Folks, this was definitely a troubling game. The Spartans did win, but the offense looked like last year's offense -- against one of the worst defensive teams in the country.
The biggest issue was simply Connor Cook's inaccuracy. He was just flat out missing receivers, and it's even safe to say that he was outperformed by Purdue's true-freshman quaterback. I am hoping that this was an aberration and that he'll quickly be back to the form he displayed against Iowa and Indiana. Unfortunately, this kind of performance will not cut it against teams like Nebraska and Michigan.
The running game looks like it's very close to becoming elite. Jeremy Langford looks really good and would be a Heiman candidate, if not for a few shoestring tackles and perhaps a little more support from the passing game. The two freshmen, Delton Williams and RJ Shelton, look like they're making good progress every week. But freshmen usually run out of steam towards the end of the season. The o-line was pretty good, but they didn't dominate as much as I hoped against Purdue.
The receivers looked good. Kings and Lippett were solid. Even the tight ends are starting to contribute almost every week. The receivers are now consistently doing their part. It is time for the quarterbacks to be consistent.
The defense obviously pitched a shutout and scored their own touchdown, but it was a little disconcerting that they gave up so many first downs, and especially that Purdue was able to convert so many third downs with a true-freshman quarterback. The defense had a particularly difficult time with Purdue's big running back. Once he went out with an injury, Purdue's offense wasn't the same.
The special teams was solid. They punted well, they didn't turn the ball over. However, we eventually need to see the special teams MSU had 2 years ago, when K. Mart was returning punts for significant yardage.
The coaches seemed to perform OK, today. Unfortunately, this was a day where Connor Cook's struggles made the coaches' performance difficult to evaluate. They at least seem to have made progress on reducing penalties. I guess I also can't think of too many problems with the play calling, though I do feel that they could have tried to run the ball more.
Upshot: this is the kind of performance that brings you back down to earth. A performance like this will not produce victories against Nebraska and Michigan. It also helps you realize that the Spartans' chances of winning the B10 hinge on the play of Connor Cook. Today, he was outplayed by a true freshman, so it's safe to say that he was pretty bad. He needs to rebound next week, if the Spartans are to have any hope of getting back to the Rose Bowl.
No comments:
Post a Comment