SI’s Mandell picks Spartans as his Big Ten sleeper
Michigan State seems to be someone’s “sleeper” pick to win the Big Ten almost every season. We’ve decided that it’s mostly because they’re never the obvious choice and the Spartans are so unpredictable that writers believe one year they’re bound to get it together. This season, Sports Illustrated’s Stewart Mandel jumps on the MSU bandwagon.
It seems like every year a Big Ten team from the lower echelon ends up fighting for the league title. Is there any such team that could put a decent season together and beat Ohio State or Michigan?
–Larry Hammons II, Sylvania, OhioThat team, this year, is Michigan State. I realize it’s a risky thing to say, what with the Spartans’ long and illustrious history of choke-jobs, but there are several reasons to believe this could be the Spartans’ year. First of all, Drew Stanton is still Drew Stanton. He fell off the map the second half of last season when he and his team imploded, but few people realize he was hurt so badly down the stretch that he was barely practicing. The guy is a phenomenal, dual-threat QB whose supporting cast — led by sophomore running back Javon Ringer — should be a lot stronger this year.
Obviously, offense wasn’t the cause of MSU’s undoing last season. That would be their dreadful defense and special teams. In an effort to upgrade the defense, the Spartans have plugged three juco transfers into the starting lineup — strong safety Nehemiah Warrick (who observers believe will be an All-Big Ten type player) and D-linemen Ervin Baldwin and Ogemdi Nwagbuo. The most important newcomer, however, may be freshman kicker Brett Swenson, who, if he hits just half his field goals, will already be a dramatic improvement over the Spartans’ 5-of-16 performance last season.