I'd throw out last year's debacle as irrelevant to this year. There won't be any lack of effort or preparation this season. Both teams are very different than last season.
When we look back at the other losses in recent years, we had a lot of self inflicted wounds, i.e. turnovers - of course, the blocked punt. Poor OL play, where there was literally a jail break (pun intended) on our QBs. So, number one, I expect our OL and offense to do a better job protecting Cade, and our run game should be a stabilizing factor. We've been sound on the turnover front. Keep it that way. No short fields.
The Nebraska game in front of a raucous crowd was a good prep for the game at Spartan Stadium. We did a pretty good job of communicating on offense. A few of the hiccups might be attributed to NU defense clapping to mimic our signals.
On defense, I thought that MSU's OL looked less than stellar, especially after a couple of holding calls in the IU game. IU didn't allow the deep ball and the yards that MSU got on the ground were limited and due to individual effort. Thorne's ability to scramble and run on designed plays is an X factor. Hats to the ball is crucial because Walker breaks tackles and has burst.
Tempo is something that we have watch. MSU will run tempo and not let us get set. We have to be disciplined to hustle between plays. And MacDonald be quick about subbing in. Better to not have ideal personnel than to be scrambling at the snap.
Just a few thoughts to chew on. I'm sure others will have some to add.
When we look back at the other losses in recent years, we had a lot of self inflicted wounds, i.e. turnovers - of course, the blocked punt. Poor OL play, where there was literally a jail break (pun intended) on our QBs. So, number one, I expect our OL and offense to do a better job protecting Cade, and our run game should be a stabilizing factor. We've been sound on the turnover front. Keep it that way. No short fields.
The Nebraska game in front of a raucous crowd was a good prep for the game at Spartan Stadium. We did a pretty good job of communicating on offense. A few of the hiccups might be attributed to NU defense clapping to mimic our signals.
On defense, I thought that MSU's OL looked less than stellar, especially after a couple of holding calls in the IU game. IU didn't allow the deep ball and the yards that MSU got on the ground were limited and due to individual effort. Thorne's ability to scramble and run on designed plays is an X factor. Hats to the ball is crucial because Walker breaks tackles and has burst.
Tempo is something that we have watch. MSU will run tempo and not let us get set. We have to be disciplined to hustle between plays. And MacDonald be quick about subbing in. Better to not have ideal personnel than to be scrambling at the snap.
Just a few thoughts to chew on. I'm sure others will have some to add.
