Saunders Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Athlon Sports Mark Dantonio has transformed Michigan State into one of the nation’s top programs in recent years. The Spartans have claimed at least 11 wins in four out of the last five years and finished No. 3 nationally in 2013. Dantonio’s team is poised for another run at the Big Ten title, especially with senior quarterback Connor Cook back under center. But the big question for Michigan State is on defense with a secondary that loses its top two players from last year and lost coordinator Pat Narduzzi. http://athlonsports.com/college-football/top-25/michigan-state-spartans-2015-preview-and-prediction#sthash.pma14JyW.dpuf Magazine says: 10-2 (6-2) 2nd in Big Ten East SBNation: Michigan State, one of the country's steadiest winners. Imagine saying that a decade ago. Sixteen years ago, Nick Saban left East Lansing for Baton Rouge, starting a seven-year period of frustration and the "Sparty, No!" meme. Under Bobby Williams and John L. Smith, the Spartans put a lot of individual talent on the field, dropped hints of excellent play, and went 38-45. From 2002-06, they went 4-14 in games decided by one possession. Nobody snatched disappointment from the jaws of hope as frequently as early-aughts Sparty. "Sparty, No!" is dead. Seven years of sadness have been swallowed up by eight years of growth. Sure, there have still been disappointments, but from a quality standpoint, the job Dantonio has done has been stunning. He inherited a team that had ranked 75th in the F/+ rankings in 2006 and engineered the following run: 26th, 32nd, 31st, 31st, 14th, 20th, 12th, 11th. http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2015/6/5/8713243/michigan-state-football-2015-preview-schedule-roster Scout.com: Michigan State is coming very, very close to superpower status. Michigan State is coming very, very close to superpower status – at least in the modern view – but it needs to take that one last step forward. It’s been close, but it’s not there yet. With 11 wins or more in four of the last five seasons, at the very least, Mark Dantonio is putting together one of the most successful runs in schools history. And there’s room to do a little more. The back-to-back 1965-1966 campaigns might have been the a great quick burst – going 19-1-1 – but it lost the 1966 Rose Bowl, tied Notre Dame at the end of ’66, and beat a whole slew of awful teams. The program was a powerhouse from 1950 to 1954, going 35-2 and with a Rose Bowl victory to cap off the ’53 season, but what’s going on now is larger and on a bigger scale. One more season like the last two, and yeah, this really will be the Golden Age of Spartan football. http://cfn.scout.com/2/1558593.html More to come... 1 Quote Link to comment
Saunders Posted June 5, 2015 Author Share Posted June 5, 2015 Added SBNation Preview Quote Link to comment
NUinID Posted June 5, 2015 Share Posted June 5, 2015 I think Sparty may win the East this year. I think all the pieces are there. The defense is veteran enough that I don't think they will miss Narduczzi's departure. He will be missed after this year. Quote Link to comment
Saunders Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 Added Scout.com preview. They really like Sparty. Quote Link to comment
Hammerhead Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Could be a little more interesting with Narduzzi out of the picture, but I don't think Michigan State will lose a whole lot of steam from it. Quote Link to comment
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