Hail to The Victors : The Michigan State Spartans Deliver The Goods In Ann Arbor

Hail to The Victors : The Michigan State Spartans Deliver The Goods In Ann Arbor. Patrick Yore of SpartyOn.com - Saturday, October 25th, 2008, Ann Arbor, Michigan

This beautiful fall day in Michigan had many sights and sounds that will be remembered and resound for a very long time. Beating a 2-5 team normally doesn't mean a whole lot, but today was special. Here are the images that will bring many a Spartan joy and haunt Wolverine fans forever...


Sparty Gets a Huge Tackle

Brian Hoyer tagged Blair White and burned UM for a 61 yard touchdown that ended with White running directly into the clutch of Sparty, Michigan State's brut mascot. Against a sea of green and white, the Spartan Marching Band was in that corner of the endzone too, and were so excited they rushed to gain composure and play the fight song in celebration.


Brandon Graham Eats Dirt and His Words

With about 2 minutes left in the first half, Javon Ringer jumped to the outside and jumped back in the Heisman race. Javon hit the line, spun outside and ran away from the entire UM defense for a 64 yard burn to his 15th rushing TD of the season. UM made an inept effort to chase him down, and guess who fell flat on his face, failing to catch Ringer as he crossed into the endzone? Mr. Brandon Graham who guaranteed a Michigan win. I wonder who had a more enjoyable view of that play. Graham with a face full of turf, or Mike Hurt, his brother in BS?


Sam McGuffie Gets Welcomed to The Big Ten

FIrst of all, no one, including me, wants to see anyone get hurt. Sam "Hopalong" McGuffie was UMs leading rusher coming into the game averaging like 65 yards. He had 10 yards rushing today. One run ended in a crushing fashion between three MSU defenders. Vary scary to watch, this clean attack was a great example of how violent the hits are delivered by The Spartan Defense. Sam, please report back to your brothers in The Big 12 how much you enjoyed your first rivalry game against State. Please post a response to let us know if this guy's ok.


Javon Ringer rips off 10 yarders late in the 4th

Michigan defense is normally a force to be reckoned with. Michigan was supposed to have some voodoo conditioning system that would overwhelm opponents late in the game. Watch State's last two drives and you will see a beautiful illustration of heart, soul, teamwork and sheer power.


Mark Dantonio's Smile

Mr. D couldn't help it. However much he tried, however much he preached that the game isn't over until it's over, he cracked a huge smile with around a minute left in the game. Maybe it was converting a 4th and 1 to seal the victory? Whatever he was thinking about, he wasn't smug. He wasn't waving a fist in his opponents face. In fact, he wasn't even looking at the other sideline. He was facing his players and his assistant coaches, knowing that his team of great young men came together and did what they were asked and supposed to do all day, up and down the field marked with a huge block M.

______________________________________________________________


An observation... Much has been made about how UM has many excuses as to why they are so pitiful this year. Mainly that it's Rod's first year and that they lost so many players. The next time you give UM a free pass on these grounds, remember a few of the Spartans who were missing from the roster this year including Devin Thomas, Drew Stanton, SirDarean Adams, Mike Bacon, Ervin Baldwin, Jehuu Caulcrick, Peter Clifford, Kellen Davis, Kaleb Thornhill, etc. Also reflect on where MSUs program was at the end of 2006 with John L. Smith, when a new coach walked onto campus at Michigan State then in HIS first year went 7-6, took his team to a bowl in Florida and barely lost to the #10 ranked team in the country.

______________________________________________________________


The Bottom Line :

- The game was the 101st meeting of the two schools

- Final score = 35 to 14. Any questions about this, refer to this article

- Javon Ringer rushed for 194 yards, scored 2 TDs including a 64 yard run. Sam McGuffie, UMs leading rusher in 2008 had ten yards total

- MSUs Trevor Anderson had 3 sacks

- Blair White, a walk on at MSU, had 143 yards receiving on 4 receptions including a 61-yard long TD catch and run on State's first possession

- Brian Hoyer went 17 for 29 and 282 yards, with 3TDs and no interceptions. UMs Threet completed 48.1% for 168 yards and was intercepted 3 times

Good game Wolverines, Victory for MSU!

___________________________
visit www.SpartyOn.com

MSU v UM : What a Joke!

Four football fans go rock climbing one afternoon, a Michigan fan, a Michigan State fan, a Notre Dame fan, and a Penn State fan. They had been arguing all the way up the mountain about who among them was the most 'die-hard' fan. Upon reaching the top the mountain, the Notre Dame fan proclaimed to the others... "This is for the fighting Irish!" and promptly threw himself off the mountain as a form of sacrifice. Not to be outdone by a Notre Dame fan, the Penn State fan jumped up and shouted... "This is for the Nittany Lions!" and then threw himself off the mountain. Refusing to be outdone by the Notre Dame and Penn State fans, the Michigan State fan rose to his feet and yelled at the top of his lungs "This is for the Spartans!" and without any hesitation, pushed the Michigan fan off the mountain.

Thank you to David Landis for the levity in this serious moment in time.

GO GREEN.

Are You There God? It's Me, Sparty...

Sparty: Hello God. It's me, Sparty. What are we doing wrong, God? How have we displeased you? Unlike our brothers in blue to the east, we try to be humble. We don't regale ourselves in gold and too many fine German sports coupes. We are men of the earth who strive to make this gift of the world a better place.

What will it take for us to win on Saturday, God, and make those maize and blues eat their proverbial crow, o glorious one?

God: Thou must keep it simple, my Spartan son. What are the simple keys to how Michigan State can beat UM Saturday, you ask? Stick to this, and ye shall prevail. Waver far from the course, and it may be another long year. (By the way, when I said I made man in my image, I was definitely thinking of you, Sparty.)


1. Score First - Take the ball if you win the coin toss and score first. Whomever can score first will set the tone for the whole day. UM's fans have been known to turn on their own teams on a dime, and if State can score quickly and confidently, the mood will be deflated. (See Wisconsin game this year).

2. Run Up the Middle - Take it straight to them. Do it again. Then do it again.

3. Run to the Outside - Give Javon the ball off tackle. We've all seen the trap blocking in the middle that takes way too long. Let the man run wild.

4. Pressure Defense - Put a ton of people on the line, right in Threet's face. Make him throw too soon. Put him on his back. Plug up the inside where the hoss Minor can bowl over people once he's up to speed.

5. Tackle - I'm not talking about diving for a running back's knees or pushing someone out of bounds. I'm talking about wrapping them up and driving a shoulder through to their spine on every play, every down.

6. Confuse UM's O-Line - Watch the Penn State game. It's UM's Achilles' Beer Gut.

7. Let It Rain - Michigan's Keystone Cop offense will look even more bumbling in the rain. Inclement weather always favors a team that runs well, and this can be summed up by the name Javon.


May the best team win, my son. Just know I'll be sporting my green tunic tomorrow. The rest is up to you.

__________________________

Author's Note

This game is kind of a perfect storm, a perfect setup if you will. MSU, who almost always came in as the underdog for years, is now favored. UM has become the laughingstock of the entire NCAA, their fans boo their own team off the field, and Rich "DickRod" Rodriguez is making John L. Smith look like a rootin' tootin' genius.

Which team has more to prove, or to lose, for that matter? One that can go 7-1 and finally shatter their Sisyphus complex, or another that can claim their whole season redeemed by playing spoiler to their rivals?

Luckily, last weekend's loss by MSU to OSU will give the Wolverines a false sense of hope and give the Spartans even more venom to bring to the trenches.


Strap it up, gentlemen—let's finally let the hitting do the talking.

For that special UofM fanon your Christmas List...

Northwestern : Wildcats or Just Puss' in Boots?

SpartyOn.com Week 7 Pregame Checkdown : Don't Believe the Hype : MSU vs Northwestern

When it comes to the Northwestern Wildcats versus Michigan State Spartans this weekend, don't believe the hype. If you read the blogs, sports websites and papers, the game is supposed to be a shootout between two leaders in the Big Ten. One will be proven unworthy of their lofty perch, and I'm thinking a lot of purple-wearing people are going to be Green with envy when the clock hits zero.

We all know about NCAA rushing leader Javon Ringer and last year's offensive explosion by C.J. Bacher, but let's look at the lesser known facts that will make the true difference...


Northwestern :

- Opponents have 10 combined wins in 26 games including Syracuse 1-4, Ohio 1-5
- Beat Duke, that perennial powerhouse by a walloping four points
- Northwestern's D-line has 17 sacks already this season, that's great, but MSU's offensive line has only given up only two sacks in six games, that's right, two
- Shonn Greene had 159 yards rushing against NW and averaged 7.6 yards per carry which bodes well for Ringer
- Running back Tyrell Sutton did not practice Wednesday


Michigan State :

- Chicago is full of Spartan graduates and the Northwestern stadium is definitely not an imposing place to play
- Hoyer, Dell and B.J. Cunningham are on track to make defenses think twice about keying on Javon every play. Confusion in a defense kills.
- MSU's defensive backs will get multiple interceptions in the game not only because of their tenacity and intelligence, but because of the new-found strength of their brothers up front like Trevor Anderson on the Spartan D-line putting pressure on QBs and forcing errors
- When it comes to close games, a great kicker is solid gold. Enter Brett Swenson, 12 for 13 on the year.
- Don't get too excited about the Spartans being banged up, according to the official depth chart for Saturday, MSU is at full strength at every position, including Otis Wiley.

It has been two weeks since Northwestern have given or taken a real hit. Last Saturday, the 'Wild' cats (on their bye weekend) sat around their dorm rooms watching MSU gel even tighter as a solid team and emerge from a knock-down street fight with a very respectable Iowa team stronger, more confident, and ready to take on all comers. The bumps and bruises sustained in that game will only fuel Michigan State's desire to dominate in Evanston on Saturday.


Predictions :

Javon goes for 200+, Bacher gets sacked at least three times and is picked off twice

MSU 37 - Northwestern 21


www.SpartyOn.com

GO GREEN! GO WHITE! Obama Chants with the Spartan Faithful at Campaign Rally

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Close to 20,000 people, many of them Michigan State University students, roared as Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama took the stage at an outdoor rally in the middle of campus near Beaumont tower.

Shortly after taking the stage, the Illinois senator rallied the East Lansing crowd by yelling, "Go green!" and the audience roared back, "Go white!"

Obama also said he was excited to be at Magic Johnson's alma mater and to meet Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo. He held up a green-and-white basketball jersey with "Obama 08" on it.

The Michigan State stop followed a morning rally in Grand Rapids, where nearly 16,000 people turned out to see Obama.