kluegs17

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I know very little about them. Checking their record, it looks like they lost 3 games (same as us). They were kind of blown out by Ohio State and Notre Dame and lost a close one to Northwestern. They (like us) have one win against a good team (Penn State for them).

I'd like to think we'd have the advantage over them but like I said, I don't have enough in depth knowledge of them.

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Michigan State fan and alumnus here. Here is my take on MSU...

This year's MSU squad is one of the 3 youngest teams in the Power 5, with only 4 seniors in our 2 deep. We've had a lot of success over the last decade or so (Rose Bowl win, Cotton Bowl win, CFP Appearance, etc) but had a very disappointing 3-9 year last season...our worst season in 25+ years. Last season culminated with 4 of our top players being kicked off the team due to off field issues during the off season.

Considering our struggles last year and player attrition, I'd say most of our fan base was hoping for a 6-6 / 7-5 type year after last year's debacle. 9-3 including a road win over Michigan and a home win vs. Penn State has most of us feeling this team has overachieved and is ahead of schedule considering their youth. It seems that the locker room issues have been cleaned up.

Our QB (Brian Lewereke) is a RS Sophomore with great potential and this is his first year as our starter. He had a couple of 400+ yard games (including the game against Penn State) but has had a couple of ugly games as well...some of this is due to the fact that we've played in a few cold/sloppy weather games, which has limited effective passing opportunities. He is also a mobile QB and has ripped off some long runs this year. We primarily operate out of a pro style offense.

Our primary RB is LJ Scott...he is a 3rd year starter as a Junior but has had trouble holding on to the football this year. Overall he is a great talent but the ball security issues have been very frustrating. In spite of this, he may still be projected to go high enough in the NFL draft to leave school after his junior year.

Our top WR target is Felton Davis, a RS Jr. He has 8 TD's on the year. We also have a true freshman in Cody White who has been very effective and made the conference All-Freshmen Team.

Our OL is very young (like most position groups). They have done a good job pass protecting but we've done a poor job being able to pound the ball on the ground this year...very few holes for our RB's to utilize.

Defensively, I saw somewhere that we ranked in the Top 10 nationally in total defense. Other than the Ohio State game, our defensive line has been pretty stout against the run. Our DB's have been a pleasant surprise, with some young players like Josiah Scott being named to the all-conference team as freshmen. We typically struggle more with teams who run up tempo style offense and spread the ball out to make us tackle in space. We are usually pretty effective against pro style / traditional offenses. We typically play press man coverage, which puts a lot of pressure on our DB's to perform.

Special Teams are okay. We have a true freshman kicker who was 15/19 this year...he missed 2 field goals at Northwestern, contributing to our loss in 3OT. Our punter (Jake Hartbarger) is very effective and might even be considered a weapon for us. We struggle to kick touchbacks on kickoffs and our return men leave a lot to be desired.

Our head coach, Mark Dantonio, is one of the best in the business, in my opinion. MSU doesn't get the most talent but Dantonio coaches these guys up. (Kirk Cousins and Le'Veon Bell were 2 star recruits, for example). Most of our fanbase is frustrated with our offensive playcalling. We don't have the horses on the OL to pound the ball this year but the staff is too stubborn to go away from their philosophy and air the ball out a bit more. We tend to waste a lot of early downs running the ball into our O-Line's kidneys for no gain.

Anyway, best of luck to you guys in whatever bowl you end up in!

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they might be the most unappealing, boring team in all of cfb. play style, uniforms, stadium.
there's just nothing attractive about that team.

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Yikes, Michigan State fan here. Just stopping over to see your bowl projection chatter as most of the "experts" seem to be saying MSU vs. LSU in the Outback Bowl.

In regards to being "boring," we do run a pro style offense and not a sexy Big 12 "never take a snap under center" air raid type offense. This year's team is very young so they've not put up a ton of points, but over the last several years we've been pretty effective offensively. Our defense has typically been very strong as well and finished the regular season ranked in the Top 10 this year.

As someone who has been to all of the Big Ten stadiums except for Purdue, Spartan Stadium is a pretty good experience. The stadium holds 75,000 or so and there have been a lot of renovations recently. It is cool to take in a game at the Big House or The Shoe, but both of those stadiums have their issues. The Big House gives you 6" of room and calls it a seat. At The Shoe, you will wait an hour to take a leak.

Our uniforms are pretty traditional / classic Big Ten, but I think they are pretty sweet. The alternate white helmets are sick.

Anyway, I'll stop back over if we happen to play each other. We have a pretty spirited fan base with a lot of snowbirds / transplants in Florida, so I would anticipate a decent turnout, especially after last year's 3-9 debacle with no bowl game.