Michigan State headed to Notre Dame a week ago with plenty of questions to be answered, chief among them whether fifth-year senior quarterback Tyler O’Connor could effectively move the offense behind a revamped offensive line and could the Spartans find enough playmakers on both sides of the ball.
Heading into this week’s Big Ten opener against Wisconsin, it appears many of the questions have been answered in the affirmative after a win over Notre Dame that was dominant at times and has Michigan State thinking about repeating as Big Ten champions.
“You know, you don’t really form an identity on a football team until mid-year and then you finish it out,” Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said. “That’s my opinion. You finish it out at the end of the year and at the end of November and figure out who you were. We’ve always said that here and so we’re not jumping to any conclusions, I just think we played very well and respect how our guys played. We competed.”
They certainly competed and in the process, the Spartans not only convinced many around college football that they are a team to be reckoned with, they also proved a little something to themselves.
“The biggest thing from this game is it gives guys confidence, coming in here and playing as well as we did,” senior linebacker Riley Bullough said. “We could’ve put the throttle down a little bit more. But it’s a win, and it’s a tough place to win.
“Notre Dame is a tough team and they’ve got great players. We knew they would keep playing. We were playing hard but they were making plays. We knew a team like Notre Dame would do that so we had to keep playing hard and finish it up.”
Before Michigan State finished up by holding off a Notre Dame rally, plenty of those questions were being answered in the process of scoring 36 straight points.
O’Connor, save from one poor throw that was tipped and intercepted, was efficient and moved the offense well, throwing for 241 yards and two touchdowns while the offensive line merely paved the way for 260 rushing yards and didn’t allow a sack. Senior receiver R.J. Shelton was his steady self, but freshman Donnie Corley emerged with his first career touchdown catch to highlight a four-catch night for 88 yards.
On the defensive side, the return of junior linebacker Jon Reschke, who missed the opener with an injury, proved to be a big difference. He led the team with eight tackles while forcing a fumble and intercepting a pass.
“I think he played with a great deal of passion and toughness and was all over the place with the tackle for loss and the caused fumble and the interception,” Dantonio said. “I thought he played very well and I thought he provided a spark for us as well, but we had a lot of guys playing hard. It was great to see and I thought we had a lot of guys playing with confidence.”
That confidence can only help moving forward as Michigan State takes on a Wisconsin team that is strong defensively but has had some trouble scoring. The Badgers also will be making a change at quarterback after redshirt freshman Alex Hornibrook replaced fifth-year senior Bart Houston last week in a win over Georgia State.
NOTES, QUOTES
PLAYERS TO WATCH
–WR Donnie Corley had a breakout game against Notre Dame as the freshman scored his first career touchdown, grabbing the ball from Fighting Irish cornerback Cole Luck in the corner of the end zone for MSU’s first score of the game. The Spartans are targeting Corley more each game and he should continue to be a large part of the offensive game plan.
–RB LJ Scott will once again be counted on to carry the load and it will be far from an easy go for the sophomore as Wisconsin has the top total defense in the Big Ten and the second-best rushing defense. Scott finished with 98 yards and a touchdown against Notre Dame and will be counted on to get tough yardage against the Badgers.
–DT Malik McDowell is, not surprisingly, causing all sorts of trouble for opposing defenses. The junior beat double-teams consistently against Notre Dame but showed some signs of fatigue late in the game. The Spartans could spell him a bit more moving forward, but there’s no doubt he’ll continue to be the heart of the defensive line.
–CB Darian Hicks has been a favorite target of plenty of quarterbacks over the past couple of seasons and that won’t change for the senior as sophomore Vayante Copeland has things locked down on the other side. Sophomore Tyson Smith has been seeing extra time, but Hicks played well against the Irish, something that could boost his confidence.
–LB Ed Davis got back on the field for the first time in more than a year against Notre Dame after missing all of 2015 with a knee injury. His time was limited, but that should steadily increase as the Spartans look to spark the pass rush, something Davis has excelled at throughout his career.