good mix of veterans and youth. Sophomore Vayante Copeland and seniors Darian Hicks and Demetrious Cox (the team’s leading tackler) are the best of the group. They’ll have their hands full with the trio of Mitchell Paige, Ricky Jones and Nick Westbrook and it should be a fun battle to watch all night.
-Through three games, Richard Lagow and the Indiana Hoosiers lead the way in the Big Ten in passing yards per game and yards per attempt. Lagow is averaging 9.9 yards per attempt, easily topping the conference as no other team is averaging even nine yards per attempt. Whether or not that number drops will be interesting as the Hoosiers clearly have faith in Lagow and their receivers and their ability to connect on long passes. However, will last week’s turnovers cause them to rein in the deep balls some?