My 2 Cents on the Spring Game

I was finally able to watch my DVR recording of the Spring game.  And while the game has already received plenty of attention and analysis, I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in, since I have a somewhat different take on a few things than what many others are saying. Of course, all the caveats apply: this is just a Spring game, several starters were missing, the team was mixed in ways that limit what we can take away from the performances, etc, etc...

Quarterbacks

I'll say that Andrew Maxwell played pretty well. He completed 9 out of 20 passes, but he should really have been at least 12 out of 20. There were at least 3 passes that absolutely should have been caught, and there were another 2 passes that maybe should have been catches. Basically, Maxwell should have ended up with about a 60% completion percentage, which is pretty good, considering the conditions. The only quibbles I really have with Maxwell were his accuracy beyond 20 yards and his mobility - although, I thought he looked much lighter on his feet than last season. Hopefully, he'll keep working on those areas over the next 4 months.

I don't think Connor Cook outplayed Maxwell, as some are suggesting. Don't get me wrong, Cook looked impressive, but he was also throwing to Aaron Burbridge (who looks like he will be an All-B10 receiver this year) and DeAnthony Arnett (who may be starting to live up to his recruiting rankings). I would like to have seen how Maxwell would have looked throwing to those guys. I also think that Cook benefited from Riley Bullough's effective running.  In the end, I think Maxwell still looks a little ahead of Cook, but I also think that Cook looks like he will be taking over when Maxwell is gone. Many people are excited about Tyler O'Connor and Damion Terry, but to me Cook looks like he is going to be really good by the time he is a senior.

Tyler O'Connor still has some work to do, but he's really still in his first year.  Unfortunately, defensive pressure kept us from seeing much of his mobility.

Upshot for quarterbacks: I don't think they're going to be a problem this fall, and man alive, MSU looks loaded at the position!

Receivers

Obviously, they had several infuriating drops.  But at least the top guys are starting to look impressive.  Burbridge and Arnett flashed some incredible potential.  They just need to do it every play, not just flashes.  Physically, AJ Troup looks like the real deal.  What a physical specimen. We'll have to see if he can put it all together this fall.  Mumphery is becoming MSU's most consistent receiver, but he doesn't quite have the explosiveness of a guy like Burbridge. I like how Lippett looks, but he needs to show up a little more.  He seems to disappear at times.  Fowler needs to get past the drops.  He gets a lot of passes thrown his way, so he seems to be able to get open.  But he has to hang on to them.

The tight ends are in trouble.  This is the team's biggest weakness, at this point. I'm just hoping Jamare Mills somehow finds his way back on the team.

Running backs

I was worried about the running backs a couple of weeks ago, but now I'm thinking the team looks pretty solid at the position - even if they didn't have 3 solid-looking freshmen backs arriving in the fall. Apart from the fumble, Riley Bullough looked excellent.  He's tough, he finds holes, and he moves pretty well.  Langford, Hill, and Tompkins have some work to do, but they flash excellent speed and they seem to benefit from the presence of a bruiser like Bullough softening up the defense.  In a way, I think Bullough could be more effective at softening up defenses than LeVeon Bell.  Bell was a powerful back, but he often ran more like a scat back.  Bullough runs more like Trent Richardson.  Hmmm, makes me wonder...even if the freshmen running backs come in and play well right away, I wouldn't mind seeing Bullough and perhaps even Lawrence Thomas getting a few carries per game to help soften up the defense. Just a thought.

Defense

I won't say much about the defensive side of the ball, since they look talented and deep at every position - how about those freshmen cornerbacks?  The only quibble I might have is that I wish the defensive tackles were a little more disruptive.  And maybe they will be by this fall.