Know Your Opponent: Michigan State Spartans

Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)

Head Coach: Mel Tucker

Overall: Third Season, 18-12 (12-11 in B1G)

Bowl Appearances at Michigan State: One

2021 Record: 11-2

Mascot: Sparty

Colors: Green and White

Outfitter: Nike

National Titles: Six

Conference Titles: 11 (9 in Big Ten)

Heisman Winners: 0

Last Week: 27-21 win over Rutgers

Statistical Leaders

Passing: Payton Thorne – 191 for 302 (63.2%) for 2152 yards with 16 touchdowns

Rushing: Jalen Berger – 120 carries for 550 yards (4.58) with six touchdowns

Receiving: Keon Coleman – 42 catches for 600 yards (14.29) with six touchdowns

Tackles: Cal Haladay – 99 tackles (32 solo)

Stat of the Week: After a terrible 2-4 start that saw the Spartans surrender 39, 34, 27 and 49 points in defeats, Michigan State has won three of four games including victories over Wisconsin and Illinois. The Spartans are 4-2 at Spartan Stadium this season.

Spartans Talking Points

1.    Finding Form

The Spartans have been a bit of a rollercoaster under Mel Tucker. His first season was 2020 and they stumbled to a very poor season. The roster was nearly entirely turned over with both transfers and freshmen being brought in and Tucker’s Spartans went 11-2 and Tucker was rewarded with a massive contract extension. At 2-4 with heavy losses to Washington, Maryland and Ohio State, Spartans fans may have been wondering which season was the anomaly. While it’s way too early to declare one way or the other, Michigan State has played very well over the past month and are now on the cusp of bowl eligibility. The defense has improved and the Spartans have improved on third downs as well as finding some consistency in the passing game.

2.    Tackles For Loss

IU’s offensive line has struggled all season. A change at the position happened midseason with Rod Carey taking over for Darren Hiller and a bit of improvement has been evident but to say the line is fixed would be grossly overstating things. Michigan State will look to take advantage of that with a defense that does a fairly good job of creating havoc in the opponents backfield. Jacoby Windmon has 10.5 tackles for loss and Cal Haladay has 8.5 tackles for loss on the season. Both players get pressure from the linebacker position, something that the Hoosiers will need to be dialed into. If Dexter Williams is at quarterback for the Hoosiers, this issue should be somewhat negated but IU has to do a better job of avoiding negative plays on the offensive side of the ball.

3.    Ground Attack

Michigan State has struggled to replace the production of Kenneth Walker, the standout star of last season’s 11-2 campaign. However, in the past few weeks, Jalen Berger and Jarek Broussard have really begun to emerge. The pair ran for 5.3 yards per carry and 7.3 yards per carry against Rutgers and Berger had 5.4 yards per carry on 15 rushes against a stout Illinois defense. Michigan State has multiple wide receivers averaging more than 11.5 yards per catch as Keon Coleman and Jayden Reed catch the majority of balls from Thorne but it’s the running game that keeps the Spartans attack humming. When they play well, it is because the running game is performing.